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James Murphy was born in Newry in County Down on 12 October 1912. He entered the Irish Capuchin novitiate in October 1930 and took Theodore as his religious name. He spent the three years of his simple profession in St. Bonaventure’s taking his BA degree in University College Cork. He made his solemn profession in October 1934. There followed four years of theological studies at Ard Mhuire Friary in County Donegal. He was ordained to the priesthood in June 1938. Following his ordination in St. Eunan’s Cathedral in Letterkenny, County Donegal, Fr. Theodore volunteered for missionary work abroad. At the invitation of Archbishop Sylvester Mulligan OFM Cap. he went to work with the English Capuchins in the Archdiocese of Delhi and Simla in India. He returned to Ireland after thirteen years of difficult missionary work (1938-51). Following a brief stint as Vice Master of Novices in Rochestown in County Cork during 1952, he was assigned to the Church Street community in Dublin for three years. He spent eighteen years teaching religion at the School of Marketing in Parnell Square in Dublin while residing in Raheny Hostel (1955-74). He was also superior of the Rahney community for three of those years (1958-61) as well as being an active promoter of the Seraphic Mass Association (SMA). In 1974, he was transferred back to Church Street and took up a chaplaincy role in St. Brendan’s Psychiatric Hospital. He continued in this role until 1979. He died in the Church Street Friary on 18 February 1993 and was buried in Glasnevin Cemetery.

Baptismal name: James Murphy
Religious name: Fr. Theodore Murphy OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 12 Oct. 1912
Place of birth: Newry, County Down (Diocese of Dromore)
Name of father: Thomas Murphy (Soldier)
Name of mother: Catherine Murphy (née McMahon)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 3 Oct. 1930
Date of first profession:4 Oct. 1941
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1934
Date of ordination (as priest): 19 June 1938
Educational attainments: BA (1934)
Missionary activities: Travelled to the Archdiocese of Delhi and Simla on 3 Oct. 1938. He returned to Ireland in January 1952.
Date of death: 18 Feb. 1993
Place of death: Church Street Friary, Dublin
Place of burial: Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin

Baptismal name: Nicholas John Dillane
Religious name: Fr. Raymond Dillane OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 22 Feb. 1916
Place of birth: North Circular Road, Dublin
Name of father: James Dillane (Prison Warder)
Name of mother: Mary Dillane (née Kenny)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 3 Oct. 1937
Date of first profession: 4 Oct. 1938
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1941
Date of ordination (as priest): 29 June 1945
Missionary activities: Travelled to Barotseland, Northern Rhodesia (later Zambia), on 21 Feb. 1946. Transferred to the Cape Town Mission, South Africa, in 1968. He returned to Ireland on 15 Nov. 1991.
Date of death: 10 Jan. 1999
Place of death: St. Francis Hospice, Raheny, Dublin
Place of burial: Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin

Baptismal name: Patrick Carroll
Religious name: Fr. Alphonsus Carroll OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 17 Aug. 1874
Place of birth: Killacolla, County Limerick
Name of father: John Carroll (Farmer)
Name of mother: Elizabeth Carroll (née Barry)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 24 Aug. 1902
Date of first profession: 17 Sept. 1903
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1906
Date of ordination (as priest): 5 Sept. 1909
Date of death: 27 Aug. 1934
Place of death: Lindville Hospital, Cork
Place of burial: Cemetery, Rochestown Capuchin Friary, County Cork

John McNamara was born in Glin, County Limerick, on 10 September 1931. He was baptised in the Immaculate Conception Parish Church in Glin in the Diocese of Limerick. He attended the national school in Glin after which he received his secondary education at Rochestown College in County Cork. He was admitted to the Capuchin novitiate in Rochestown on 3 October 1950. Following his temporary profession in Rochestown a year later, he was transferred to St. Bonaventure’s Friary in Cork from where he attended University College Cork for three years, after which he was conferred with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He made his perpetual profession in St. Bonaventure’s on 4 October 1954 and then made his way to Ard Mhuire Friary in Donegal for theological studies. He was ordained to the priesthood by William McNeely, Bishop of Raphoe, in St. Eunan’s Cathedral in Letterkenny on 15 May 1958. Later that year, he commenced Canon Law studies in Rome and obtained a Licentiate in 1960. On 17 August 1960, Fr. Donatus departed for the Irish Capuchin mission in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). He first served as assistant pastor in St Therese’s and in Maramba, both in the Livingstone Diocese, from 1960 to 1963. He then went on to teach seminarians in St. John’s in Mongu, in Limulunga and in Nalionwa (Kalabo) from 1964 to 1978. He was rector of the school at Limulunga from 1965 to 1978. He returned to Ireland in 1978, when he became a member of the staff at Rochestown College, teaching there for the next ten years. In 1988 he was appointed Mission Secretary and worked out of the mission office at the Church Street Friary in Dublin. In 1998, he returned to Zambia. He was posted to Malengwa Friary in Mongu, the capital of the Western Province in Zambia, and was appointed chaplain to Mongu Teacher Training College. After a two-year stay (2008-10), in St. Pio Friary, Fr. Donatus was transferred to the recently built Capuchin novitiate at the Camerino Friary in Lusaka, where he lived until his death on 5 July 2021. He was buried in the cemetery attached to the Camerino Friary.

