He was called home to be with the Lord in 2000

In 1965 Fr. John Wood arrived in SFX parish only to leave in 1978 because of problems with his visa. During his tenure as Parish Priest from 1969, Fr. Wood used to say home Masses in Sections 5, 10, 11, 12, 17 and particularly in Section 14/3. By 1974, regular community meetings were being held on the first Monday of each month.

SFX was developing rapidly as a parish and groups like the Wardens and Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP) played a big part. Sunday school groups began to increase and Fr. Wood had to enclose the basement to get more rooms for Sunday school. He established the choir as a regular feature of the Sunday liturgy. Fr. Wood was also instrumental in forming a liturgical group in which Sr. Edna Ryan played a leading role. An enterprise of major significance towards the end of Fr. Wood’s term in SFX was the opening of the parish library and the Jesuit community was persuaded to surrender its collection of books for the common good.

[Source: Church of St. Francis Xavier – 50th Golden Jubilee Anniversary Book]