Reverend Roger Lee Prokop, retired Roman Catholic Priest of the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan, died at his home in Anderson, SC, on Friday, May 22, 2009, following a long battle with brain cancer.

Father Roger was born on May 17, 1935 in Elmira, New York.  The second son and third child of Stephen and Jeanette (Pitts) Prokop, he graduated from Elmira Free Academy in 1953 and Hamilton College, Clinton, New York in 1957.  He then continued his education at the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church in New York City where he received a Master of Theology in 1960.  He was ordained in the Episcopal Church on June 4, 1960 and served as an Episcopal clergyman in New York until 1968. In the mid-1960s he did Civil Rights Work in Mississippi and Westchester County, New York. 

In 1968 he was admitted into a master’s program at Harvard with the unusual classification of “special studies.”  His degree was granted in 1970 simultaneously by the Graduate School of Arts and Science and the Graduate School of Education.  From 1970 to 1976 he was on the faculty of a co-ed affiliate college of the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, teaching a variety of subjects related to religion, psychology, sociology, and education.  In 1976 he began a sabbatical year at The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor that resulted in leaving his Canadian position and completing a Ph.D. in 1984.  His dissertation combined his many interests; its title: Literary Fiction for Sociology, Psychology and Gerontology:  The Human Perspective Revealed.  He always described it as a joy to write; it won several awards.  During this period he also held a half-time appointment at the University of Michigan Institute of Gerontology and served as rector of St. Clement Episcopal Church, an African-American Episcopal Church in Inkster, Michigan. 

In 1986, after many years of prayer and reflection he left the Episcopal Church and entered the Catholic Church.  After a few months of study at St. John’s Provincial Seminary in Plymouth, Michigan, he was ordained a Catholic priest on June 13, 1987.  He served in the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan until his retirement in 2005. From 1987 to 1989 he served as Parochial Vicar of St. Casimir Catholic Parish in Lansing, Michigan.  In 1989 he became the pastor of St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, Saline, Michigan.  In 1993, he became pastor of a large parish, St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  In 2005 he retired and became the “first, ever” priest associate of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in Rock Hill, South Carolina.  He lived in a house near the Oratory and prayed, dined and socialized with the Oratorians.  As a retired priest, he served part-time in the Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina serving parishes in York and Oconee Counties until he was diagnosed with a brain tumor in May 2007. In York County he celebrated weekday mass at one of the Oratory’s five parishes, St. Anne Catholic Church, and on the weekends he served as part of the Catholic ministry team at the Parish of Saints Andrew, Paul, and Francis, Clemson, South Carolina.

For the past two years, Father Roger lived with dear friends, Lewie and Lisa (Baker) Reece. They graciously provided a home and warm, loving care as he went through brain cancer treatment.  During that time he was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of completing a novel, In the Bliss of His Memory, now in print.  More about Father Prokop’s journey with brain cancer can be found at www.frprokop.com.

Reverend Prokop was preceded in death by his mother and father. He is survived by his sister, Mrs. Beverly Stillwell of Melbourne, Florida, his brother, Dr. Bradford Prokop of Ft. Myers, Florida, two nieces and four nephews. He is also survived by many dear friends, brother priests, and parishoners to whom he dedicated his life in service and love.

Services are scheduled in Seneca and Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Elmira, New York.  On Tuesday, May 26, 2009 a Memorial Mass will be held at St. Paul’s Catholic Church, Seneca, SC at 7:00 p.m. On Thursday, May 28th, a viewing and visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. followed by the Office of the Dead at 7:00 p.m. at the Church of Our Lady and St. Philip Neri at The Oratory, Rock Hill, SC. A second viewing and visitation will be held on Friday, May 29th from 10:00 am until Noon, followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at Noon at The Church of Our Lady and St. Philip Neri at The Oratory, Rock Hill, SC. On Tuesday, June 2, 2009, a viewing and visitation will be held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Elmira, NY from 10:00 am until Noon, followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at Noon. Interment will be at Woodlawn Cemetery, Elmira, NY.

A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, Ann Arbor, Michigan on June 23, 2009 at 11:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, Fr. Roger requested donations be made to National Right to Life (http://www.nrlc.org/), St. Thomas Elementary School, Ann Arbor, Michigan (http://www.saintts.com/), or The Oratory of St. Philip Neri, Rock Hill, South Carolina (http://www.rockhilloratory.org/).