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Fr. Richard Madden
Father Richard Madden, O.C.D. (February 16, 1924 - June 16, 2012) was born in Philadelphia, one of the seven sons of Jim and Ann Meehan Madden. He attended seminary at the Holy Hill Monastery in Mi...view moreFather Richard Madden, O.C.D. (February 16, 1924 - June 16, 2012) was born in Philadelphia, one of the seven sons of Jim and Ann Meehan Madden. He attended seminary at the Holy Hill Monastery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and was ordained a Discalced Carmelite in 1949. He then served as its Vocational Director and was also a resident at the Carmelite Monastery in Washington D.C. while teaching at Catholic University.
In 1955, he was assigned the task of establishing a Carmelite Monastery in Youngstown, which became a place of reflection and community for not only members of the Carmelite Order but for many of the area faithful who would attend Mass there.
Fr. Madden was a renowned teacher and lecturer who gave hundreds of speeches and conducted numerous retreats throughout 48 of the 50 states and for the U.S. Air Force in Turkey. He was the author three books: “Men in Sandals,” which became a bestseller; “Life of Christ”; and “A Boy in his Teens.” He also published many articles in journals, newspapers and magazines including TIME, wrote a weekly advice column for Hi Time magazine for 16 years, which was read by millions of teenagers, and was the editor of Mount Carmel Magazine.
In addition to his priestly duties, he served as President and Chairman of the board of the WRTA, operation supervisor for the U.S. Census for Mahoning and Trumbull counties, hosted the Youngstown Safety Councils monthly radio show, was defensive driving instructor, served as chaplain for the Youngstown Fire Department, was a member of the Youngstown Drug Commission, and was a member of the Youngstown Air Base Council. He was instrumental in procuring air transport for the locally based charity “Mission of Love.”
Along with Gil McDougal of the New York Yankees and then-World Heavy-weight champion Floyd Patterson, Fr. Madden was the recipient of the Don Bosco Award for his National Influence over Catholic youth.
He died in Youngstown in 2012 aged 88.view less