Albert David Audette Jr.

Albert D. Audette, Jr., 90, passed away on Saturday April 1st at his home in Naples, Florida of natural causes. Albert was born in Central Falls, Rhode Island on June 12, 1932 and lived an extraordinary life taken at full speed and filled with countless achievements and accomplishments.

His ambition and self-confidence revealed itself early, after spending a portion of his early childhood in an orphanage, Albert secretly enrolled himself in a private, prestigious Catholic high school at the age of 14. Embellishing his family background to gain acceptance, he worked two jobs in order to afford the weekly tuition of $8.80. After losing his mother in his sophomore year, he graduated early and sought a life away from his hometown.

Always desiring to be a pilot, he enlisted in the Air Force where he quickly ascertained that brains and ambition could take him far. Assigned as a B-29 gunner, he told everyone he encountered that he wanted to be a pilot. An officer finally listened and Airman Albert Audette – who never had a problem taking tests – scored at the top of the Air Force Aviation Cadet evaluation; he would become a pilot. The life he led never thought in terms of simply dreaming; he led a life where his goals were attacked, seized, and achieved.

Albert received a commission in the Air Force as a Second Lieutenant in 1952, and began flight school at Ellington Air Base, Texas. He topped the list on every evaluation, peer review, performance assessment, and flying appraisal. Not content to simply live the life of a student pilot, Al’s passion for life revealed itself as he produced and starred on a radio show in Houston called “Air Force in Blue,” a weekly variety show featuring music and interviews. That still was not enough - Albert also featured his paintings in local art exhibitions. Lieutenant Audette received his pilot wings in 1953 and received an assignment to Topeka, Kansas to prepare for combat duty in the Korean Conflict.

The Korean Conflict ended the day before Albert was scheduled to depart for combat duty. He remained in Topeka and a chance encounter found a way to divert Albert’s disappointment into a singular focus which changed his life. He agreed at the last minute to join one of his fellow pilots on a blind double-date, and upon seeing his date Mary Ann Poling for the very first time he announced to her that they would marry. She initially slammed the door in his face, however, they were engaged a week later and married within a month.

Training assignments and the nature of an Air Force pilot’s career took the Audettes on numerous assignments as evidenced by their four children born in four consecutive calendar years in three different states. Stephen and Jeffrey in Kansas in 1955 and ‘56, Michelle in Oklahoma the following year, and Theresa in 1958 in Florida. His passions having narrowed to his family and his flying career, by the mid-1960s Albert was a fully-qualified combat pilot serving mostly in instructor duties.

Albert went on to serve two combat tours in Vietnam and completed over 200 combat missions over North Vietnam. The Vietnam War story he most frequently told however, had little to do with flyboy heroics or combat success. He talked of an extremely hazardous planned mission in which he and his fellow pilots awaited takeoff at the end of a runway in heavy rain and fog – tensions were as high as he had ever experienced. Suddenly, a figure alongside the runway caught his eye. The man wore a parka with a chaplain’s stole, and had stepped outside in the miserable conditions to bless the departing fighter aircraft. Albert described the apprehension he felt being replaced by resolution. The dedication and faith displayed by this anonymous chaplain would prove to be a quality Albert would later emulate in ways he could have never foreseen in 1967 in the jungles of Vietnam.

Albert reached the rank of full colonel and as served in prestigious staff positions assigned to only the most skillful and adept officers such as head of assignments at the Air Force Military Personnel Center, duty as the United States Defense Air Attaché to Portugal which required fluency in Portuguese and elegant diplomatic skills, and as the head of Air Force intelligence, a position which saw him often brief at the White House. He retired from the Air Force in 1981.

In the 1980s, Albert built a successful management consulting company based in Alexandria, Virginia. To this day, the policies he implemented are still used in the federal government and by various law enforcement training academies. A lifelong Catholic, Albert’s energies also found a home at his parish, St. Joseph’s in Old Town Alexandria. He and Mary Ann, now empty nesters, provided a bedroom for parish seminarians, and Albert served as a deacon.

After the untimely passing of his wife Mary Ann in 1989, Albert chose a new life which would require all of his energy, talents, dedication and faith, and a full investment of effort – he decided to enter the Catholic priesthood. In 1990 he was accepted by and entered St. Charles Borromeo seminary in Philadelphia. He crammed four years of study into three, and was ordained a priest in 1993 assigned to the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. His first mass as a priest took place at St. Joseph’s in Alexandria, where a stained glass window had been dedicated to his late wife Mary Ann.

His first assignment as a priest was to St. Mary’s in Bethel as an associate pastor. After two-and-a-half years there, he briefly served as the administrator and pastor at St. Peter’s in Danbury before receiving an assignment to St. Marguerite Bourgeoys in Brookfield. Here, he faced challenges to keep the church open as finances and a declining census threatened the existence of the parish. He turned it around, pouring his endless energy and a lifetime’s experience in facing challenges into making St. Marguerite Bourgeoys a source of pride to its parishioners. Father Al had survived living in an orphanage in his childhood, combat in Vietnam, several life-threatening airborne emergencies, and simply succeeded in everything he undertook. And he remembered and emulated the dedication and faith of that chaplain who stood in the rain in Vietnam. St. Marguerite Bourgeoys parish is -- and remains -- a jewel of a parish.

A former fighter pilot turned priest drew the attention of local and national media. Albert’s life story was featured in several newspaper pieces, including a national Associate Press story on the phenomenon of ordained widowers. A photograph of Father Audette was seen in newspapers across the nation. He was interviewed on Fox News’s The Crier Report, hosted by Catherine Crier. He appeared frequently in local news stories as he served on several community boards, including one which created a 9-11 memorial.

After his mandatory retirement at the age of 75, Al went on to yet a fourth career as a psychologist in Stamford, Connecticut after he obtained his fifth Masters’ degree. He provided much of his counselling to veteran’s without charge. He also published several books, including Advice from a Great-Grandfather. He travelled the world, met Pope John Paul II at the Vatican, took two photo safari trips to Africa, he visited Russia twice and Europe numerous times – often accompanied by his family or parishioners who had become dear friends. In 2018 he celebrated his 86th birthday in Bavaria with all of his children, his sister, and two of his children’s spouses. He paid for it all. They flew home in first class, he sat in coach. Nothing was too good for his family.

His performance as a fighter pilot remains part of the Air Force fighter pilot mythical lore. As a staff officer and diplomat, he implemented policies and philosophies used to this day. His military decorations and awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and the Distinguished Flying Cross. His consultant years included meeting with representatives from all levels of federal, state, and local governments and Fortune 500 companies, and the policies he advised became the rule. Once he became a priest, he mentored young seminarians and priests and his influence within the Catholic Church reaches to Rome.

He is survived by his sister Marjorie Audette Furtado of Somerset, Massachusetts and his four children: Stephen Thomas Audette of Naples, Florida; Jeffrey Brian Audette of Cumming, Georgia; Michelle Mary (Bryce) Ridge of San Antonio, Texas; and Theresa Ann (David Charles) Robinson of Comal County, Texas; 14 grandchildren including one he joins in heaven, and 10 great-grandchildren. He will be buried with full military honors beside his wife at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.