Deacon J. Donald MacKnew, deacon at St. Margaret Church, dies at 88

Deacon J. Donald MacKnew, a deacon at St Margaret in Bel Air for 17 years who was known for his compassionate outreach, died Oct. 17 at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center. He was 88 and had suffered a variety of health ailments.

Deacon MacKnew was ordained a deacon at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen Sept. 13, 1986, by Archbishop William D. Borders and assigned to St. Margaret that same year. He served with many priests during his time at the parish, where his wife of 64 years, Rosetta,  worked in the religious education department.

“The one thing I most remember about Deacon MacKnew is that he was gracious, gentle and kind-hearted,” said Father Jeff Dauses, current pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Baynesville, who worked with Deacon MacKnew at St. Margaret 1997-99. “He would do anything in the world for anyone, and I never heard him say the word ‘no.’ He had a desire to serve the Lord and the people of the parish. He was approachable and had a great sense of humor.”

According to Father Dauses, Deacon MacKnew became a deacon after he retired from American Airlines, where he worked for 43 years. He was also a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and served during the Korean War. Deacon MacKnew worked at the parish mostly on weekends and for events such as funerals, wakes and baptisms.

Father Tom Malia, a chaplain at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, worked with Deacon MacKnew at St. Margaret in 1992 during its expansion.

“He and his wife Rosetta were very involved in youth ministry at the parish at the time,” Father Malia said. “Deacon MacKnew was one of those people who did everything behind the scenes. He was just very humble and self-effacing. And he loved to laugh.”

Deacon MacKnew was the father of three children, one of whom is deceased. He also had nine grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.

Father Malia said the MacKnews loved to travel to the Southwest and visited at least once a year. Deacon MacKnew was also involved with the Boy Scouts for many years.

Deacon Victor Petrosino, currently assigned at St. Margaret, was in the deacon class of 1999, and Deacon MacKnew was his mentor. He had known Deacon MacKnew for many years, as he has been a member of St. Margaret since 1964.

“He let me sit in and watch when he did special things like baptisms and weddings, and he explained what he did and why he was doing it,” Deacon Petrosino said. “It just flowed. He always said a ritual without meaning is useless.”

“I learned so much from him about being a good deacon from watching a good deacon,” Deacon Petrosino added. “He gave me a set of books that I still use today, and I still do baptisms in the ‘Deacon Don style.’”

Deacon MacKnew retired July 1, 2003, and Deacon Petrosino kept in regular contact with him after his retirement. Deacon Petrosino, who is also a chaplain at Upper Chesapeake Hospital, visited Deacon MacKnew the Wednesday before he died. That day, he had a group of seminarians with him.

“Before we left, they asked him to give them his deacon blessing, and he was so touched and had the biggest smile on his face,” said Deacon Petrosino. “That’s how I will remember him.”

A service for Deacon MacKnew was offered Oct. 21 at St. Francis De Sales Cemetery in Abingdon with Deacon Petrosino presiding. 

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