August 11, 2023

A tribute to our friend and colleague, Rita Maguire

Rita MaguireThe staff members of The Criterion are dedicating this issue to our friend and colleague, Rita Michele (Kesterson) Maguire, who died on July 25 at the age of 67.

In her nine-month battle with pancreatic cancer, Rita displayed the grace, spirit and faith that marked her life, constantly acknowledging that she had been blessed in many ways by God through the years.

For Rita, her blessings always started with the gift of family—the large, Catholic family she grew up in as the fifth of 10 children and the family that she created with her husband of 43 years, Joseph, their daughter Anne, their son Patrick, his wife Kristin and their grandsons, Connor and Peter.

As her obituary noted, Rita was a force in cheering for her children in their sports as they grew up—and she continued to pour her dedication and support on her grandchildren.

“She held them when they were sick, made them laugh, played catch with them, and attended as many baseball, soccer and basketball games as possible,” her obituary noted about her bond with her grandsons. “They brought her tremendous joy.”

As her friends and colleagues in the communications office of the archdiocese, we’ve been blessed by Rita’s joy, as well as her goodness, her humor, her generosity, her loyalty, her feisty spirit and her friendship.

We’ve also witnessed up-close the way she lived her life by embracing her faith, and how she was committed to sharing the joy of her faith through her work as special events coordinator for the archdiocese, including helping to plan the first two Legacy Gala celebrations.

Touched by knowing Rita, we pray that she is experiencing the eternal joy that God offers all of us. †

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