The Reverend Monsignor Lawrence T. Speice, age 75, died Sunday, January 16th at his residence in Cambridge Springs, Pennsylvania.
Born in Erie, PA on June 3, 1935, he was a son of the late Harold Francis Speice and Marie Engist Speice. Monsignor Speice attended Saint Ann School and graduated from Cathedral Prepatory School in 1953. From 1953-1955, he pursued seminary studies at Saint Mark’s Seminary and Gannon College, Erie. In 1955, he continued his seminary studies at Saint Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, Maryland where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Philosophy and later a Bachelor of Sacred Theology.
He was ordained priest on May 11, 1961 at Saint Peter Cathedral in Erie by Most Reverend Edward Peter McManaman. His home parish was Saint Ann, Erie. His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, named him a Prelate of Honor in 1996.
Following ordination to the priesthood, Monsignor Speice was appointed in 1961 as Associate Editor of the Lake Shore Visitor with residence at Saint Andrew Rectory. On August 27, 1963, he was appointed to Gannon College where he remained until 1982. While at Gannon, he held the following positions – Instructor, Assistant Director of Admissions, Dean of Students, Assistant Registrar and Vice President for External Affairs. Presently he was a member of the Board of Trustees at Gannon University. He also served as weekend assistant at the parishes of Our Lady, Queen of the Americas, Conneaut Lake, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Erie, and Saint Hippolyte, Frenchtown. From October of 1982 through June of 1991, he served as the diocesan Vicar for Vocations. Additional responsibilities were given to him in August of 1985 when he was appointed Rector of Saint Mark Seminary in Erie. Other appointments included Chaplain of the Serra Club of Erie (1995-2000) and the community at Gannondale. In March of 2000, he was appointed pastor of Saint Anthony of Padua Parish, Cambridge Springs where he remained until his retirement in October, 2010. While serving in Cambridge Springs he was a member of the Cambridge Springs Ministerium.
Monsignor Speice had a special love and care for Camp Notre Dame in Fairview. Besides his fine priestly example to the young, he served from 1961until the present as the Chaplain and as a member of the Board of Directors. He was elected to the Office of Dean of Meadville Deanery in May of 2002 and served until June of 2005.
Besides his parents, Monsignor Speice was preceded in death by his sister-in-law, Lois. He is survived by his brothers – Paul Speice and James Speice and his wife, Mary Lou all of Erie. Also surviving are several nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great great nieces and nephews.
Friends may call at the Van Matre Family Funeral Home, 335 Venango Avenue, Cambridge Springs, Pennsylvania on Friday, January 21st from 2:00 to 5:00 and 7:00 to 9:00. Prayer vigil services will be held there Friday at 4:30. Visitation will continue at Saint Anthony of Padua Church on Saturday morning, beginning at 9:00. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated by the Most Reverend Donald W. Trautman at 11:00 a.m. Burial will be at Trinity Cemetery in Erie. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Anthony of Padua Church, 165 Beach Avenue, Cambridge Springs, PA 16403 or to Camp Notre Dame, 400 Eaton Road, Fairview, PA 16415.
He was a good man. I just became aware of his passing. I extend my condolences to all of the family. He provided a great deal of inspiration, care and love. Peace to you all. mike
I remember Fr. Larry when I was a camper and camp aide at Camp Notre Dame in the late 1960’s. He always had something to share, usually a story, that made you feel like you had known the topic all your life. I stopped out to visit Camp after I had graduated from college. Fr. Larry was on his tractor, “just tidying up” the field. We exchanged hellos and how have you beens. Out of the blue – “Do you want a job for the summer?” Always the recruiter. I can imagine you’ll have a crew of angels at CND to get things ready for the summer as soon as the snow is gone.
I remember Father Speice from his filling in at St. Hippolyte when I was a kid. There was something captivating about his voice. Later in life whenever I was pleasantly surprised to bump into him on occasion, during my time at Gannon, on retreat at Camp Notre Dame, or at various masses in and around Erie, it always took me back to my childhood. He may not have remembered me specifically, but he always made me feel like he knew me. A true man of God. De Colores!
