Good news presented at DOP kickoff dinners

Two “kickoff” dinners for the Diocesan Offertory Program’s 2007 campaign brought out several hundred people and good news for them on March 25 and 26.
St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Conrad and St. Catherine Parish in Boulder hosted the dinners and programs for the Conrad and Helena Vicariates, respectively.
Bishop George Leo Thomas gave an upbeat message at both events, saying that he has seen signs of good health and good faith around the Diocese of Helena.
Part of his good news for people at the dinners was that the diocese is ranked third per capita in the United States for the percentage of new Catholics entering the Church, according to a recent poll. “It’s a good testimony of health and I thank the pastors for it,” he said.
The bishop said the five-year pastoral plan, which Sister Rita McGinnis, SCL, and the Diocesan Pastoral Council have developed, will be implemented soon. And a new youth and young adult minister for the diocese has been hired – Doug Tooke, who has been running a multi-parish youth group in the Flathead Lake area.
In response to a question, Bishop Thomas said a new class to train men for the permanent diaconate is being planned. And the diocese will continue supporting its mission in Guatemala.
In Conrad, Father Michael Poole, the pastor, spoke briefly.
And in Boulder, Father William Greytak gave an invocation. The Boulder pastor also talked about the pastoral center in which the dinner was held. It opened last year after much planning, fundraising and construction by parishioners, and has been used for religion classes, parish and community events. The parishioners surprised him by naming the center for him.
Glenna Obie, diocesan stewardship manager, played a promotional video and explained the programs which DOP supports.
A couple from St. Mary Parish in Helena, Maureen and Gerald LaChere, spoke after the dinner in Boulder. They reflected on their roles as stewards of God, and how their family has been impacted by a number of DOP-supported programs.
Maureen attended the 2004-2006 session of the Program of Formation for Lay Ministers held in Helena, and her husband is a cantor at St. Mary’s. Their daughter was a youth minister at Christ the King Parish in Missoula while attending the University of Montana. And their son proposed to his fiancée at the foot of the cross at Legendary Lodge.
The couple said they have a tender spot in their hearts for CSSM after the agency assisted them with taking in a foster daughter. She still keeps in touch with them, they added.
“CSSM gave us hope. DOP gives us hope,” Gerald said.

Published in The Montana Catholic, Vol. 23, No. 4, April 20, 2007.