Father Travis W. Mecum, priest of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, passed away peacefully on March 27, 2024, at Villa St. Francis. Visitation will be held at 9:30 a.m., with the Rosary prayed at 10:45 a.m. and Funeral Mass at 11:00 a.m. on Friday April 5, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 11311 Johnson Dr, Shawnee, KS 66203. Burial will follow at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery, Lenexa, KS.
Father Travis was born on March 10, 1969, in Hays, KS, the son of Gary Lyle and Clara Rose (Gould) Mecum. Fr Travis grew up in Olmitz, KS, and graduated from Otis-Bison High School in 1987. He attended Bethany College in Lindsborg, KS, where he studied vocal performance for a year before enlisting in the United States Army Reserves. He then studied music education at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, KS. He held a variety of positions before pursuing his life-long passion of becoming a priest, including data development technologist for Black & Veatch; realtor and sales manager at Angel Berry Realtors; polysomnographer at SomniTech, Saint Luke’s Health Systems, and Shawnee Mission Medical Center; and polysomnographer and sleep center technical/clinical manager at MidAmerica Neuroscience Institute/Rowe Neurology Institute. In 2015, Fr Travis completed an Associate of Arts in applied organizational leadership at MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, KS. He then moved to Weston, MA, where he attended Pope Saint John XXIII National Seminary, completing a Masters of Divinity in 2020. He was ordained as a priest in May 2020 and has worked in the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, first at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Lenexa, and at the time of his death, St. Joseph Catholic Church in Shawnee, KS.
Father Travis loved serving as a Parish priest and all that it entailed. He also loved spending time with his family and held a special fondness for family cats. He enjoyed writing poems and short stories as well as verses for cards and songs. And he loved anything Irish, as his interest in the priesthood was heavily influenced by Father Murphy from St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Olmitz, KS.
Father Travis was preceded in death by his father, Gary Mecum; his brother, Vic Hamby; and his great-niece, Brittani Thornton. He is survived by his mother, Clara Mecum; sisters Tammy Legleiter (Pat) and Julie Fields; niece Shari Weber (Tony, Blake, Paighton, Anthony); and many other that were beloved to him.