Fr. Speice was an inspiration to many of us during our years at Gannon in the 1960’s. He a true man of God with a warm personality, wry sense of humor, great smile, and a very approacable nature. I remember fondly extentded conversations with Fr. Speice about everything from Catholicism to the then-evolving liberal lifestyle to the War. The freshman picnic at Camp Notre Dame that he led served as a real bonding experience for a bunch of 18 year-olds away from home for the first time.
May God grant you eternal rest. You are missed.
To the family of Monsignor Speice – Our love and prayers are with your entire family. We were students at GU at the end of Monsignor’s tenure there; he was always kind and had a smile and words of encouragement even when we thought we didn’t need them. We are better for having known him. God Bless and peace to each of you.
I remember Fr. Speice well from Camp in the 70’s as well as casual meetings off and on throughout the years. My mother & father Marge & Joe and my uncle, Monsignor Lorei taught us to walk the straight and narrow, respect for others, lend a helping hand – so did Fr. Speice.
I remember him too from my days darting through the halls and library of Gannon U. The friendly smile and wave was a reminder that he was always available, always watching over us – now Eternally.
God Bless, Father and Peace of Christ. As Father Lou said… “This is the day the Lord has made”. The world is a better place because you were here and you will be missed because of it.
Fr. Spiece has been a wonderful addition to St. Anthony’s. His homilies were so interesting. I liked the fact that he didn’t need notes, it came from the heart. It was a pleasure to atten daily Mass. His lessons were very interesting.
He was always helping in the community. He will be missed.
Ellen McKissock, Sebring, Fl.
It is with such sadness I hear of Father Larry’s passing as he had just begun his well earned retirement. Our entire family will be forever grateful of the support and kindness he offered my father, Carl Frank, during his declining years from 2000 to 2003, and presiding over a most touching funeral Mass. I recall fondly the years following of him delivering communion on the First Fridays to my mother Helen at her home.
Monsignor Speice re-energized St. Anthony’s in his tenure, connecting the storied historic church with the spacious parish hall, increasing membership with emphasis on youth, and always welcoming back former parishioners like myself. His recognition of my mother Helen’s 92nd birthday on the 100th anniversary of St. Anthony’s last September 19th epitomized his lifelong calling as a true Man of God.
May perpetual shine upon him.
Father Larry was a very special man. He was very active and helpful at St. Anthony’s and at Camp Notre Dame. He was a very nice and very kind person, he always had time for everyone. Fr. Larry will be missed a lot by myself and many others.
As occasional visitors to St. Anthony’s from St. Bernadette’s (Saegertown), we always enjoyed the sermons and Masses said by Msgr. Speice – may God bless his soul with the many blessings he bestowed here on earth to others.
Fellow Cathedral Prep student – will remember Larry in my prayers.
I was a camper at CND in the ’70s and counselor in the ’80s. Fr. Larry was always kind and welcoming. I have many memories of him…laughing hysterically while making a pinkie pact with him while playing murder in the mansion in Boot Hill, working with him in the dishroom during football camp, helping him with the CND Garden Spot, and participating in various off-season programs. Throughout, he always made me–everyone–feel welcome at CND. I’m glad to have known him for 35 years. He will be sorely missed.
I was a camper at Camp Notre Dame in the 1980s as well as a counselor there in the early 1990s. Father Spiece and the camp that he loved so dearly had an immeasurable impact on my life, helping to determine the kind of man that I have become. If that kind of man is half of the man Father was, then I will count myself blessed.
I will miss his class, his wry humor, and the rich, warm voice of his that filled a room. When I think of Father, I will think of my own late father, and of the Father-Son weekends that we spent at Camp Notre Dame every fall for seven glorious years. Although I mourn his passing, I celebrate him for the person he was and for all of the lives that he touched.
Rest In Peace, Father. You are loved and missed.