Monsignor Eugene Maguire
Monsignor Eugene Maguire, beloved former pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, passed away on Friday, February 17th, 2006. He served at OLPH for over forty years, from 1952 to his retirement in 1993. In 2002, he was given the honorary ecclesiastical title of Monsignor in recognition of his service to the church and community.
A native of Ireland, he was ordained at St. Patrick's Seminary in County Carlow, Ireland. The seminary trained priests to work outside of Ireland, and Maguire hoped to go to Scotland. Fortunately, for us, he was asked to relocate to Arizona. He served his first five years at Queen of Peace Parish in Mesa. In 1952, he was assigned to be resident pastor of the new Scottsdale Parish, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, then housed in the Old Adobe Mission and made up of 194, mostly Hispanic, families.
As Scottsdale grew, so did the Parish and it's needs. In 1954, acreage was purchased at Miller Road and Main Street in Scottsdale, and the building of a new church was begun. In 1956, the new OLPH Church was consecrated and instruction in the new OLPH School began. Father Maquire played an active role in the building and maintenance of the church and parish community. The parish soon became one of the largest in the Phoenix Diocese and over time new congregations split off from it.
By the early 1970s, with the mushrooming population of Scottsdale, OLPH once again had outgrown it's church home and plans were undertaken to build a new sanctuary. In 1976, the new OLPH Church was dedicated, with the old church building eventually being renamed Maguire Hall, in honor of Father Maguire. Through all the years, he oversaw the church and school and was a tireless advocate for the poor and homeless among us. The beloved priest retired in June 1993, with 2,500 people attending the dinner.
He will be missed.
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| Father Maguire |
Father Maguire |
Father Maguire and Priests |
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| OLPH Priests |
OLPH Priests |
Smiling Father Maguire |
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| Father Maguire and Bill Keane |
Bill Keane and Fr. Maguire |
Father Maguire |
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| Fr. Maguire and his car |
New bells for the New OLPH Church |
Fr. Maguire and friends |
