Obituary of Rev. Joseph F. Wortmann

Reverend Joseph F. Wortmann passed away on Wednesday, October 7, 2015 at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. Father Wortmann will be waked at Immaculate Conception Chapel at Seton Hall University, 400 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, on Monday, October 12th from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM and then from 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM. There will be Evening Prayer from the Office of the Dead at 7:30 PM. On Tuesday, October 13th there will be a viewing from 8:45 AM - 9:45 AM also at Immaculate Conception Chapel at Seton Hall University. The Funeral Mass will take place there at 10:00 AM. Following Mass Father Wortmann will be buried at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, East Hanover. Arrangements are by Preston Funeral Home, South Orange. For more information or to send condolences please visit prestonfuneralhome.com Father Wortmann was born in Newark on October 19, 1932. He was the son of the late Carl Adam and Teresa Schlothan Wortmann. Father Wortmann attended Seton Hall Preparatory School and was graduated in 1950. He received his bachelor's degree from Seton Hall University in 1954 and his Licentiate in Sacred Theology from The Catholic University of America in 1958. Father Wortmann was ordained a priest on May 31, 1958 by the late Archbishop Thomas A. Boland and was assigned immediately to Seton Hall Preparatory School. He received a master's degree in Classical Languages from Fordham University in 1963. He also received a master's degree in Education from Seton Hall University. Father Wortmann taught at Seton Hall Prep from 1958 to 2002. He taught Latin and Religion and was the advisor of the Pirate, the school's newspaper, for 14 years. Father Wortmann was the Chairman of the Classical Language Department from 1964 to 1969 and then of the Foreign Language Department until 1989. Father Wortmann was recognized with Seton Hall Preparatory service award for his work on the Pirate in 1971. He received the Thomas A. Reynolds Award from the Prep Fathers Club in 1994. Father Wortmann retired from teaching in 2002. Although no longer in the classroom Father Wortmann continued to serve Seton Hall, as well as numerous parishes, with a dedicated priestly ministry. From 1975 to 1977 and for many summers, Father Wortmann ministered in Germany where he immersed himself in the German language and culture and parochial life of his ancestors. This experience enabled him to bring more alive the classroom experience of his students. When Seton Hall Preparatory School moved from the South Orange campus, Father Wortmann maintained his residence on the university campus. While living in one of the campus dormitories, he entered wholeheartedly into the activities of Housing and Residence Life and became a dedicated priestly advisor to countless undergraduates. Over the course of his entire priesthood Father Wortmann's accomplishments in the area of languages, especially his beloved German, his reputation as a wonderful teacher and his devoted priestly service, all marked him out as an extraordinary member of the Seton Hall Preparatory School and Seton Hall University communities and showed him as a person who had served Seton Hall with distinction and affection. In addition to his brother priests of the Archdiocese of Newark and especially of Seton Hall Preparatory School and University, Father Wortmann was survived by his loving nieces and nephews Barbara Alvarez, Teresa Bracero, Carol Wortmann, Robert Wortmann, Joanne Casey, Karen Hersh, Susan Iossa, Frank Wortmann, James Wortmann, Jean Kedl, Ginnie Wortmann, Linda Miller, Donna Wuchter, Peter Wortmann, Paul Wortmann and Steven Wortmann. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, Lois, and many grand-nieces and grand-nephews and many colleagues and friends. He was predeceased by his brothers, Frank, Carl, Frederick and Donald, his sister, Myra Coffey, and his nephews William and James Coffey. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in his memory to one of the following organizations he supported: Seton Hall University, Seton Hall Preparatory, the Chesterton Institute at Seton Hall University, the Immaculate Conception Seminary at Seton Hall University or the Food Kitchen at St. John's Church, Newark, NJ. The Seton Hall Preparatory School and the Seton Hall University community join Father Wortmann's family and many cherished friends in mourning his passing and raises fervent prayers that the Lord will welcome His good and faithful servant and priest to the heavenly kingdom. Ruhe in Frieden, Herr Wortmann!