Msgr. George P. Thompson

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Msgr. George P. Thompson, a former pastor of St. Patrick parish in Bedford and St. Denis in Yonkers who had also served as director of Priest Personnel and director of vocations for the archdiocese, died Nov. 1. He was 78.

Cardinal Dolan celebrated the Funeral Mass Nov. 7 at St. Patrick Church, Bedford. Msgr. Walter J. Niebrzydowski, a retired priest in residence at Guardian Angel and St. Columba parish in Manhattan, delivered the homily.

Msgr. Niebrzydowski remembered his friend—both taught at Cathedral Prep Seminary earlier in their priesthoods—as one who had “a great love of life.”

Msgr. Thompson possessed a keen sense of humor and “was clever on the uptake,” Msgr. Niebrzydowski said. “He could tell a joke extremely well because he had a good gift of mimicry. Just imitating…the people involved was funny. You didn’t have to wait for the punch line. Just his telling of it was funny.”

“He was a calm person and exuded calmness and joy. There was no negativity in him. He was just a good person in a non-showy way.”

He was athletic, a good singer and appreciated the natural beauty of national parks as well as art in galleries and museums. For years, Msgr. Thompson and Msgr. Niebrzydowski traveled together, globally and one year, by car across country, coast to coast. “I was the navigator and he was the driver.”

Above all, he was “a man of prayer,” Msgr. Niebrzydowski recalled. “He took very seriously the celebration of the liturgy” and dutifully prepared his homilies “because he wanted to be a spiritual nourishment to the people” entrusted to his care. “He was a people person, not a paper person. That’s what you want for a pastor to be—focused on serving and serving the flock, the people themselves. He was such a good influence because he was happy in what he was doing, and that’s contagious.”

Msgr. Thompson retired in July 2016 as administrator of St. Patrick’s, where he had served as administrator since 2014, and pastor, 2002-2014.

He was appointed regional vicar of Northern Westchester/Putnam in 2001. He was director of Priest Personnel, 1999-2002, and assistant director, 1993-1999. He was pastor of St. Denis, Yonkers, 1988-1993. He was rector of Cathedral Prep, 1985-1988, and spiritual director, 1974-1985. He was director of vocations, 1969-1974 and assistant director, 1968-1969.

He served as parochial vicar of St. Joseph’s parish, Greenwich Village, 1967-1968, and St. Joseph’s, Glasco, summer 1966.

He lived in retirement at St. Columba parish, Hopewell Junction, 2016-2018, before moving to the Edward Cardinal Egan Pavilion of St. John Vianney Priests Residence in the Bronx.

Born in Brooklyn, he attended St. Raymond’s School, the Bronx, Cathedral Prep and Cathedral College in Manhattan. He continued his studies for the priesthood at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Dunwoodie and the Pontifical North American College in Rome, where he was ordained in 1965. He was named a monsignor in 1986.

Interment was at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne.

Msgr. George P. Thompson