William Benedict Friend
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William Benedict Friend (October 22, 1931 – April 2, 2015) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new
Diocese of Shreveport The Diocese of Shreveport ( la, Dioecesis Sreveportuensis in Louisiana) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church covering the parishes of northern Louisiana. The largest cities in the diocese are Shreveport, M ...
in Louisiana from 1986 to 2006. He previously served as auxiliary bishop and then bishop of the Diocese of Alexandria-Shreveport from 1979 to 1986.


Biography


Early life

William Friend was born on October 22, 1931, in
Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. He was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal
James Gibbons James Cardinal Gibbons (July 23, 1834 – March 24, 1921) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina from 1868 to 1872, Bishop of Richmond from 1872 to 1877, and as ninth ...
on May 7, 1959, for the Diocese of Mobile-Birmingham,
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
.


Auxiliary Bishop and Bishop of Alexandria-Shreveport

On August 31, 1979,
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 ...
appointed Friend as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Alexandria-Shreveport and titular bishop of Pomaria. He was consecrated by Archbishop
Thomas Joseph Toolen Thomas Joseph Toolen (February 28, 1886 – December 4, 1976) was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Mobile from 1927 to 1969, and was given the personal title of Archbishop in 1954. Early life and educati ...
on October 30, 1979. On November 17, 1982, John Paul II appointed him as bishop of the same diocese.


Bishop of Shreveport

John Paul II erected the Diocese of Shreveport on June 16, 1986, and appointed Friend as its first bishop. He was installed as bishop on July 30, 1986. On October 22, 2006, Bishop Friend sent the mandatory letter to
Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
resigning the diocese as he had reached the age of 75. His resignation was accepted on December 20, 2006. Bishop Friend remained at the helm of the diocese as
apostolic administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...
until a new bishop was appointed.


Retirement and legacy

On April 1, 2008 Pope Benedict named
Michael Duca Michael Gerard Duca (born June 5, 1952) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Baton Rouge in Louisiana since his installation on August 24, 2018. He previously served as the bishop ...
as the new bishop of the diocese ending Friend's duties as apostolic administrator. On April 2, 2015, William Friend died at his home in
Coral Springs, Florida Coral Springs, officially the City of Coral Springs, is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located approximately northwest of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Fort Lauderdale. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. C ...
.


Notes


Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Friend, William Benedict 1931 births 2015 deaths Roman Catholic bishops of Alexandria People from Miami People from Shreveport, Louisiana 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Religious leaders from Florida Catholics from Florida People from Coral Springs, Florida