Greetings my brothers and sisters,

It is with great joy and humble gratitude that I introduce myself to you today. I am the new director of this awesome and holy place, the Christian Renewal Center. But let me begin by introducing to you the one person, without which I would be incomplete; My best friend, my closest confidant, my most valuable critic, the mother of my children, and the love of my life, my wife Christy. Christy and I began our life journey together as husband and wife in the late 60s in Cumberland Maryland, where we both were born and grew up. In the early 70s we both had a profound conversion experience, and began to live our lives, from that time on as servants of the Lord. In the mid 70s we left Maryland with our two daughters, Jamela and Heidi, and moved “out west” to Blackfoot, Idaho.

It was there, in the Diocese of Boise, that we entered the diaconate training program in 1977, (wives were required to complete training with their husbands) and we began our formal formation in Scripture, Theology, Spirituality, and Pastoral Leadership to prepare us for our lives as servant leaders in the Catholic Church.

We were nearing the end of the three year diaconate training program, when the program directors realized that somehow, incredibly, they had missed the fact that I was too young to be ordained upon the completion of my training. How much too young? The answer of “eight years too young” was pretty hard to swallow at first. But, God teaches us some of our most valuable lessons usually through trials and hardships. And those extra years of classes, workshops, and formation in ministry and spirituality ended up being a blessing in disguise for both Christy and me. As our greatly extended training and experience in “Diakonia” (servant) ministry to the Church ended up being much more comprehensive and enriching than we could have ever imagined.

But then, after only seven years of training, Bishop Sylvester Trienen decided to grant me a one year dispensation from age, and I was ordained to the Order of Permanent Deacons on June 7, 1984 at 34 years of age.
And then in June of 1986, Christy and I, together with our daughters, packed up our belongings and moved to Houston in search of a warmer climate. And it has been here in the Archdiocese of Galveston/Houston that Christy and I have continued to grow in our faith, and serve the People of God until now.

For Christy and me both, the call to serve the Church in diaconal ministry, me as a deacon, and Christy as a DRE, parish administrator, and director of faith formation have very often taken the expression of various types of planning, facilitating, and leadership of retreats. In fact, the Lord has planted within both of us a deep seated dream and vision of one day serving in retreat ministry full time. And yet, however remote the possibility of realizing such a fantastic dream might have been…
Here we both stand, at the threshold of the dream.
But, no matter how well we plan, how hard we work, or how fervently we pray, the vision and mission of rebuilding the Christian Renewal Center cannot be realized without you! We are going to need your ongoing prayers, hard work, and support. And together we will all bear witness to the truth that “with God, all things are possible.”