Br. Gregory Lira, OP
February 13, 1940 - January 14, 2024
Br. Gregory Ramón Lira, OP, died peacefully Sunday morning, at the priory of St. Dominic in San Francisco. Known to all simply as “Bro”, for sixty-four years he dedicated his life to serving the Lord, the people of God, and his Dominican brothers. He was born in Visalia, California, the youngest of eight children of Jesús and Florencia (González) Lira. After graduating in 1956 from Redwood High School in Visalia, Br. Gregory was taken by his pastor for a visit to the Priory of St. Albert the Great, Oakland. The religious life he observed there attracted him, and he entered the novitiate of the Dominican friars in Kentfield, CA, the following year. His initial formation took place there, at St. Albert’s, and St. Dominic Priory in San Francisco. After making his solemn profession in 1965, he began full-time ministry.
Bro was always willing to go where he was sent and do whatever his superiors asked of him. The first request was perhaps one of the most difficult. He traveled to the Dominican mission in Ocosingo, Mexico, to take the place of one of the brothers for six months. After a few weeks, he doubted he could stay. He wrote to the provincial that he had just buried the body of a small boy and was tasked with building a coffin for a little girl. He begged someone else to nail the lid shut, as he could not. His sorrow was intense, both because of these deaths, but also because of the poverty that limited the opportunities of the people he met. Nevertheless, he chose to remain.
Bro later served in many of the Dominican communities in California, including Pittsburg, Kentfield, Thousand Oaks, Antioch, San Francisco, Berkeley, and Los Angeles. He was also assigned to Blessed Sacrament Parish in Seattle, St. Thomas Aquinas community in Reno, Most Holy Trinity parish in Phoenix, and Fra Angelico house in Las Vegas. He faithfully responded to the needs of each ministry, working as a youth minister, physical education teacher, counselor, cook, carpenter, and maintenance man. In Las Vegas he was part of the staff serving those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS at the St. Thérèse Center. When he retired to St. Dominic’s Priory in San Francisco, he became wellknown for the cookies and jams that he prepared in bulk and sold to raise funds for much-needed repairs to the church.
Bro enjoyed helping the elderly throughout his life. When one of his older brothers at St. Dominic’s, Fr. Felix Cassidy, OP, needed a caregiver, Bro was ready to assist and often anticipated his brother’s needs. In God’s providence, after Fr. Felix died and Bro was diagnosed with dementia, Bro’s friend Victor Sotomayor became his companion and caregiver, and for that the Dominicans of the Province of the Holy Name are deeply grateful. A vigil with rosary and vespers will be held at St. Dominic Catholic Church, 2390 Bush Street, San Francisco, on Thursday, January 18 at 7:30 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at the same location the next day, Friday, January 19, at 9:00 AM. Br. Gregory’s burial will follow, at St. Dominic’s cemetery in Benicia.
A memorial fund has been established to honor Br. Gregory. Gifts will support the education of Br. Gregory’s Dominican brothers still in formation. Please donate online at www.opwest.org/ brgregorylira