“Good morning. My name is Deacon Tom Barford, and I would like to say how proud I am that Father asked me to give the homily at his funeral. You need to know that he also gave me instructions: ‘Keep it simple.’
“First, I’d like to offer my deepest condolences to Monsignor Ed’s brothers, William, Joseph and James, and their wives, Jean, Elaine and Linda, and to his nieces and nephews and all the extended family and friends. The loss of a member of our family introduces a void, an emptiness, which nothing, no other person, can replace. But through faith, as our life goes on, we will come to celebrate Monsignor Fairchild’s rebirth to everlasting life.
“And I would like to offer my condolences to all of Monsignor’s brother priests and deacons. Father Fairchild was ordained in 1959. He retired from (Westerville) St. Paul Parish, where I was a deacon and his parish administrator.
“When a priest retires, he doesn’t just fade away. He simply stops doing paperwork. For priests never cease to perform the promises of their ordination. They continue by assisting in other parishes where needed. Monsignor Ed was no exception. He never stopped his priestly duties. In fact, he helped here at (Pickerington St. Elizabeth) Seton (Parish) from a wheelchair for many years.
“Anyone who knew Monsignor Ed would appreciate the readings he selected for this Mass. The first reading, from Ecclesiastes, we have to say, ‘Oh yeah, that was Father Ed.’ ‘There is an appointed time for everything and a time for every affair under the heavens.’ Monsignor Ed was the kind of person who was always aware of his emotions and used them wisely.
“‘A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.’ One thing about Father Ed – he would sometimes forget that everybody else did not follow his creed. He would call me at 9 or 10 p.m. to tell me about some litter on the grounds or that the grass needed to be cut. I learned to understand him. He did things and got them out of the way.
“And I can assure you that he held the words from Romans in mind in all of his actions: ‘For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus Our Lord.’ I have always found Monsignor to be a very spiritual and compassionate person. Reading these words reminds me so much of what he taught me, to be a person of service.
“And the words of John in Chapter 14: ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. … I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’ These words, I truly believe, were fulfilled daily by Monsignor Ed.
“While trying to keep it simple, I feel I have to take time to tell you about Monsignor’s four love affairs. His fourth love affair was deer hunting. He would often share the words of George Bernard Shaw, who said, ‘Everyone can see that people who hunt are the right people, and the people who don’t are the wrong people.’ He would tell me about the hours that he spent in a (duck) blind, never even shooting his rifle. All I could think of was, ‘Wow, how exciting.’
“Once I helped when he got a new crossbow. He got a big bale of hay, and he practiced with the crossbow. He had six arrows. Three arrows hit the target, two fell short, and, to this day, no one has found that last arrow. I’m pretty sure it’s up there under the concrete of the driveway somewhere.
“His third love affair was his 1970 Chevy pickup truck. He took me for a ride around Westerville, telling me how he took care of the truck. I smiled a lot, but I have to tell you, I just don’t get into cars and trucks that much. I think he loved his truck because he could carry a big, old deer in back. The truck is gone, but he sold it to someone who would care for it. I’ll bet the stipulation in that sale was that he would get weekend visitations.
“His second love affair – everyone knows this – was his dog, Paulie. At his time of retirement from St. Paul Parish, the school gave him the gift of a dog, a little puppy. The principal, Mrs. O’Flynn, presented it to Monsignor, who immediately named it Paulie. I know that the two of them enjoyed getting old together, and his brothers would agree with me.
“This was his last love affair, his Number One: He had a great love for his family. When I heard that Monsignor died on Christmas Eve, a time that families and friends come together to celebrate their love and concern for each other, it was a great sign to me. His greatest love was for his family. He dearly loved his parents and his brothers.
“His brothers – I think they still do this – have lunch or dinner together once a month. The entire family used to go on vacation to Indian Lake for a week each year. And his love of family did not stop with his immediate family. He kept in touch with the priests that he knew, with some of his high school classmates and even one in his grade school class. His love extended to my family and to anyone who asked for his help.
“Monsignor Ed, like all priests, moved to different parishes throughout their priesthood and held other positions in the diocese. But we all know that the two most important positions Monsignor Ed held were, first, as the founding pastor of Seton Parish. He dearly loved everyone here as a family. Second – this is just my opinion – was as pastor of St. Paul in Westerville.
“I have always known Monsignor Fairchild as a humble priest who did not push to be assigned to any one parish, but served the bishops of Columbus by going where he was needed – from Bishop Issenmann, who ordained him in 1959, to Bishops Herrmann, Griffin – who is here with us today – and Bishop Campbell. Monsignor Ed has always loved his God, his church and his entire family.
“We come together today as one family in Christ, all of us brought together by Father. We are brothers and sisters, we are his brother priests, his brother deacons, we are his nephews and nieces, we are his brother and sister parishioners, we are his extended family and friends. So as a loving family, let us focus now on the grace of this Eucharistic celebration and the communion we are about to share with one another.
“May the real presence of Christ give us the love and strength to be models of our faith, as Father Ed has taught us throughout his life and ours, and to treat all who we meet as family, remembering always, as he taught us, ‘The best is yet to come.’”
