Gene Speichinger, 1934-2009

Published Friday, January 23, 2009

Paul Eugene "Gene" Speichinger, 74, of Columbia passed away Thursday, Jan. 22, 2009.

A Mass of Christian burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 26, at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Columbia. A parish rosary will be held at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at Our Lady of Lourdes, with a visitation to follow.

He was born July 6, 1934, to Phillip Lawrence and Adeline Zapf Speichinger on the family farm in Mendon. After completing grade school in Indian Grove, he worked on the family farm until 1955, after which he completed high school at St. Nazian’s College in Wisconsin in 1959. He then chose to study philosophy and theology at Conception Seminary in Conception while spending summers doing mission work, agricultural projects and carpentry.

He was awarded a bachelor of arts in philosophy and a bachelor of science and master’s degree in theology in 1965. In 1965 he was a chaplain to St. Francis Hospital in Marceline and associate pastor to St. Peter’s Cathedral in Jefferson City.

After being ordained as a priest in 1965 in the Diocese of Jefferson City, Gene traveled to Capachica, Peru, where he worked from 1965 to 1973 in rural community development and organization as coordinator, pastor and director of a multinational, ecumenical mission enterprise. In spending 12 years working with the Quechua Indians of the highlands in southern Peru, Gene worked on the construction of schools, roads, wells, electrical and mechanical installations, bridges, and management of a 5,500-acre cooperative farming project, and was director and pastor of a the Catholic church in Capachica. In this time, he became fluent in Spanish and the native language, Quechua.

On May 22, 1973, Gene received a formal dispensation from the Roman Catholic Church. He later married Gillian Leigh Gates on July 25, 1973, whom he met during her work as a nurse and midwife with the Public Health Department of Puno, Peru. After the birth of their first daughter, Ella, the couple continued to work in Peru until 1977. That year, their second daughter, Nancy, was born in Cambridge, England; then they moved back to the United States and settled in Columbia.

Upon moving to Columbia, Gene joined Our Lady of Lourdes parish and was an active parishioner. The family had two more daughters, Meghan and Clare, and have resided in Columbia to the present. Gene worked for the state of Missouri with the Department of Economic Development. When he retired for the second time, he remained a strong source of support for those who continued this work.

He continued to maintain close ties with the Peruvian missions, often supporting them by coordinating yearly fundraisers. He was an active member in his parish, participating in RCIA and Bible study, and providing Communion to shut-ins.