Baptismal name: John McNamara
Religious name: Fr. Donatus McNamara OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 10 Sept. 1931
Place of birth: Glin, County Limerick
Name of father: Thomas McNamara
Name of mother: Brigid McNamara (née Egan)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 3 Oct. 1950
Date of first profession: 4 Oct. 1951
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1954
Date of ordination (as priest): 15 May 1958
Educational attainments: BA, 2nd class hons. (1954); Licentiate in Canon Law, Rome (1960)
Missionary activities: Travelled to Livingstone, Northern Rhodesia (later Zambia), on 17 Aug. 1960. He returned to Ireland on 10 Aug. 1976. He returned to Zambia in Sept. 1998.
Date of death: 5 July 2021
Place of death: St. Clare’s Hospital, Makeni, Lusaka, Zambia
Place of burial: Cemetery, Capuchin Novitiate, Camerino Friary, Lusaka, Zambia

Baptismal name: Joseph Fegan
Religious name: Fr. Aengus Fegan OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 16 May 1927
Place of birth: St. Luke’s Cross, Cork
Name of father: Joseph Fegan
Name of mother: Angela Fegan (née Cooke)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 3 Oct. 1948
Date of first profession: 4 Oct. 1949
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1959
Date of ordination (as priest): 10 May 1959
Educational attainments: BA (NUI), 1952; Higher Diploma in Education (NUI), 1959
Ministries: Worked in the Capuchin College, Rochestown, County Cork (Secondary School) for most of life teaching art, English, and geography
Date of death: 3 June 2002
Place of burial: Cemetery, Rochestown Capuchin Friary, County Cork

Daniel McFadden was born in Belfast on 4 March 1901. He joined the Capuchin Franciscans in September 1918 and took Declan as his religious name. Following his theological studies, he was ordained to the priesthood in June 1927 and spent his first years in ministry in Holy Trinity Church in Cork. He was among the first friars to volunteer for the Irish Capuchin mission in Cape Town, South Africa (1929), and two years later (October 1931) in the newly established mission territory in Livingstone and Barotseland in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). He arrived in Barotseland in 1931 and immediately began to journey (on foot) to remote areas around Sesheke and further afield in Mongu in the western part of the country. Illness brought on by exposure to tropical diseases forced him to return to Ireland in April 1933. He once again volunteered for missionary work in 1948 and he made his way to the Archdiocese of Delhi-Simla in India. The Irish Capuchin friar, Fr. Sylvester Mulligan OFM Cap., had been appointed archbishop of this diocese in 1937. Fr. Declan remained in India for eleven years (1937-48). Following his return to Ireland, he was assigned to the Rochestown community in County Cork. Aside from a brief, three-year stint in Kilkenny, he remained in Rochestown for the rest of his life. His ministry included acting as spiritual director for the local Third Order of St. Francis confraternity, organising the church choir, and regular pastoral, preaching, confession, and mission duties. He died on 30 November 1979 and was buried in the cemetery attached to Rochestown Friary.

Baptismal name: Daniel McFadden
Religious name: Fr. Declan McFadden OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 4 Mar. 1901
Place of birth: Limestone Road, Belfast (Diocese of Down and Connor)
Name of father: Daniel McFadden
Name of mother: Mary Ann McFadden (née Burrell)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 29 Sept. 1918
Date of first profession: 4 Oct. 1919
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1922
Date of ordination (as priest): 29 June 1927
Academic attainments: BA (1923)
Mission activities: Travelled to Cape Town, South Africa, and later Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia), in 1929. He returned to Ireland from Africa in 1933. He travelled to India in 1937. He returned to Ireland in 1948.
Date of Death: 30 Nov. 1979
Place of death: Cork
Place of burial: Cemetery, Rochestown Capuchin Friary, County Cork

