MCFARLAND — A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Sunday, Nov. 15, at 5:30 p.m. for Fr. Arthur R. Koth, 79, a pastor emeritus of the Diocese of Madison, who died on Wednesday, Nov. 11, in Madison.
Bishop William H. Bullock, bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Madison, will be the main celebrant and Msgr. Michael Burke, pastor of St. Maria Goretti Parish in Madison, will be the homilist.
Visitation will be at Christ the King Parish in McFarland from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 15. Dinner will be served in the parish hall following the Mass.
Interment will take place on Monday, Nov. 16, at 11 a.m. At Holy Cross Cemetery, Milwaukee.
Father Koth was born on July 26, 1930, in Milwaukee to Julia and Frank Koth. He attended St. Florian Grade School, West Milwaukee, and Marquette University High School, Milwaukee. His collegiate studies were at St. Francis Seminary, Milwaukee, where he also studied philosophy. He studied theology at Conception Seminary, Conception, Mo.
He was ordained to the priesthood on April 6, 1957, for the Diocese of Madison by Bishop James J. Byrne of Boise, Idaho.
He served as associate pastor at St. Dennis Parish, Madison, and Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, Madison. He ministered as a counselor to the adult handicapped in Madison prior to serving as a member of the faculty at Edgewood High School, Madison. He served as associate pastor at St. Mary of the Lake, Westport, prior to serving as a member of the faculty of St. Benedict Academy, Fox Bluff. He ministered as a counselor at the Catholic Welfare Bureau prior to serving as a member of the faculty at Holy Name Seminary, Madison.
He served as the founding pastor of Christ the King Parish, McFarland, from 1974 until he retired in 2000.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made for Masses; to HospiceCare Inc., Madison; St. Raphael’s Society of the Diocese of Madison; and St. Vincent De Paul Society.