St. Mary's Basilica
Phoenix, Arizona
Fr. Luis Baldonado, OFM
Services
Memorial Mass with Visitation throughout the Afternoon:
Date: Saturday, June 25, 2022
Time: 12:00 PM Noon
Location: St. Mary’s Basilica / 231 N 3rd Street – PHX, AZ
Vigil of the Office of the Dead
Date: Sunday, June 26, 2022
Time: 5:00 PM
Location: St. Mary’s Basilica / 231 N 3rd Street – PHX, AZ
Funeral Mass
Followed immediately by burial at St. Francis Cemetery.
Reception at 1:00 PM at St. Mary’s Basilica – Social Hall
Date: Monday, June 27, 2022
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: St. Mary’s Basilica / 231 N 3rd Street – PHX, AZ
Obituary
Franciscan Rev. Luis Baldonado, OFM passed away on Tuesday, June 21, 2022. Born in New Mexico June 14, 1925 he attended St. Anthony Minor Seminary (Santa Barbara) and joined the Order as a novice in June of 1945. The commute across Arizona from home and back those years was his first introduction to this state. He made Solemn Profession of vows on the 11th of June, 1949 and was ordained a friar priest June 08, 1952 at Mission Santa Barbara.
Fr. Luis was introduced to Phoenix as a child with a short stint living in central Phoenix. New Mexico remained his home. He passed through on the train in his years in the seminary and on his way from his first assignment in Pueblo, Colorado staying in a room that is now the rector’s office of the Basilica friary.
He spent a year and half at Monrovia Maryknoll Sanitorium in the fall of 1954 for a TB rest, then to Mission San Antonio at Brothers School until 1955. Holy Family Parish in Pueblo Colorado was his first official parish assignment until 1958. He came to Arizona at Mission San Xavier in Tucson until 1961. The German gothic St. Joseph Parish in central Los Angeles was a major appointment for him until 1980. He was sent to Guadalupe parish in San Jose, California until 1983 and then back to Phoenix for three-year stint as the director of The Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale. He went as pastor to Mission San Luis Rey Parish in Oceanside, CA. in 1986, back to San Jose from 1988-1994. He has been here in the Phoenix area since then. He served as pastor at Sacred Heart parish and as guardian of St. Mary’s, before retiring at the Basilica in 2006. He continued to part of the ancillary staff, hearing confessions and spiritual direction for those who came to the door.
A short memorial Mass will be offered at the Basilica at 12 PM Noon on Saturday, June 25, 2022 with visitation through the afternoon. Vigil for the Office of the Dead (Evening Prayer) will be prayed by the Franciscan Friars at 5:00 PM on Sunday, June 26, 2022. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated Monday, June 27, 2022 at 10:00 AM with burial at St. Francis Cemetery immediately following. Reception follows at 1 PM in the Social Hall of St. Mary’s Basilica. He leaves behind his sister (Sr.) Rosalina Baldonado, IHM, nieces and cousins, members of the St. Barbara Province of the Franciscan Friars, innumerable friends from his assignments throughout the area. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the St. Mary’s Basilica Patronado in his name.
For More Information
St. Mary’s Basilica
Phone: 602-354-2100
May you Rest In Peace. Thank you for all you gave to so many. Heaven gained and other Holy Man that we can pray to
You brought so much joy to so many.
I am blessed to have known you n participated in our meditation evenings. In my time of need you were there for me. No matter the day or time.
It was a blessing and an honor to have Father Luis serve at Sacred Heart Parish. His gentle kind voice and sweet smile was always comforting. I will miss you and remember you often. Rest In Peace 🙏
Sending our thoughts and prayers to Rosalina and family. Fr.Luis will always be remembered by the entire Baldonado family as a kind and holy man. Love from the Baldonado/Martinez family in Phoenix.
Dear Fr. Luis:
I have known you for many years, ever since I was a teenager back in Los Angeles, when you were at the Old St. Josephs Church. before it caught on fire. I give thanks to God for you smiles, kindness and gentle soul. I learn much from you, and now as a priest, you helped me out in so many ways. I thank God for men like you, totally dedicated to the service of God and His people; I thank God for allowing me to share some time with you, and your generous time with us.
Fr. Fausto
Fr. Luis was so patient and kind with us as our pastor when we were Extension Lay Volunteers at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Fresno, from 1966-1968. There is a new saint in heaven.
I know he did a lot for my mother and a close friend. I believe God has a place for him.
Awe dearest Father Luis. I will miss your presence in the world. How I loved sitting with you in silent prayer, how you drew us in to the heart of Mary with just a few simple words. It’s there we will meet again. I thank your community for holding that space for you for so long. Love and peace from Dublin, Ireland.
Fr. Luis,
God bless you my dear friend. You brought me into the church as a teenager in 1977. Your instruction has sustained me through many years of joyful faith and trials. I was just watching a documentary about Notre Dame burning, and it reminded me of the sorrow I still feel for the loss of the old St. Joseph’s in Los Angeles; the place where I first walked through the doors and felt God call me to His Church. I suddenly wanted to know what had happened to you over the years, and was surprised to see that you had only recently died after almost 100 years of life on this earth. I am sure that in that time, you modeled the love of Christ for so many more than just me. What a beautiful reunification with the Lord it must have been for you. I will visit with you in prayer and with God’s grace, you will become a special saint for those whose lives you have touched.
Thinking about you today, as I often do and decided to reach out…so sorry to hear of your passing, Fr. Luis. You were always there for me and my family when you were here at St. Joseph’s downtown Los Angeles. I remember visiting you when you moved up to San Jose and promised to visit when you moved to Arizona. Sadly, I never made it to Arizona but we did keep in contact over the years – Christmas cards and a few long distance calls. Now that you are resting in heaven, you are close to my sweet mother, Claudette. I am so sorry to not have taken the time to visit you but I hope you know how much my family and I appreciated all the fun times we had together. I remember how much we enjoyed Church because we were able to run around in the office afterwards, and our picnics at Griffith Park…
Thank you you for being a blessing in our lives, now it’s time to rest with Our Father…you are an Angel.
With love and gratitude, Debra