Capistrano Francisco Heim O.F.M. (21 January 1934 – 24 September 2020) was an American-born Brazilian

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

bishop. Heim was born in

Catskill, New York Catskill is a town in the southeastern section of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 11,298 at the 2020 census, the largest town in the county. The western part of the town is in the Catskill Park. The town contains a v ...

as William Charles Heim. He attended St. Patrick's Academy in Catskill. From 1954 to 1957, Heim was in the army and served in Southern California at the end of the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. After military service, he studied biology at Siena College with the intention of becoming a veterinarian. However, he decided to pursue a religious vocation, entering the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachi ...

seminary in

Callicoon, New York Callicoon is a town in Sullivan County, New York, United States. The population was 3,057 at the 2010 census. The town is in the northwestern part of the county. History The town was formed in 1842 from the Town of Liberty. The original spell ...

, taking his first vows on 15 July 1960, and was ordained to the priesthood on 18 December 1965. Heim completed his theological studies in Petrópolis, Brazil, where he learned Portuguese and prepared to serve in the Franciscan missions in Goias, Brazil. Following a sabbatical year in Jerusalem, in 1988 he was named bishop of the Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Itaituba,

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

and served in this capacity until his mandatory retirement in 2011. During this time, he oversaw the development of pastoral and training centers and a radio station focused on faith formation and a comprehensive health program for poor mothers and their children. He returned to the United States and lived in New York and New Jersey until his death in 2020.

Notes

1934 births 2020 deaths People from Catskill, New York United States Army soldiers American expatriate Roman Catholic bishops in South America 20th-century American Roman Catholic bishops 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Brazil American Friars Minor Franciscan bishops 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Brazil Roman Catholic bishops of Itaituba Siena College alumni {{Brazil-RC-bishop-stub