The Rev. Dr. Mike Gemignani, a mathematician and composer of liturgical music who spent more than a decade in academia before becoming a priest, died May 31 at 86.
He was a native of Baltimore, and an alumnus of the University of Rochester, the University of Notre Dame (from which he earned a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in mathematics), and the University of Indiana School of Law.
He was ordained deacon in 1973 and priest in 1974. He served most of his years in Texas, but also in Indiana and Maine. He was chaplain to Daughters of the King in the Diocese of Texas. He composed seven liturgical songs that were published by the World Library of Sacred Music and J.S. Paluch.
He wrote books and articles on mathematics, calculus and statistics, axiomatic geometry, computer law, Alzheimer’s disease, and spiritual formation. He was a certified community health worker and certified long-term care ombudsman, and was active in protecting the rights of the elderly.
He is survived by a brother, three children, and two grandchildren.
The Rev. John Harnish Loving, a U.S. Army veteran, musician, and ecumenist, died May 16 at 85.
He was a native of Richmond, Virginia, and a graduate of the University of Richmond and General Theological Seminary. He served in the U.S. Army Security Agency in Monterey, California, and Frankfurt, Germany, from 1961 to 1964, between completing college and attending seminary.
He was ordained deacon in 1967 and priest in 1968, and served multiple churches in the dioceses of Texas, West Texas, and Northwest Texas. He served parishes in Oklahoma and Virginia before his ministry in Texas. After retiring, he continued serving as an interim priest and in supply ministry until he was 80.
While he was rector at Emmanuel Church in San Angelo, Texas, the parish formed a companion relationship with St. Andrew’s Russian Orthodox Church in St. Petersburg after the fall of the Soviet Union. He and his wife made several trips to Russia and led two tour groups there. He was a supply priest for one month at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in Moscow.
As a pianist and organist, he loved the music and liturgy of the Episcopal Church and was a passionate opera fan.
He is survived by Nancy, his wife of 56 years, a sister, two sons, and three grandchildren.
The Rev. Marie Odgers, who began ministry as a deacon after supporting her husband’s ministry as a United Methodist pastor for decades, died June 10 at 91.
She was a native of Fremont, Nebraska, and a graduate of Nebraska Wesleyan University. She married her husband, Richard, on the same day that she graduated from NWU. Her husband served in seven Nebraska churches from 1958 to 1993.
They retired to Lincoln, and she returned to Nebraska Wesleyan to complete an associate’s degree in library science. She was ordained to the diaconate in 2010, and served at St. David’s, Lincoln, alongside Deacon Sarah Grubb.
She was active in Girl Scouts from 1941 until 2017 — serving at camp, leading troops, and working as an employee of a Guiding Star Council. Her childhood dream was to visit Our Chalet in Switzerland, the original worldwide site for Girl Scouts and Girl Guides. She fulfilled that dream three times as an adult.
She is survived a son, a daughter, and a granddaughter.
Other Deaths
The Rev. Arthur Cameron Chard, May 17
The Rev. David Elsensohn, June 27
The Rev. Dr. Donald William Kimmick, Ed.D., July 6
The Rev. Peter David Mackey, June 19
The Rev. Deacon Everett Powell, May 18