Father Christopher Monturo had been pastor of Rye's Church of the Resurrection for less than two weeks when torrential rain flooded the church before 8 a.m. Mass on Sept. 13.

Parishioners grabbed mops and towels to bail water. Monturo and two fellow priests, known as Fathers Epi and Will, gathered in the sacristy and built a triage plan, the Rye Record reported.

They moved everything needed to the parish's middle school gymnasium, posted messengers at every church entrance to redirect arriving parishioners and called the insurance company and a roofing contractor. The Masses went on. The church has since reopened.

Monturo, who goes by Father Chris, took over the Boston Post Road parish on Sept. 1 after Msgr. Donald Dwyer retired for medical reasons. The Rye Record reported that Dwyer served 15 years as pastor.

The new pastor's path to the priesthood ran through the funeral industry. Born in Boca Raton, Fla., and raised in Atlanta, Monturo worked part time at a neighbor's funeral home as a young man. He graduated from Iona College in New Rochelle in 1994, then attended Gupton-Jones College of Mortuary Science and worked as a funeral director in Atlanta and New York City.

He said the calling to the priesthood began at age 6. He remembers a childhood friend showing up at his Atlanta doorstep saying his father had died. Monturo recalled attending the wake and recognizing the need to console the living.

"I fell in love with the mystery, the ritual, the way a priest was there for people in time of need," he told the Rye Record.

Monturo entered the seminary system of the Archdiocese of New York and was ordained May 17, 2003. He served at a parish in the Pelham Bay section of the Bronx, then led St. Anthony of Padua Parish in West Harrison from 2007 to 2019. He spent seven years as pastor of Sacred Heart/Our Lady of Pompeii Parish in Dobbs Ferry before his Rye appointment.

He also serves as chaplain to several first responder organizations in Westchester County, according to the Yonkers Times. He previously hosted a weekly talk show on the now-closed WVOX radio station.

Monturo holds theological degrees from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome and St. Joseph's Seminary in Dunwoodie, the Yonkers Times reported. The Rye Record described the Rome credential as "advanced theological courses."

One early sign of his priorities: he moved the parish's classically trained choral singers from the back of the church to the front of the altar and is making greater use of the pipe organ.

His arrival also came with a mix-up that only a former funeral director could appreciate. A floral arrangement arrived at the rectory with a card reading "With deepest sympathy." Monturo checked with Rye's Graham Funeral Home and learned the cards had been swapped. The deceased being waked there had received an arrangement reading "Good luck in your new destination."

Monturo turned 55 on Oct. 11. The Church of the Resurrection is at 910 Boston Post Road in Rye.