The Reverend Father John Joseph Hunter, 98, former Parochial Vicar of the Church of St. Mary in Poughkeepsie entered eternal life on February 3, 2023.

Born on July 23, 1924, in Cohoes, near Albany, Father Hunter served during World War II in the United States Navy, first as a yeoman and later as an ensign. 

Father Hunter did not begin his vocation until later in life, first caring for his stepmother, and then teaching high school for 30 years, according to a Diocese of Albany publication.

“He finally entered St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers at 58 years old. He was ordained in 1986 in Rome by Blessed Pope John Paul II – a result of being in the right place at the right time.

“He was such a spiritual man and also a people person,” the priest said of the late pope. “He was very friendly. You felt that he was really [like] the Lord because of the way he treated everybody,” the publication reported.

His first assignment was as associate pastor of Holy Spirit in Peekskill. He then became the parochial vicar of Our Lady Queen of Peace, Staten Island, in November 1992, and then the parochial vicar at St. Mary’s in Poughkeepsie in November 1994. Although Father Hunter officially retired in July 1999, remaining parochial vicar at St. Mary’s, he was not considered fully retired until November 2007. He continued to assist at other parishes in unofficial roles.

“The Rev. John Hunter walked down the aisle of St. John the Baptist Church after Sunday Mass wearing a captain’s hat.

“Parishioners followed after him, many wiping away tears, to say goodbye and thank you to their leader.

“Parishioners at St. John the Baptist lovingly dubbed the 84-year-old retired priest from New York City the captain of the S.S. St. John’s, which had been sinking for the past year,” wrote The Daily Gazette of Schenectady, when Father Hunter celebrated the final Mass in that parish.

Even in retirement, Father Hunter remained active. 

“Rev. John Hunter came to the Albany Diocese from the Archdiocese of New York to retire – but six years later, he’s still pitching in at parishes and has made an obvious mark on the Diocese.   

“When he first moved here, Father Hunter filled in for priests at several parishes in the Schenectady area, including now-closed St. John the Baptist.

“‘Everywhere he went, people would say, ‘Can we keep him?'” recalled Cheryl Elkins, administrative assistant to the diocesan administrative advocate for priests. ‘And I would say, ‘No, you can’t keep him. He’s a priest, not a puppy.’ He’s just a down-to-earth, easy-going, outgoing kind of guy,'” 

Reception of the body and wake and lying in repose will take place on Thursday, February 9, 2023, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 noon at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, 400 Saratoga Road, Glenville, New York 12302, (518) 399-9168. 

Entrusted to the care of the Gleason Funeral Home, Schenectady, the Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Thursday, February 9, 2023, at 12:00 noon, Church of the Immaculate Conception, 400 Saratoga Road, Glenville, New York 12302, (518) 399-9168. Bishop Gerardo J. Colacicco will serve as the principal celebrant; the Reverend Richard Carlino will be the homilist. 

Interment will follow at Holy Redeemer Cemetery in Niskayuna.