Wichita, Kansas

Join the Serrans and help promote priestly and religious vocations

      It goes without saying that without the ministerial priesthood of the church, we wouldn’t be able to celebrate Mass, among other deficiencies the church would experience.

      We read about shortages of priests in many parts of the world, even in places like South America, where the faith has long been established and the church has been present for centuries, but where some of our brothers and sisters can only experience Mass monthly, if not less frequently.

      Even in our own country, there are places where the need for more priests is acute. I once met a priest who had been driving the same Saturday-Sunday round trip of over 250 miles in the far northwest corner of Nebraska for over 20 years, making sure his four parishes never lacked the Eucharist.

      The church needs priests and is greatly blessed by those men who have answered the call to serve as Jesus himself served, making him present to his church through their daily ministry. We should all pray and work in support of priestly vocations!

      And one particular lay apostolate does just that, and with extraordinary zeal and distinction. These men and women are known as Serrans, members of Serra International, whose objective is to promote and foster priestly and religious vocations, and to grow in their own personal holiness as they do so.

      They take as their patron, inspiration and namesake St. Junipero Serra, an 18th-century Franciscan priest who, despite his own successful life as a seminary professor in Spain, heard the call at age 35 to become a missionary to the “new world” of the Americas. He freely chose a humble and dangerous life, serving mostly in Mexico for 20 years before venturing to California where he established the historic missions there.

      The members of the Serra clubs, as they are commonly called, are inspired by St. Junipero’s heroic commitment to making the sacraments available to all the faithful, and they draw their energy today from his energy from over 250 years ago.

      We are particularly blessed to have 4 active Serra clubs in the Diocese of Wichita. Regular meetings, prayers for vocations, golf tournaments, dinners to honor our religious Sisters and a 6th grade Vocations Rally are some of the regular Serran activities. 

       Please support the work of our local Serrans by your prayers and financial support. And consider joining their ranks in promoting priestly and religious vocations for the church!

   The 6th Grade Vocations Rally at Newman University was just completed and all who were involved were excited about the event. Melissa Grelinger, was the chair for this years  event and did a great job organizing the committee and volunteers. 

     Over 700 6th graders attended Thursdays activities and 75 PSR students attended the Wednesday evening event.

     Cooper Ray from the Dallas area once again was the headliner. Cooper provided music and inspirational stores and activities to energize the sessions. A host of speakers throughout the 2 days including Fathers Garret Burns, Chad Arnold and Andrew Labenz and IHM Sisters each had their own relatable stories and interactive activities to hilight their presentations.

       The day ended with Mass celebrated by Fr. Garret Burns. Bishop Kemme was scheduled to preside but had to be out of town due to the death of his mother. 

    Pictures and other news about the event will be on the site in upcoming days.

                                                                by Long Pham- Knights Coach

          The Padres extended their win streak to seven in a row as they beat the Blue Knights of Council #4118 in the 36th Basketball Classic for Vocations. The Padres shooting was red hot and consistent throughout the game to secure the win with a final score of 57 to 42. The Padres now lead the series with 23 wins to the Knights 13 wins. The game was held at Bishop Carroll Catholic High School on February 2nd.

Leading all scorers was Fr. Andrew Labenz with 20points.  Fr. Hayden Charles with 12.  Fr. James Schibi with 10.  Fr. Ned Blick with 7 (and 14 fouls!).  Fr. Garett Burns with 6.  Seminarian Dominik Jirak had 2 to round out the Padres scoring.  Fr. Will Stuever, Fr. Curtis Hecker, Fr. Rick Kotrba, Fr. Matthew Cooke also participated with the Padres.  Leading scorers for the Knights were Lorenzo Barles & Tim Schweitzer III with 10 points each.  Lawrence Barles & Ryan Allen with 7 points each.  Lucas Schippers & Long Pham with 3 points each.  Zach Dowell with 2.  Also playing for the Knights were Brian Spexarth, Austin Dowell, & Daniel Mies.

         The event began with Presentation of the Colors by members of Columbia Assembly of the 4th Degree followed by the National Anthem by the Bishop Carroll Pep Band and Invocation by Fr. Will Stuever. The Bishop Carroll Pep Band and cheerleaders kept the raucous crowd of over 500 engaged. Volunteer officials for the game were Jay Frey, Tom Roth, and Brian Bergkamp.  Bishop Kemme & Fr. Garett Burns offered brief remarks at half time, thanking the Knights of Columbus for their support and encouraging those in attendance to continue praying for our priests and religious vocations.  

        Event Chairman Long Pham wishes to thank Bishop Carroll Catholic High School for their partnership in the Basketball Classic since its inception.  He also thanks the following sponsors:  Catholic Family Federal Credit Union, Damm Music Center, Apex Excavating, Prichard Animal Hospital, Mike Kuckelman CPA and several personal donors for their continued financial support.  Proceeds from this game are used to support the religious vocation programs of the Knights of Columbus, in particular direct financial support of young men while they are in the seminary.