Baptismal name: Francis McConvery
Religious name: Fr. Frederick McConvery OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 11 Jan. 1925
Place of birth: Belfast (Diocese of Down and Connor)
Name of father: Thomas McConvery
Name of mother: Ellen McConvery (née Leonard)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 23 Oct. 1945
Date of first profession: 24 Oct. 1946
Date of final profession: 24 Oct. 1949
Date of ordination: 24 May 1953
Missionary activities: Travelled to Livingstone, Northern Rhodesia (later Zambia), on 26 Aug. 1953
Date of death: 28 Nov. 1968
Place of death: Hermanus, South Africa (*suffered a heart attack whilst swimming off the coast at Hermanus)
Place of burial: Maitland Cemetery, Cape Town, South Africa

Baptismal name: Patrick Creed
Religious name: Fr. Berard Creed OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 17 Aug. 1923
Place of birth: Kilmurry, County Cork
Name of father: John Creed
Name of mother: Mary Creed (née Anglin)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 3 Oct. 1942
Date of first profession: 4 Oct. 1943
Date of final profession: 4 Oct. 1946
Date of ordination (as priest): 24 May 1951
Educational attainments: BA, 1st class hons. (1946); MA, 1st class hons. (1947); Higher Diploma in Education (1956)
Leadership positions: Provincial Definitor (Councillor), 1961-4, 1964-7; Provincial Minister, 1967-73; Director of Postulants, 1973-5; Vicar Provincial, 1976-9; Provincial Definitor and Novice Master, 1979-82.
Missionary activities: Travelled to Auckland, New Zealand, on 30 June 1975. He returned to Ireland on 30 July 1976; Travelled to South Korea in 1990 and returned to Ireland in 1994.
Date of death: 1 Feb. 2004
Place of death: Kilkenny
Place of burial: Foulkestown Cemetery, County Kilkenny

Mortimer O’Shea was born in Glengarriff in County Cork on New Year’s Day in 1897. His early studies were in the local national school. In 1908 he enrolled in the Seraphic College in Rochestown, County Cork. He entered the Capuchin novitiate in August 1914 and took Cassian as his religious name. He was awarded a degree in Irish studies from University College Cork in 1919. Following the completion of his theological studies, he was ordained in Holy Trinity Church in Cork on 29 June 1923. Soon after his ordination, he went to Rome for further studies. He received a Doctorate in Canon Law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in 1926. On his return to Ireland, he spent seventeen years teaching Canon Law to theological students at Ard Mhuire Capuchin Friary in County Donegal. He served as guardian (local superior) of Ard Mhuire from 1937 to 1943. A gifted Irish scholar, he published several works in the language. Following the completion of his term as guardian at Ard Mhuire, he was transferred to the Kilkenny Friary and served as Vicar and Master of Lay Novices. In 1947 he volunteered for the American Mission. His initial assignment was in St. Patrick’s Friary in Wilmington in Delaware where he served as guardian for six years. He moved to the West Coast in 1958 and spent one year as assistant pastor in St. Mary’s Parish in Ukiah, California. From there he moved to Our Lady of Angels Friary in Burlingame. Other assignments included associate pastor at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Los Angeles and chaplain at St. Charles Hospital in Bend, Oregon. He died in Los Angeles on 16 February 1981 and was buried in the cemetery attached to San Lorenzo Seminary at the Santa Inez Mission in California.

Baptismal name: Mortimer O’Shea
Religious name: Fr. Cassian O’Shea OFM Cap.
Date of birth: 1 Jan. 1897
Place of birth: Glengarriff, County Cork
Name of father: Patrick O’Shea
Name of mother: Elizabeth O’Shea (née O’Sullivan)
Date of reception into the Capuchin Order: 27 Aug. 1914
Date of first profession: 8 Sept. 1915
Date of final profession: 29 June 1923
Date of ordination (as priest): 29 June 1923 (Holy Trinity Church, Cork)
Educational attainments: BA, 1919; Doctorate in Canon Law (Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome), 1926
Missionary activities: Travelled to the United States on 29 July 1947
Date of death: 16 February 1981
Place of death: Los Angeles, California
Place of burial: Cemetery, San Lorenzo Seminary, Santa Inez Mission, California

Baptismal name: David Mitchell
Religious name: Fr. Albert Mitchell OSFC
Date of birth: 18 Sept. 1831
Leadership positions: Elected Custos Provincial in August 1876; Guardian, Church Street Friary, Dublin, 1882-3; Founder of the Father Mathew Temperance Association, Church Street, Dublin, in 1880.
Date of death: 27 Sept. 1893