The Boston Fire Department will escort the body of its beloved former chaplain, the late Father Daniel J. Mahoney, from the Carr Funeral Home on Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, up to St. Francis de Sales Church, Charlestown, where Father Mahoney was the pastor from 1978 to 2022. He always liked to remind folks that the gold cross atop his parish's church was the tallest cross in the city of Boston. And perhaps the most visible, easily viewed from Route One and Interstate 93 and from neighboring cities and towns.

Father Mahoney died at Massachusetts General Hospital on June 11 after a period of declining health.

A Haverhill native, he was a proud son of the venerable St. James Parish there. He attended both the parish elementary and high schools, staffed by Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston. The parish was a hothouse of vocations, especially to the diocesan priesthood and to the Sisters of St. Joseph, but others also got to share the wealth.

Following high school graduation, he entered the archdiocesan seminaries at Brighton, completing college, philosophy, and theology studies on the Brighton campus.

Archbishop Richard J. Cushing ordained him and his classmates at the cathedral on Feb. 2, 1956. His death leaves Father George Emerson of Regina Cleri as the surviving member of that ordination class. The class of almost 60 members was ordained in two ceremonies, about half, including Father Mahoney, by Archbishop Cushing at the cathedral; the remainder, including Father Emerson, at Holy Name, West Roxbury, by Auxiliary Bishop Eric F. MacKenzie.

Following ordination, Father Mahoney was assigned as an assistant at St. Mary of the Assumption, Revere (1956-1962); St. Joseph, East Boston (1962-1965); St. Zepherin, Wayland (1965-1968); and lastly, as an associate at St. Francis de Sales, Charlestown (1968-1978).

He was the pastor of St. Francis de Sales from June 1978 until his retirement in June 2022. The 44 years as pastor combined with the decade as an associate yields an astonishing 54 years at the one parish. During most of that time, he was also a chaplain of the Boston Fire Department, first as an assistant and then, from 1991 to 2022, as chief. In 2022, he retired both from the administration of the parish and from his position at the Boston Fire Department.

During more than half a century, at St. Francis, he had seen dramatic shifts and changes in Charlestown. When he arrived, the "busing issue" was still a source of not a little controversy. The parish school was still enrolling students as it had for several generations. Demographic shifts were happening, and eventually, the school population declined and resulted in its closing.

Under Father Mahoney's leadership, the parish, at times struggling, continued to serve the needs of long-time and of new parishioners. Some "Townies" moved out; others stayed. New folks moved in. Soon, Charlestown became one of the most sought-after places to live. The shifts sent property prices skyrocketing and access both to the Financial District and Government Center made living there most desirable.

The proximity to Interstate 93 and US Route One added to desirability. You could be out of the city quickly and get to second homes on the North Shore or in Maine or New Hampshire within an hour; and a little bit more for the South Shore and Cape Cod. The commuters changed the face of Charlestown and its parishes. Yet, Father Mahoney was there through it all.

As noted, he had been, since 1991, the "pastor" of the Boston Fire Department. For more than three decades, he has been with firefighters across the Hub, not only when seen at fires, but also when unseen at times of celebration for their families and of sadness at funerals. It would be safe to grab those words from a wedding ceremony, "in good times and in bad; in sickness and in health," to describe his ministry to the firefighters, their families, and friends.

He had celebrated baptisms of children and grandchildren; marriages of firefighters and their siblings and children; been at bedsides with the consolation of the anointing of the sick; and celebrated too many funerals of those who had died in the line of duty or those who had died after years of well-earned retirement.

In just over two years of his retirement, Father Mahoney continued to maintain residence in Charlestown and was still both available and called on by parishioners and members of the BFD.

Father Mahoney's funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Francis de Sales Church, Charlestown, on June 27. Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley was scheduled to be the celebrant. During and following the funeral Mass, his firefighters assembled in numbers and provided an honor guard both at the church and then to his final resting place at Holy Cross Cemetery, Malden.

Father Mahoney was preceded in death by his parents Daniel and Mary (Tannian) Mahoney, and his only sibling, Mary.