SIBU: One of the oldest Catholic priests here, Reverend Father Thomas Taam Chak Wing, has passed away at the age of 97.
The rector of St Teresa’s Church, Fr Michael Lee, said Fr Taam died at 10.56am on Monday April 18.
He described Father Taam as “a man of God and very faithful to the ministry”.
Father Lee, who took over from Father Taam a year before the Covid-19 pandemic, told reporters that the late priest was also a very approachable person.
“He passed away due to old age. If I remember correctly, he served his last Mass about two years before the pandemic. That was also when I took over from him as he retired “, did he declare.
Father Taam was born on December 21, 1925 in Guangdong Province, China.
He accepted priestly formation at a seminary in Hong Kong in 1947 and was sent to Nanyang on July 10, 1954 as a missionary priest.
His first assignment was at St Francis Xavier Church in Kanowit, Sarawak. He moved to Bintangor in 1963 and to Sacred Heart Cathedral here the following year.
After having been at the Sacred Heart for seven years, he was given additional pastoral responsibility for the parish of Ste Thérèse.
He became rector of Sacred Heart Cathedral in 1980 and continued to serve both parishes until 1999, when he was appointed rector of St. Therese Church.
Those who wish to pay their last respects to Father Taam can do so in the conference room of the Sainte-Thérèse Church on Monday and Tuesday (April 19).
The funeral mass will be held at 9 a.m. on Wednesday April 20 at the Sacré-Coeur Cathedral.
Father Taam will be buried here at Nirvana Memorial Park.
