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Fr. Portmann: Priest, friend and veteran
By Gina Keating, news@catholicsun.org
December 4, 2008
Fr. Frederick Joseph Portmann, Jr., a man who embodied the spirit of service to God, country and neighbor, died Nov. 17. He was 88.
“He was a generous caring human being whose entire life was one of service,” said John Jackubczyk, board member and former president of Arizona Right to Life.
Jackubczyk and Fr. Portmann’s friendship spanned nearly 30 years, starting when the priest was completing his studies for his ordination at the age of 60.
“He was a priest who cared about his parishioners,” Jackubczyk said. “He always made himself available to provide assistance to those who had difficulty with addiction.”
Although Fr. Portmann was born in Washington State, he lived his life in Arizona before joining the U.S. Army.
A veteran of World War II and the Korean War, Fr. Portmann was a retired U.S. Army Colonel.
He was a life member of the Retired Officers’ Association, an emeritus member of the American Hospital Association and the Knights of Columbus.
“I will miss his presence,” said Franciscan Father Larry Dolan. “He had a limitless capacity to love.”
Fr. Portmann was an aficionado of pipes and fine cigars, which married well with his gruff exterior.
He was also known for his seven-minute homilies.
“If you can’t say it in seven minutes, sit down,” Jakubczyk recalled him saying. “He was not adverse to stopping the lector in the middle of the reading to instruct the people on what they just heard, either.”
However, Fr. Steven Kunkel, pastor of Christ the King Church in Mesa, where Fr. Portmann served in retirement, recalled a moment when he witnessed the softer side of his friend.
“As the procession led into church one day, Fr. Portmann leaned over to the father of the boy carrying the cross and said, ‘I hope this is the heaviest cross your son has to carry.’”
By and large, Fr. Portmann will be remembered for his service to the Church as an associate and as pastor.
His priestly assignments took him to the communities of Mesa, Phoenix, Sun City, Williams and Chino Valley, where he built the church.
Retirement from the priesthood didn’t slow Fr. Portmann down. He was busier than ever.
He assisted at Christ the King Church and St. Gregory Church in Phoenix. He also supported the works of St. Vincent de Paul and the pro-life movement.
Fr. Portmann is survived by his sisters Yvonne Rousculp and Rosalie Hansen.
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