Bishop Fernand (Ferd) Joseph Cheri III, O.F.M., a New Orleans native who had served since 2015 as auxiliary bishop of New Orleans, died March 21 at Chateau de Notre Dame in New Orleans following a lengthy illness. Bishop Cheri, 71, served most recently as administrator of St. Peter Claver Parish in New Orleans until kidney and heart problems forced him to step away from active ministry. He was born with one kidney and had been on dialysis three days a week for several months.

At 90, Rita Prahinski vividly recalls when Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., visited her home state of Louisiana. King, who fought for racial and economic equality through peaceful resistance, was a noble and godly man in the eyes of Prahinski and her friends. He inspired in them to do what is right and just when it comes to following the Greatest Commandment of loving your neighbor as yourself.

Bishop Fernand J. Cheri, a fifth-generation black Catholic, was a student when the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in April 1968, but he still cites the civil rights icon and Baptist minister as an example to him of Christian discipleship.

Fr. Fernand Joseph Cheri III, O.F.M., was appointed on Monday by Pope Francis as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, his hometown. “I look forward to just, working with the people of New Orleans again,” Fr. Cheri said Jan. 12 at a press conference announcing his appointment.