Saturday, November 14, 2026
The Rev. Michael J. Morrow, a Malverne native and the son of former three-term Mayor Stewart Morrow, marked the 40th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood with a Mass of Thanksgiving at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Malverne last Sunday.
“I had wanted to be a priest from the time I was a boy,” Morrow told the Herald. “I’m very grateful to God for all the blessings that I’ve received.”
The church holds special significance for Morrow, 74, who was baptized and confirmed there, served as an altar boy and celebrated his first Mass there four decades ago.
The Rev. Leonard F. Villa, Morrow’s longtime friend and seminary classmate, delivered the homily.
“Forty years ago, Father Michael Morrow stood before the altar of God, heard his name called, and he answered with the firm, faithful and life-changing word present,” Villa said. “This is a reminder that all priests must keep their eyes on Christ and not themselves, because the priesthood is not our own, but conveyed by Jesus Christ, the great high priest.”
Born and raised in Malverne, Morrow is the son of the late Audrey and Stewart Morrow, whose family lived in the village for 84 years. He attended Our Lady of Lourdes School, where he played clarinet and saxophone. After graduating from eighth grade in 1966, Morrow attended Salesian Junior Seminary in Upstate Goshen and St. Pius X Preparatory Seminary in Uniondale, graduating in 1970.
He continued his studies at Don Bosco Seminary in Newton, N.J., and entered the Salesian Congregation in 1971. He professed his first vows on Sept. 1, 1972, and earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 1975.
Morrow taught at Salesian High School, in New Rochelle, and Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey, N.J., before leaving the Salesians in 1978 and returning to Malverne.
He became involved in village life, serving as a lector at Our Lady of Lourdes and participating in the Inter-Community Music Association, the Malverne Players and Friends of the Malverne Public Library. He also served as recording secretary of the Malverne Men’s Republican Club and contributed articles to the Malverne Times.
In 1980, Morrow resumed his priestly studies at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, and then transferred to St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers in 1983. During his studies, he completed internships at Nassau County Medical Center and St. Mary’s Church in East Islip. He also volunteered at Covenant House and worked with cadets at West Point.
As a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, he served at Barksdale Air Force Base, in Louisiana, and Loring Air Force Base, in Maine.
Following a deacon internship in Stony Point, Morrow was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of New York on Nov. 15, 1986, by Cardinal John O’Connor. He subsequently served at Holy Trinity Church, in Poughkeepsie, from 1986 to 1988; Assumption Church, in Peekskill, from 1988 to 1994; St. Brendan’s Church, in the Bronx, from 1994 to 2003; St. Eugene’s Church, in Yonkers, from 2003 to 2015; and St. Paul the Apostle Church, in Yonkers, from 2016 to 2023.
At Assumption Church, Morrow taught religion at Franciscan High School in Mohegan Lake, where he was school chaplain and religion department chairman.
He also served as spiritual director of the Jerusalem Covenant, a young adult group in Massachusetts.
Morrow has maintained ties to Malverne and the Salesian community. He has belonged to the Association of Salesian Cooperators for more than 40 years and was the local delegate of its Goshen center.
He is a life member of Malverne American Legion Post 44 and its only third-generation member. He also belongs to the Knights of Columbus and is a past president of the Friends of the Malverne Public Library.
For years, Morrow and his mother co-chaired the Books for Veterans program, which raised money during Malverne’s Memorial Day observance to purchase reading materials for patients at the Northport Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
He also hosted a weekly program on Radio Maria New York.
Although he retired in 2023, Morrow remains active at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Yonkers, celebrating Mass, participating in religious education and visiting homebound parishioners. He also serves as spiritual director of the Our Lady Queen of the Apostles Praesidium of the Legion of Mary and its Westchester-Rockland Curia.
Morrow has devoted particular attention to the religious education of young people, the protection of human life and the church’s teachings on marriage and family.
“I’ve never had a day’s regret to saying yes to God’s call,” he said, “which I really believe is a call from God, that I had the grace to say yes to.”
