Francis "Gus" Doyle

On June 30, 2022 Francis “Gus” Xavier Doyle, age 95, passed away in the peace and comfort of his own home.  He was the beloved husband of the late Theresa Doyle; loving father of Michael Doyle and his wife Theresa, Francis B. Doyle, Lorraine T. Selway and her husband Bill, Margaret Hayes, James Doyle and his wife Susan, Kathleen Fuchsluger and her husband Steve, & Christine Adlington and her husband Allan; cherished Pop Pop of many grandchildren and three great grandchildren.  He is also survived by many loving relatives and friends.

Francis was born in Baltimore, Md on October 22, 1926 the 5th of 5 boys to Bernard and Mary Doyle. They lived in Westminster then eventually moved to Baltimore where Francis attended St. Benedicts Catholic School for 1-8th grade.

Eventually he enlisted in the Navy, where he served in Okinawa. After moving back to Baltimore he met Theresa Grace at a Bingo event at St. Clements Hall. He eventually (with prodding from his to-be-Mother in Law,) asked Theresa to marry him and the rest is history. They were wed on June 24, 1950. They then raised a family of 7 children,  mostly spent on Elizabeth Ave in Lansdowne.

Francis was a great story-teller and quite a character. However he was a hard worker and supported his family as a carpenter, for which he had attended trade school early in his marriage. The family was very involved in St. Clements parish with all the kids attending St. Clements School. Francis joined the Holy Name Society and Knights of Columbus where he was a cook for a while providing a variety of wild game, which people didn’t find out until after they tried some! He was also a member of the Rooks (Rookery 881), a social club which was started from a group of men who were in the American Legion. They had secret meetings as well as did lots of partying and held many family events. When his oldest son Mike attended Cardinal Gibbons, he became involved in the Fathers Club, which began an association that turned into the Song and Clown Society and then the Glad Men of Song, which performed choral and solo music and included clowns and lots of funny skits, for many, many years. In later years, they entertained at many nursing homes, bringing music and good cheer to the residents. He always had a heart ready to serve! Francis was the accompanist for the singers, using his talents on the guitar, which he loved to play, and was blessed with the ability to play by ear without having to follow chords. His guitar playing brought joy to many a family gathering, including the annual St. Patrick’s Day parties at his son Jimmy’s. He was proud of his Irish heritage.Francis would always offer to help others whether it’s to build a house, to cook some beef, or ride his kids and their friends around. Francis was also a longtime usher at St. Clements, and in later years participated in the Food Pantry with his daughter and son-in-law. He was a regular packer, entertaining the whole crew as they packed. In fact he was usually chief entertainer wherever he went, having a wealth of stories which he never seemed to run out of.  But some of the greatest times were get togethers had as a member of the Grace Family, which gave him lots of brothers and sisters in law, with which to do many of the things he loved like fishing, crabbing, drinking, eating, cooking, and more story telling. He was also an avid gardener, spending lots of time in ordering seeds, starting seedlings, digging, planting, harvesting, etc….He eventually had 14 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren, the last of which was born the day before he died. Francis raised a lot of spirits in his life, in one way or another, keeping everyone in laughter and waiting to hear what he said next. He will be greatly missed by his family and the many friends he made over his lifetime.

A public viewing will be held on Thursday in our Lansdowne location from 3-5 & 7-9PM.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday at 10AM at St. Clement I Catholic Church in Lansdowne.  Interment will immediately follow in the Meadowridge Memorial Park.

**In lieu of flowers, donations may be directed to St. Clement I Catholic Church in Lansdowne or the Little Sister of Jesus and Mary in Salisbury.**