Brother Nolasco Grace, FMMA, served the Brothers of Mercy for 60 years

One of the Brothers of Mercy Clarence congregation’s longest serving members, Brother Nolasco Grace, passed away on Saturday, July 31, 2021 on the Brothers of Mercy Campus, at the age of 94. Brother Nolasco served in the Brothers of Mercy Mary Help of Christians for 60 dedicated years.

Brother Nolasco was born in the late 1920s in Roberta, Georgia, and raised by his family in Atlanta. An avid athlete, he held many fond memories of playing baseball and swimming in his youth. After being drafted into the Army in 1953, he was assigned to Division 1 (Big Red 1), the 26th Infantry. There he served as the chief of the Ordinance Section until 1955. That same year, Brother Nolasco soon began discerning a religious vocation after converting from Protestantism to Roman Catholicism. He began service with the Mercedarian Fathers in 1956, eventually joining the Clarence-based Brothers of Mercy in 1959.

A graduate of Clark College in Atlanta, as well as the Reed School of Business Administration, Brother Nolasco served as the secretary to the Provincial 9 upon entering the Brothers of Mercy. Additionally, he served as coordinator for the Physical Therapy Department, and following Vatican II, he became the Vocation director of the Brothers of Mercy in both their Western New York and Kansas City Communities.

After retiring as the telecommunications administrator for the health care facilities on the Clarence campus, Brother Nolasco spent much of his time in prayer for others. He also greatly enjoyed visiting employees and residents at his beloved Brothers of Mercy Nursing & Rehab Center, as well as Sacred Heart Home.

So many who knew Brother Nolasco will fondly remember him always bearing a smile and a kind word. His six decades of dedicated service helped shape his sense of wisdom and understanding of the world; though two things that never wavered were his kindness and dedication to serving others. His heart was one of the warmest known, and because of this he truly exemplified the mission statement of the Brothers of Mercy: “The Charity of Christ Urges Us On.”

Friends may call Friday, Aug. 6, from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. at the Brothers of Mercy Provincial Residence, 4540 Ransom Rd., Clarence. A funeral Mass will be celebrated Saturday, Aug. 7, at 10 a.m. in the Brothers of Mercy Center (formerly Sacred Heart Home), 4520 Ransom Road, Clarence. Interment will be in Clarence Fillmore Cemetery.