HAYESVILLE — Family, friends and parishioners of St. William Parish and Immaculate Heart of Mary Mission will come together Wednesday, Nov. 15, to celebrate the life of Father George Kloster. Father Kloster passed away peacefully on his favorite holy day of the year, Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2019. Funeral arrangements were delayed due to the ensuing pandemic. Read his full obituary.
A funeral Mass will be offered at 11 a.m. at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Hayesville by Monsignor Patrick J. Winslow, vicar general and chancellor of the Diocese of Charlotte, and concelebrated by Father Alex Ayala, current pastor of the Murphy and Hayesville churches. A reception will be held in the Sister Terry Martin Fellowship Hall after Mass.
Father Kloster was born on Oct. 28, 1943, in Utica, N.Y., to George Martin and Helen Currier Kloster. When he was 10, his family moved to Clayton, N.C., where his father was the manager of a textile mill. After graduating from Clayton High School, he attended St. Mary’s College in Kentucky, and later studied theology at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. He was ordained to the priesthood on Dec. 20, 1968, at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Father Kloster’s service to the people of Western North Carolina spanned some 45 years, and he served as a pastor in seven parishes across North Carolina. He retired in 2013 after serving as pastor of St. William and Immaculate Heart of Mary for 15 years. In 2018 he celebrated his 50th anniversary of ordination with a celebration well attended by fellow priests, family and friends.
Father Kloster was well known for his charitable work and devotion to ecumenism. He served on the North Carolina Council of Churches in many areas including as president from 1968 to 1988, and he received its Distinguished Service Award in 1991. He was an advocate for social justice, and he was named Catholic Charities USA Volunteer of the Year in 2013. Also that year, a portion of U.S. Hwy. 64 in western North Carolina was named “Rev. George Kloster Highway” to honor his commitment to church, civic and community affairs in Clay and Cherokee counties. He was active in the Cherokee County Ministerial Association, and he organized many fundraising events such as “Holy Smoke.”
He also led pilgrimages to Israel and throughout Europe, and he traveled with brother priests, parishioners and friends all over the world. He was instrumental in organizing Kloster family reunions, which brought together family and relatives from across the United States including the family’s ancestral village of Gross-Zimmern in Germany.
Father Kloster will forever remain in the hearts of those whose life he touched. His endless contributions knew no boundaries. His priestly life was filled with acts of charity and devotion to service to the community he dearly loved.
— Ferris and Gail Maloof