Francisco Garmendia (November 6, 1924 – November 16, 2005) was a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of the

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in the

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. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York ( la, Archidiœcesis Neo-Eboracensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroug ...

from 1977 to 2001.

Biography

Born in Lazcano,

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, Francisco Garmendia Ayestarán was ordained a priest for the Canons Regular of the Congregation of the Most Holy Saviour of the Lateran on June 29, 1947. He served as a priest in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

before he was

incardinated Incardination is the formal term in the Catholic Church for a clergyman being under a bishop or other ecclesiastical superior. It is also sometimes used to refer to laity who may transfer to another part of the church. Examples include transfers ...

into the Archdiocese of New York in 1975.

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

appointed him as the

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Limisa'' and Auxiliary Bishop of New York on May 24, 1977. He was ordained a bishop by Cardinal

Terence Cooke Terence James Cooke (March 1, 1921 – October 6, 1983) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of New York from 1968 until his death, quietly battling leukemia throughout his tenure. He was named a cardin ...

on June 29, 1977. The principal co-consecrators were Coadjutor Archbishop John Maguire of New York and Auxiliary Bishop

Patrick Ahern Patrick Vincent Ahern (March 8, 1919 – March 19, 2011) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York from 1970 to 1994. Biography Ahern was born in New York City, and ...

. Garmendia served as the pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in

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and the Vicar for Spanish Pastoral Development. He was the first

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

bishop in New York, and continued to serve as an auxiliary bishop until his resignation was accepted by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

on October 30, 2001. He died on November 16, 2005, at the age of 81.

The Hope Line

In 1990, Garmendia co-founded The Hope Line or La Linea de la Esperanza, a non-profit serving the South Bronx community. After the Happyland Fire in March 1990, Garmendia and Mr. James P. McLaughlin, President of

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, led an effort to establish community assistance; this started with a bilingual telephone counseling and referral service and has since grown to include a diaper distribution program, a food pantry, a SNAP benefit enrollment office, virtual taxes, financial literacy workshops and referral services.

References

1924 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American Roman Catholic titular bishops Spanish emigrants to the United States Spanish expatriates in Argentina Spanish Roman Catholic bishops in North America People from Goierri Basque Roman Catholic priests {{US-RC-bishop-stub