O'Mara, Palmesano invite Fr. Lewis Brown, former pastor at All Saints Parish in Corning and a former Navy Chaplain, to deliver Invocations at Senate and Assembly sessions ~ Watch replays of Invocations here

Albany, N.Y., May 25—State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C,I-Big Flats) and Assemblyman Phil Palmesano (R,C,I-Corning) this week invited Father Lewis Brown of Painted Post, a former United States Navy Chaplain and former pastor at All Saints Parish in Corning (2008-2012), to deliver the Invocations to officially open the daily sessions of both the Senate and Assembly on Tuesday, May 24th, and the Senate again on Wednesday, May 25th.

In a joint statement, O’Mara and Palmesano said, “We are deeply grateful to Father Brown for joining us in Albany as we prepared to observe Memorial Day throughout New York State and across the nation.  Father Brown’s own service as a United States Navy Chaplain for more than two decades made this an especially fitting and timely occasion for him to deliver the Opening Prayers for our Senate and Assembly sessions. We were appreciative and proud to have Father Brown join us at the Capitol to share his thoughtful reflections and prayers with our legislative colleagues.”

Fr. Brown was ordained for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester in June 1967 by the late Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, who was then serving as Archbishop.  He served in several parishes until 1985 when then-Bishop of Rochester Matthew H. Clark gave him permission to become a United States Navy Chaplain. 

During 22 years of active duty as a Navy Catholic Chaplain, Fr. Brown served with the Marines in Okinawa, Japan; the Submariners in the state of Washington; as ship’s company aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz; at the Chaplain Resource Board in Norfolk, Virginia; the Destroyer and Frigate squadrons, also in Norfolk; the Naval Aviators in Virginia Beach, Virginia; at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., with duty at Arlington National Cemetery; and at Naval Station Great Lakes in Lake County, Illinois.

Following his retirement from the Navy, Fr. Brown returned to the Diocese of Rochester and was assigned to All Saints Parish in Corning, New York where he served until 2012 before returning to administrative service with the Diocese of Rochester.  Now retired from parish administration, Fr. Brown continues to assist area Catholic Churches as needed and serves as the only Catholic Priest at the Bath Veterans Administration Medical Center.

A replay of Fr. Brown’s Invocation in the Senate on Tuesday can be viewed here: https://www.nysenate.gov/calendar/sessions/may-24-2016/session-5-24-16

A replay of Fr. Brown’s Invocation in the Senate on Wednesday, a well-received prayer for Memorial Day, can be viewed on O'Mara's YouTube site: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGsnTzXSHYU

A replay of Fr. Brown’s Invocation in Assembly on Tuesday can be viewed here (once available): http://nyassembly.gov/av/session/