Former St. Charles Center resident Rev. Gregory Comella, 61, died Aug. 2, 2008, at his residence in Oakland, Calif. Death was due to natural causes.

He was born Dec. 28, 1946, in Waukegan, Ill., to Frank and Margaret Billeck Comella.

Surviving are three sisters, Pamela Crouch, Zion, Ill., Vicky (Don) Lewis, Lawrenceburg, Ky., and Peggy, Georgetown, Ky.

He entered the Missionaries of the Precious Blood in 1972 and was ordained on April 19, 1975. He served as spiritual director at St. Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Ind., and as chaplain at Calumet College of St. Joseph in Whiting, Ind. He spent time serving in Florida and California and then became a member of the Cincinnati Province of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood in 1995. He lived for a short time at St. Charles Center in Carthagena, before returning to California until his death.

A memorial Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Aug. 16 at St. Charles Center. Burial is in California.