Fr Denis Slattery SMA was born in 1916 in Fermoy, County Cork. He was ordained in 1939 and spent 55 years as a missionary in Nigeria. He passed away in 2003 and is buried in the SMA Cemetery in Wilton Cork.
Between the basic facts in these few sentences is a long story of the remarkable achievements of a missionary who as an educator, a journalist, sportsman and pastor has left a lasting and fruitful legacy.
The appreciation of the work of Fr Denis Slattery SMA is not something that is history or forgotten. His legacy is very much alive and appreciated in the hearts of many Nigerians, some of whom took the trouble to travel from afar for an event that took place in the SMA Parish in Wilton at the end of April 2026. The seeds of this event hark back seventy years, to 1956 when Denis Slattery SMA opened the first secondary technical school in Nigeria at Akoka, Lagos. In recognition of his Cork roots, he called it St Finbarr’s College.
Today, this college is still recognised as one of the best schools in Nigeria. On Sunday on Sunday 26 April 2026 a group of about thirty past pupils, members of the St Finbarr’s College Old Boys Association, along with their wives and members of Fr Slattery’s family, gathered at the SMA Cemetery in the grounds of St Joseph’s Parish Church, Wilton, Cork. They came to pray at his grave, to honour his memory and to give thanks for the formation and education that they and many generations of students received at St Finbarr’s College. This, they made clear, allowed them to become productive members of society, professionals such as doctors, engineers, lawyers and, accountants as well as good parents who could hand on the values instilled in them at St Finbarr’s College to their own children.
Some of the Association members now live in Ireland but others had come from Nigeria, Europe and the USA to be present in Wilton, to show their respect and to celebrate the life of Denis Slattery on the occasion of the 70th Anniversary of St. Finbarr’s College.
After visiting the grave, the group joined the Parish Community at the midday Sunday Mass. This was concelebrated by SMA Fathers, including the SMA Provincial Council, led by Fr Malachy Flanagan the Provincial Leader. In his homily, Fr Eamonn Finnegan SMA outlined the service and achievements, in journalism, education, sport and pastoral work made by Denis Slattery during his 55 years in Nigeria. This commitment and dedication was acknowledged by the people of Nigeria when he was honoured with two traditional Chieftaincies and he also received the national honour of the Order of the Niger from President Olusegun Obasanjo in recognition of outstanding service to the country and people of Nigeria. Fr Finnegan thanked the group for their visit to Wilton, to the SMA and for sustaining the legacy of Fr Denis Slattery SMA though the on-going work of the Old Boys Association which supports the education of students at St Finbarr’s College.
