Priests, Deacons & Seminarians

$13 Million

Saint Francis de Sales Seminary: $8 Million

Impact: Investment in additional student rooms and classrooms at Saint Francis de Sales Seminary is critical to accommodate the tremendous increase in seminarians over the last 10 years. The Seminary currently has more than 70 men in formation for the priesthood.

Founded in 1845, Saint Francis de Sales Seminary is a landmark of faith, built for the formation of priests for the faithful. Its 175 years of rich history comes with a great need for upkeep of its iconic buildings. Basic needs at the Seminary include:
 

1. Expanding housing for additional seminarians as enrollment continues to increase.
2. Replacing decades-old electrical systems, plumbing, and furniture.
3. Replacing the air conditioning system in the Seminary’s main building, Henni Hall.
4. Essential equipment within the environment where seminarians live, pray, study, and discern – simple necessities to equip our future priests so that they are prepared to serve the people of God.
 

Your support will help to improve key elements at the Seminary. It will provide a healthy and holy environment for the growing number of men who wish to serve you as priests of Jesus Christ.

Senior Priest Health Care: $500,000

Impact: Safeguarding the healthcare of our senior priests by establishing an endowment.

As the cost of health insurance continues to rise and the number of senior priests grows, the Archdiocese wants to ensure they continue to receive the health, vision, and dental care insurance benefits they received while in active ministry.

Your gift to the campaign will establish an endowed fund to help these faithful servants receive the care they have earned and deserve. Efforts will continue into the future to grow this endowment as the need continues to grow.

Formation and Education: $5 Million

Diaconate Formation
Impact: The need for permanent deacons serving our parishes will increase by an estimated 30 percent. Relieving some of the financial burden of formation costs will offer more opportunity for deacons to serve in parishes.

The four-year educational program will cost a deacon candidate $10,000 or more. For men who are also juggling careers and family the financial burden can become too much.

Currently in our Archdiocese, 33 men are in the multi-year formation program and around 160 permanent deacons are living as servants of God’s people. In recent years, we have seen the need for even more deacons to serve our parishes.

We are grateful for the role of our permanent deacons and their wives. Your gift to the campaign will help many future deacons defray some of their formation costs and empower them to respond to God’s call.
 

Lay Ministry
Impact: More people who desire to serve the Church will be prepared for parish ministry through Catholic theological formation and certification.

Our priests and our communities rely on trained, qualified lay ministers to lead parish ministries. These include liturgy and music, Christian formation, evangelization, pastoral care, outreach, and administration. Our parishes need more trained, certified lay ministers to help them grow as dynamic communities.
 

Priest Leadership Training
Impact: Every priest will have opportunities for mission-based leadership training to make them more effective parish leaders.

Recognizing the need to prepare our priests to run a successful parish, programs are needed to assist in developing leadership skills and deepen their knowledge of parish management.

The mission of seminaries is to form good priests, yet the realities of managing a parish often go beyond that formation. Parish priests will benefit from leadership coaching and training opportunities.