Brother Kevin Crowley shows Pope Francis around the Capuchin Day Centre, August 25, 2018. Photo: CNS/ courtesy Alessia Giuliani, Catholic Press Photo. Bro. Kevin Crowley, known for his work ministering to Dublin’s homeless by founding the Capuchin Day Centre, passed away at the age of 90.
His lifelong commitment to the poor made him a beloved figure in Dublin and beyond. Through the Capuchin Day Centre, which he founded in 1969 on Bow Street, he touched the lives of countless individuals, providing thousands of hot meals and food parcels daily to those in need.
In a statement, Archbishop of Dublin Dermot Farrell expressed his condolences to the Crowley family and the wider Irish Capuchin community, saying, “Bro. Kevin devoted his life to the service of the poor. His work with the Capuchin Day Centre staff and volunteers transformed the lives of the poor and marginalised in our city, from misery and despair to hope and love. He was always able to see Christ in the people he met. His was a love that reached out with no questions asked of those who sought assistance. Bro. Kevin was an authentic follower of St Francis of Assisi.”
As we mourn the passing of Bro. Crowley, Archbishop Farrell reminds us of his Christlike example, saying, “He would want us to remember the poor we still have with us in ever greater numbers because of homelessness, wars, famine and the multiplicity of addictions that affect our county today. Today we ask the Lord to grant us compassion for those who are experiencing Calvary and sorrow for our own self-indulgence. We cannot put words on that love of God, and yet when we have witnessed it in a good man’s life and death, we too are able to recognise it, and to say a deeper and more grateful ‘yes’ to God.”
Born in Kilcoleman, Enniskeane, Co. Cork, on February 24, 1935, he was baptised William. William entered the Capuchin Postulancy in 1958 at the age of 23, he received the name Kevin and took his perpetual profession in 1962. Throughout his years a Capuchin, Bro. Crowley served in many different roles from cook to Brother Master of Novices. Throughout the 1960s, he managed St Felix soup kitchen and day centre before eventually establishing the Capuchin Day Centre. Thus began the legacy of his work with the homeless and socially marginalised.
In 2018, Bro. Crowley welcomed a visiting Pope Francis to the centre. The later saying as he addressed capuchins from around the world “Recently in Ireland, I saw your work with the most discarded and I was moved. It is a beautiful thing that … the elderly founder told me, ‘Here we do not ask where you come from, who you are: you are a child of God.’ This is one of your traits. To really understand the persons, by ‘smell’, unconditionally. Come in, then we will see. As Capuchins, closeness is your charism. Preserve it.”
That same year Bro. Crowley was awarded received the Human Life, Human Rights, and Human Dignity Award, presented by the Oireachtas Human Dignity Group in recognition of his 50 years of service to the poor. Presenting the award, former Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghail TD said “A look at the history of the Centre shows that in each decade since 1969, the Capuchins, led by Br Kevin, responded to the emerging problems in Irish society… In making this award, we are paying tribute to 50 years of heroism, but in fact, the Capuchins’ care for the poor of Dublin goes back over 400 years.”
Bro. Crowley continued to serve the Centre until 2022, when his health forced him to retire, returning to his native Cork.
Martin Long, director of the Bishops’ Catholic Communications Office, also paid tribute to Bro. Crowley, recalling his deep spiritual nature and kind heart: “Bro. Kevin was a beautiful and deeply spiritual man, known for his great sense of humour. His work with the Capuchin Day Centre touched many lives, including the students who worked there during their Transition Year work experience. I was privileged to attend Pope Francis’s visit to the Centre in 2018, and I witnessed the deep respect both the homeless and his fellow Capuchins had for him. Brother Kevin truly embodied the spirit of the Good Samaritan, offering love and care without question. He was a national treasure, and may the Lord have mercy on his gentle soul.”
May Bro. Kevin Crowley, a true servant of the poor, rest in peace.