Fr. Warren Rector, OFM: A Franciscan comforter and consoler to the sick

Fr. Warren Rector, OFM, 84, of Burlington, Wisconsin, passed away on Sept. 28, 2026, following a battle with colon cancer. For more than six decades, he devoted his life to living the Gospel in the Franciscan tradition, accompanying people through some of life's most difficult moments. Best known for his ministry among the sick, dying and poor, he became a source of comfort, consolation and spiritual strength to countless individuals, families and Franciscan sisters. His ministry was marked by the quiet, faithful service that lies at the heart of the Franciscan vocation.

Born Edward to Michael and Genevieve (née Raniszewski) Rector in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 29, 1941, his name was later changed to Warren under circumstances lost to memory. Fr. Warren's vocation began taking shape during his childhood years at Holy Trinity Catholic School in his hometown. Inspired by the Franciscan friars who preached parish missions and encouraged by the Bernadine Sisters, he entered the legacy Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Province in 1959 after graduating from St. Pius X High School in nearby Pottstown. He professed solemn vows on Aug. 15, 1964, and was ordained to the priesthood on May 25, 1968.

Fr. Warren initially served as a teacher at St. Joseph Brothers School in Pulaski, Wisconsin. Although education was not destined to become his life's primary ministry, these years revealed his dedication to serving wherever he was called. In 1970, he was assigned to Queen of Peace Friary in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, where he experienced what he later described as some of the happiest years of his religious life.

At Lake Geneva, Fr. Warren served as assistant librarian and later librarian, helping support the continuing education of friars throughout the province. At the same time, he assisted in nearby parishes: St. Joseph in Lyons, and its mission church St. Killian, St. Benedict in Fontana (where he also taught faith formation), St. Francis de Sales in Lake Geneva, and St. Hyacinth Parish in Chicago. He served the friary as treasurer and was spiritual assistant to the local Secular Franciscan Order fraternity for five years.

A major turning point came in 1981 when Fr. Warren was invited to substitute for Franciscan chaplains at St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay, Wisconsin. What began as a temporary assignment evolved into a vocation within a vocation. After completing clinical pastoral education and becoming a certified hospital chaplain, he dedicated himself to serving the sick, dying and grieving.

For nearly a decade in Green Bay and 18 years at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, New Jersey, Fr. Warren became the compassionate presence of Christ to patients and families facing illness, fear and death. Fr. Warren's work among the poor and marginalized population of Camden demonstrated the Franciscan commitment to stand alongside those living on the edges of society. In a city marked by poverty and hardship, he served not only as a chaplain but also as a witness to God's mercy and compassion. He accompanied people through suffering, offered prayers at bedsides, comforted grieving loved ones and helped many prepare spiritually for their journey home to God. He also became the primary caregiver to his ailing father.

From 2008 to 2017, Fr. Warren served as chaplain for the Franciscan sisters of Chicago, and for three years after that he provided spiritual support to the Felician Sisters in Chicago.

Before his retirement in 2022, he served two years at the Assumption Blessed Virgin Friary in Pulaski and provided sacramental support to nearby parishes.

His legacy endures in the lives he touched, the patients he comforted, the families he consoled and the friars with whom he shared community. In the spirit of St. Francis, Fr. Warren left a lasting imprint of a life faithfully given in service to God and His people.

He is survived by his brother Kenneth; four nieces: Audrey Tignor, Carolyn Smith, Julie Orner and Joanna Moore; a nephew Andrew Rector; and a grand-niece Meredith Tigor. He is further survived by other family and friends, and by his Franciscan brothers of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Fr. Warren was preceded in death by his parents: Michael and Genevieve and his brother Michael Rector III.

Fr. Warren will be celebrated on Monday, October 5, 2026 at the Queen of Peace Friary at 2281 Browns Lake Drive, Burlington with a Welcoming Ceremony at 4:00PM, followed by the Office of the Dead at 5:00PM and a Vigil Service at 7:30PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at 10:30AM at THE FRIARY.

Friends may gather at Marnocha Funeral Home,186 E. Pulaski St., Pulaski, on Wednesday, October 7, for a recitation of the Rosary at 11:00 a.m. Interment will be in Provincial Cemetery, Pulaski, at 11:30 a.m.