Société des Missions Africaines –Province d'Irlande

né le 7 octobre 1901 à Caherafort, Hollymount dans le diocèse de Tuam, Irlande membre de la SMA le 8 jullet 1925 prêtre le 9 juin 1929 décédé le 19 juin 1965

1929-1946 misionnaire au Nigeria diocèse de Bénin City 1947-1965 attaché à la Province US Géorgie, diocèse de Brooklyn, Foride décédé à Eustis, USA, le 19 juin 1965, à l'âge de 64 ans

George McCormack was born at Caherafort, Hollymount, Co Mayo, Ireland, in the archdiocese of Tuam, on October 7, 1901.
He died in Eustis Hospital, at Eustis, Florida, USA, on June 19, 1965.

George came from a large family in the west of Ireland. He studied with the Christian Brothers at Ballinrobe (l9l4 l920), Co Mayo, at the Sacred Heart college, Ballinafad, Co Mayo (l921), and St. Joseph's college, Wilton, Cork (1922 1923), before entering the SMA novitiate and house of philosophy, at Kilcolgan, Co Galway, in the autumn of l923. Two years later, on July 8, l925, he was admitted to membership of the Society. He studied theology first at St. Joseph's seminary, Blackrock Road, Cork (l925 l926) and after the transfer of the seminary, at Dromantine, Co Down (l926 l929). He was ordained a priest by Bishop Edward Mulhern of Dromore diocese, at St. Colman's cathedral, Newry, on June 9, 1929. He was one of a group of fifteen ordained on that day.

After ordination George was appointed to the Vicariate of Western Nigeria, the first mission in that country to be entrusted to the Irish Province, when Thomas Broderick became vicar-apostolic in 1918. When George arrived in the Vicariate, in October 1929, Bishop Broderick posted him to Aragba, a station which had been founded in 1921 under the patronage of St. Joseph. Aragba had a Catholic community of perhaps 1,000 members with 800 catechumens, located in Aragba and its forty-two secondary stations. Here George was inducted into the missionary life, studying the local language, learning about African culture and undertaking supervised pastoral work. After six months he was appointed to Benin City mission, which had become a residential station in 1928 (a little over ten years later it was to become the seat of the Vicariate). Six months later George was transferred to the recently-founded St. Thomas teacher training college, Ibusa, which provided qualified teachers for the Vicariate's expanding elementary school network. He was to spend the last three years of his first tour of duty in Warri district. Warri mission had been founded in 1917 under the patronage of the Sacred Heart. The district covered a vast area of creeks, swamps and islands in the Niger delta. George went to Ireland on his first home leave in March 1934. On his return to Nigeria, a year later, the new Vicar Apostolic, Leo Hale Taylor (Bishop Broderick had died in 1933), re-appointed George to Warri, where he worked with Danny O'Connell and Tom Barron, among the Sobos and the Ijaws. George spent the last three years of his second tour of duty as superior of Ibusa mission. Ibusa had been founded in 1899 and was a thriving station, with over 2,000 Catholic members and 400 catechumens as well, of course, as the renowned teacher training college. George came to Ireland on his second home leave in May 1939. He returned to Nigeria in December 1940, spending the whole of his next tour of duty as superior of Sapele district. In January 1943, with the erection of some new jurisdictions in Nigeria, the boundaries of the 'old' Vicariate were re-defined and the jurisdiction was re-named 'the Vicariate of Asaba-Benin', under Patrick J. Kelly, who had succeeded Bishop Taylor in 1939. George's years in western Nigeria coincided with a rapid expansion of the Church, largely achieved through the educational apostolate. George played an important part in these developments, opening new outstations and providing them with churches and schools.

When George returned to Ireland in June 1946 he was in poor health. After several months convalescence he asked his superiors’ permission to visit his three brothers in America, which was accorded. During his visit to America – he arrived in March 1947 - he fell ill once more and was hospitalised. It was clear that he would be unable to return to the tropics. At this time the American Province of the Society, founded in 1941, was short of personnel and frequently made requests to the Irish Provincial for help. Thus it was that George became a member of the American Province, transferring from the Irish Province in December 1948. After regaining his strength George was assigned to the Society’s African-American parishes in Georgia, but soon returned to the East Coast because of a relapse in his condition. Over the next nine years he took on a number of temporary assignments. In 1952 he was attached to the Parish of Our Lady of Victory, Floral Park, Brooklyn Diocese. Later in the 1950’s he assisted at Immaculate Conception Church, Westhampton Beach, in the Diocese of Rockville Centre. In 1958 George felt well enough to return to Georgia, becoming pastor-superior of St. Benedict’s Mission, in Savannah. He remained at this posting until 1961 when his health again broke down. Aware that he needed milder climate George was now permitted to take up temporary work in Florida. He worked first in Holy Redeemer Church, Kissimmee, Florida (from December 1962) and spent most of the last two years of his life as assistant pastor of Our Lady of the Lakes Church in Eustis, Florida.

Throughout his years in America George maintained a keen interest in his old mission in Nigeria, which in 1950 was erected as the Diocese of Benin City. In the archives of the Irish Province, at Blackrock Road, there is a letter written by George to the Provincial (John A. Creaven) arranging for the purchase of 'a new chalice to be sent to Bishop Kelly for his new church in Benin City'. The chalice was donated by an American lady who had heard George speak about Nigeria. He was also energetic in obtaining Mass stipends for his colleagues in West Africa. The first symptoms of the illness which took George's life manifested themselves in January 1965. He was in the 63rd year of his life and 36th year of his priestly ministry when he died.

George's nephew, George Philbin, was a student at Ballinafad, aged 15, when he was drowned during the summer holidays in the river Robe (Co Mayo) in 1945. His older brother, Tommy, aged 19, was also drowned when he went to save him. There is a poignant letter in the archives of the Irish Province, written by George to the Provincial, Stephen Harrington: 'I got the sad news of the death of two of my nephews. Both were drowned on 8th August. The younger boy, George, was on vacation from Ballinafad where he had spent one year. The poor parents are to be pitied. May God console them in their grief. There are three more boys and five girls in the family. I shall be grateful if you allow me to say a set of Gregorian Masses for the repose of their poor souls. It was only last June that I finished a set of such Masses for my sister Jane who died in America on September 29 last'. Another nephew, John McCormack, joined the SMA and was ordained a priest in 1969. He has subsequently served in Liberia and the Philippines.

George is buried in the SMA Community Plot, Mount Carmel cemetery, Tenafly, New Jersey, USA.