Mgr Richard Stork RIP

Mgr Stork on St Josemaria Escriva's right

Monsignor Richard Stork died this morning. He was the second British member of Opus Dei.

Mgr Richard Anderson Paul Stork was born in Madrid on 31 January 1930 to a Scottish father and a Spanish mother, the youngest of three siblings. In the summer of 1936, the family was evacuated to London for the duration of the Spanish Civil War. Later, they returned to Spain and it was in Madrid where he met Opus Dei at the Moncloa residence for university students. It was located at the end of the street where he lived with his family. In April 1950 he asked for admission in Opus Dei, becoming the second British member, after Michael Richards (1924-1977) who had joined a month before.

He moved to London in 1951 where he studied Civil Engineering at University College London. In 1956 he became director of Netherhall House, a students' residence which had been opened in 1952. In 1958 he was able to welcome St Josemaría Escriva to Netherhall in the first of the five summers he spent in London between 1958 and 1962.

He was ordained to the priesthood in 1965 and became Counsellor of Opus Dei in Britain for the period 1966-1976. He was a member of the welcoming committee for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, when she opened the new buildings of Netherhall House in November 1966.

Mgr Stork continued his involvement in the Regional Commission of Britain for some more years, becoming Regional Vicar of Opus Dei in Britain again for the period 1995-1998. After that, he was involved in other pastoral work with members of Opus Dei, first in Manchester and then in London. He died on 25 January 2021.