With the contributions they have made to their community seemingly endless, perhaps their most impressive achievement is the unwavering love the two have shared across 68 years of marriage.
“I think one of the secrets is to stay busy because if you can do that it keeps your mind occupied and stops you from getting into any arguments,” Larry said with a slight chuckle. “The other aspect is our family which we are very proud of. Our faith has kept us together, that is for sure, and I think that is the greatest gift of all,” Theresa added.
On Sept. 29, the Archdiocese of Toronto recognized the Keoghs' long-standing faithful service as the couple was named one of the inaugural recipients of the Saint Michael Award, named after the patron saint of the archdiocese.
The two were honoured in person during a special celebration at the Noon Mass of the Solemnity of Saint Michael at Saint Michael’s Cathedral Basilica in downtown Toronto alongside four other individuals from the central, eastern and western regions of the archdiocese.
Most Rev. Francis Leo, the Archbishop of Toronto, spoke on the recipients of the inaugural award.
“It is a joy to honour these men and women who have so lovingly served our community with great joy, humility and fidelity over so many years,” his statement read. “Inspired by their faith, they are a profound witness of the Gospel in action and reflect the face of Jesus in giving so generously of themselves to others.”
While Keoghs still follow Larry’s principle of staying busy as they spend plenty of time with their four children and 34 grandchildren, it becomes hard to believe that the two have been equally as busy during their many years of service to their parish.
Theresa has influenced the sound of the St. Paul the Apostle Parish for the better part of 50 years, serving as the church’s organist. Having been such a prominent figure within the choir, she noted that she still runs into parishioners from when she started whose children have now experienced her music.
Now 86, Theresa has unfortunately been forced to stop playing due to Parkinson’s Disease. Although she misses it, she thanks the Lord for the many years of service she was able to provide the parish - a true testament to her selfless attitude.
Her husband has been involved in many ways over his lifetime worth of service in roles such as lector, extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, co-ordinator for building committees, and maintenance supervisor. He is also a member of the church’s pastoral council, finance council and a capital projects assistant.
Larry’s work is woven into the physical fabric of the parish as well, having been in charge of the construction and upkeep of the newest property in Alliston.
“Apart from supervising the contractors, when the archdiocese told us in the late 1980s that we could not put any more money into the old St. Paul's, we had to remove the church and build a new one. We built it on a new site right across the street and I was the parish representative to monitor the construction of that new church. That started in September of 1991 and we ended up having Easter Mass there the following spring,” he recalled.
The two also spoke about a story that is still burned into their minds when the couple established a community assistance group following a fire that destroyed nearby Knox Presbyterian Church in January of 1976.
“I will always remember on that night Larry looking at me and saying ‘Theresa, we have to do something,’” she recalled. “I was the vice principal at Banting Memorial High School and so we got a committee organized that ended up raising something like $8600 to get the church rebuilt. It was a lot of work but it was worth every bit of it,” Larry added.
After recounting more of his extensive work in building maintenance and restoration over his many years volunteering at St. Paul’s, the soon-to-be 92-year-old made an offhand comment that most readers wouldn’t believe.
“David Finnegan and I are in the process of doing some work at Immaculate Conception Mission as it has not had any significant repairs in quite a few years,” he said. “We are looking at replacing or rebuilding the pews and maintaining the interior of the church.”
Even into his nineties, Mr. Keogh has no signs of slowing down his service to the Archdiocese of Toronto as he continues to physically go out and do the needed work with his own hands. For him, the reason as to why is simple.
“(Theresa and I) thoroughly believe that we are given skills, talents and gifts from the good Lord and that he expects us to use them. I heard the good Lord say that you have to use your skills and talents, but I never heard him say until you are at such an age,” he said with another laugh.
“Larry will never stop, he is going to keep on going until the good Lord stops him. It is not just paperwork, he does the strenuous work too,” his wife added. She also confirmed that their three sons, Jim, John and Bill assist Larry in his physical work while their daughter Karen helps keep them on track in a secretary-focused way.
With the rest of their lives devoted to service ahead of them following their recognition last month, the Keoghs have their work cut out for them. While they are unaware of where their journey may inevitably lead them to aid, their next stop will be to the parish they have always called home.
“We very much appreciate the honour but the best part about it is that we can bring it back to the church, and I think Fr. Norberto Eyule is more excited about it than even she and I are,” Larry said.