Prayers for Rev. Mervin Jerome Coulas

It is with sadness that we inform you of the passing of Rev. Mervin Coulas, who was a member of our Society and a priest of the Diocese of Pembroke.

Obituary of Rev. Coulas

Fortified by the Sacraments of the Church and surrounded with prayer, Reverend Mervin Paul Jerome Coulas passed away at the Pembroke Regional Hospital on August 6, the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, after 62 years of Priesthood. Born on June 25, 1938, as the only child of Paul and Laura (Roy) Coulas. Raised and educated in Barry’s Bay, he received his seminary formation and studies at St. Augustine Seminary in Toronto. Father Coulas received Ordination to the Priesthood in his home parish of St. Hedwig in Barry’s Bay on May 29, 1963. In his first years of priesthood, he served as assistant priest in Bancroft, Haliburton, Eganville, Golden Lake, St Hedwig’s, Barry’s Bay, Our Lady of Lourdes, Pembroke, Deep River, St Francis Xavier, Renfrew, and Most Holy Name of Jesus, Pembroke. He served as pastor and administrator in Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Brudenell, St. Casmir Parish, Round Lake, Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Renfrew and St. Lawrence O’Toole Parish in Barry’s Bay. In addition to his parish ministry, Father Coulas pursued studies in the humanities at Laurentian University in Sudbury and a licentiate in canon law at St. Paul University in Ottawa in 1978. In 1974 he was appointed as Director of Vocations for the Diocese of Pembroke, a role that he carried out until 1999. Father Coulas served for 12 years as a trustee of the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board, spiritual director to the Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse, chaplain to branches of the Knights of Columbus, Catholic Women’s League, Royal Canadian Legion and a member of the Canon Law Society of Canada. He also served as president and board member of the Alumni Association of St. Augustine Seminary. Father Coulas was keenly interested in the history and culture of the Kashub people in Pembroke Diocese. Rite of Reception will take place at St. Hedwig Church, Barry’s Bay on Monday, August 11 at 3:00p.m., followed by public visitation until 7:00p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St Hedwig Church on Tuesday, August 12 at 1:00p.m. with the Most Reverend Michael Brehl, C.Ss.R. as the principal celebrant. Interment to follow in the family plot at St. Hedwig Cemetery. Arrangements in the care of the Heubner Funeral Home, Barry’s Bay.