Mario Vasconcelos Library

Profile of Mario Vasconcelos

Mário Acúrcio Teixeira de Vasconcelos was born in Chaves in 1947 and spent his childhood and youth in Porto, alternating between vacations at the family estate in Arcos de Valdevez. He attended Colégio Brotero and later Liceu Rodrigues de Freitas, where he quickly distinguished himself as a leader of the JEC (Catholic School Youth). Inspired by the Progressive Catholic Movement, he introduced changes in the conduct of the Catholic Church at the time, namely by establishing Youth Encounters, bringing together boys and girls from various Porto high schools and colleges in meetings where issues of concern to young people were openly discussed. It was not long before the Catholic hierarchy expelled him from this activity. Enlisted in Compulsory Military Service, he was mobilized to Mozambique as a militia officer, where he remained for two and a half years (1970 to 1972). It was during this time that numerous students from our universities and young graduates were sent to war as punishment for their involvement in student protests against the regime. During this period, in addition to military operations, these militiamen engaged in long conversations with senior officers, seeking to demonstrate the true nature of the regime and the futility of the war. These young militiamen were a powerful inspiration for the 25th of April.

In 1973, he began his professional career as a manager for several companies, notably PHILIPS and EDP, where he was responsible for the Northern Procurement service. In 1986, he resigned from EDP and dedicated himself to managing several companies and activities in a wide range of sectors, initially as a manager and later as a consultant and trainer, including PRODESIGN, ONDINE, MATIEX 81, PLANIDESENVOLVE, TUTELA (EGOR Group), M&A Capital Partners, BENFI, OPP, BASILARIS, and others. During these activities, he worked in Brazil and Angola.

In 2009 he retired and dedicated himself to reading and bibliophilia and genealogical research with work produced and published, being a member of the Portuguese Genealogy Association, the Genealogy and Heraldry Studies Office of the Lusófona University of Porto and the Asociacion de Genealogia, Heraldica e Nobleza de Galicia.

His name appears in the Dictionary of the Most Illustrious Transmontanos and Alto Dourienses, by Barroso da Fonte, and in several military publications or publications about the colonial war.