PORTLAND

Fr. Lionel G. Chouinard (pictured below) will retire from active ministry, effective May 1. Chouinard serves as the pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in Lisbon Falls and Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in Sabattus, which also includes St. Francis Church in Greene.

Born in Lewiston, Chouinard completed his clerical studies at St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland, and was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Daniel J. Feeney, on May 22, 1965, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland.

His first pastoral assignments were as an assistant pastor, first at St. Christopher Parish on Peaks Island and then at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Madawaska. In September 1968, he was named an associate pastor at Holy Cross Parish in his native city of Lewiston, where he also served as temporary administrator for a period. In 1973, in addition to his duties at Holy Cross, Chouinard was named co-chaplain of St. Dominic Regional High School (now Saint Dominic Academy).

In July 1976, he was appointed pastor of Holy Name Parish in Machias, where he also served as the auxiliary chaplain of the United States Air Force Base in Bucks Harbor. In October 1982, he was named pastor of St. Theresa Parish in Mexico, where he would serve until being appointed pastor of St. Augustine Parish in Augusta in July of 1990.

During a decade as pastor of St. Augustine Parish, Chouinard was oversaw an extensive restoration of the church’s granite exterior and a complete renovation of the parish’s convent building, which included the creation of a chapel to be used for weekday Masses. The parish’s offices were also moved from the rectory to the newly-renovated building.

In April 2000, Chouinard was appointed pastor of Holy Trinity Parish, overseeing the construction of the new parish center in Lisbon Falls. In 2006, he briefly served as interim administrator of Holy Family Parish in Lewiston, and in 2008, in addition to his duties at Holy Trinity, he was named pastor of Our Lady of the Rosary. He still serves both parishes today.

In addition to his work in parishes, Fr. Chouinard has served as president of the Diocesan Senate of Priests (now known as the Presbyteral Council), a member of the College of Consultors, Vicar Forane of the then Oxford-Franklin Deanery, and chaplain for the Knights of Columbus and the Daughters of Isabella.

For more information, contact Dave Guthro, Communications Director for the Diocese of Portland, at (207) 321-7810 or dave.guthro@portlanddiocese.org.

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