Fr. Ray Zohlen

Fr. Ray J. Zohlen

Fr. Ray J. Zohlen passed away on August 3, 2020, at Nazareth House in San Rafael, two weeks after his 95th birthday. He was born in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, to Magdalena and August Zohlen. His father emigrated from Germany in 1894. Fr. Ray was the youngest of seven children, all of whom predeceased him, except his 99-year-old sister, Verda. She died in Wisconsin just three hours after Fr. Ray. Fr. Ray is survived by eighteen nieces and nephews.
Fr. Ray was quite an athlete. In high school he played football and won several awards in tennis at the Wisconsin state level. He enjoyed playing golf and swimming with his nieces and nephews in the lakes near their home. While in the seminary he rode his Harley Davidson motorcycle from California to Wisconsin one summer to go home for vacation. He enlisted in the US Army in 1943 at the age of 18. He sailed across the Atlantic on The Queen Elizabeth to Scotland. They then landed by troop ship at Le Havre, France in December, 1944. Fr. Ray stated that even though he was in the 3rd Army, they certainly were not part of "General George S Patton's Speedsters" because it was very slow going through the mud and the freezing cold on their march to the front. His platoon was involved in an assault on the German Siegfried Line, a series of heavy fortifications. When Fr. Ray was wounded by a tank shell, there were only fifteen out of the original forty men in his platoon. For his heroism in combat, Fr. Ray was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals. He sustained serious wounds to both hands and leg. He was treated in thirteen different hospitals in Europe and finally sent back to the US. He never spoke about his awards, and he never complained about his injuries.
Fr. Ray recuperated at the Veterans Center in Menlo Park. One day he decided to hitch-hike to the Seminary, because he thought often of becoming a priest, after meeting so many wonderful Army Chaplains in the field. After talking to the Rector that day, the handsome, uniformed young soldier hitch-hiked back to Menlo courtesy of four Maryknoll nuns who gave him a ride. They told him if St. Patrick's didn't accept him, they were sure he could be a Maryknoll priest.
After graduation from St. Patrick's Seminary, he was ordained to the priesthood in January 1953 in San Francisco by Archbishop John J. Mitty. In his 67 years as a priest, Fr. Ray ministered at nine parishes in the Archdiocese as a beloved assistant pastor at St. Anne of the Sunset, St. Joseph's, Star of the Sea, Church of the Visitation, St. Edward's, St. Patrick's, and Holy Name of Jesus Parish—all in San Francisco. He also served at St. Lawrence the Martyr Parish in Santa Clara and St. Martin of Tours Parish, San Jose, covering O'Connor Hospital, and serving as chaplain to the San Jose Fire Department. He was a devoted pastor at St. James Parish, SF and St. Raymond Parish, Menlo Park and was Pastor at both parishes for six years. He retired to Serra Clergy House in December 2000 and lived there until November 2014, when he moved to Nazareth House in Marin. Fr. Ray was a kind, gentle and generous man who will be greatly missed by all who knew him. If Fr. Ray had a personal motto, it would be: 'Service to God and Country'.
The Funeral Mass will be outdoors and Live-Streamed at St. Raymond Church, 1100 Santa Cruz Ave, Menlo Park, CA 94025 at 10:30 AM. Internment will be in Wisconsin at a later date.
The Family wishes to thank the Sisters and Staff of Nazareth House for their loving care of Fr. Ray, especially Alice Lynch, Anna Molina and Lynetta Matteo. Thanks also to Dr. Rebecca Li, Dr. Ali Massoumi, Hospice by The Bay, and Mary Schembri for her care of our uncle for the last 15 years. Memorial donations are appreciated to: Nazareth House, 245 Nova Albion Way, San Rafael, CA 94903 or The Priest Retirement Fund, 1 Peter Yorke Way, SF CA 94109.