Bishop Robert is pleased to announce that Father Damian Cassidy O. Carm, will be appointed as Parochial Administrator to the parishes of Stanley, Dipton and Byermoor. The appointment will begin on the first weekend of September.
Born in Solihull in the West Midlands, his family moved to Kent in 1969. Carmelite friars worked as chaplains in his high school, making a deep impression on him.
At 19, he entered the noviciate, “but soon realised I didn’t understand the vows I was going to make.” So he left to train as a nurse at Guy’s Hospital.
For 10 years he worked in major London hospitals, eventually in casualty. Along the way, he “struggled with faith and what it was calling me to. But my discomfort grew, becoming unavoidable. It got to a point where I knew all I was doing at work was patching people up and sending them out again. It became dissatisfying.”
So in 1996, he re-entered the Carmelites. He professed final vows in 1997 and in 2003, was ordained a priest. Since then, he has worked in parishes, and youth and retreat ministry including university chaplaincies.
He comes to Hexham and Newcastle diocese with a great deal of experience. Fr. Damian’s most recent post was as Vice Rector of the Royal English College, Valladolid.