My high school yearbook

Fall seems to kick off meeting season for the local diocese. I traveled to Mitchell, South Dakota yesterday for a priest meeting with the Vicar for Clergy and to Sioux Falls today for a meeting on vocations. Both were worth the time and distances.

While much has been in the news about priests’ misbehavior, as a group, priests tend to have some of the highest rankings of job satisfaction and there was a good spirit among the group. We shared about other priests who positively impacted our lives and vocations. My pastor, Fr. Letko, served in my home parish for 42 years, so he was the only priest I knew and a real institution. I don’t remember a lot of his homilies, but I remember him driving the school bus, cutting the grass and dropping by to visit people in their homes every once in a while. He was a real part of the community, and that was a strong formative influence on me.

The vocation meeting, was a gathering of the religious communities that work in the diocese gathered, both of men and women. Again, lots of caring people, doing some good work to serve both the church and people in need. We keep praying that we can live lives of faith that inspire others to search for God within the context of religious life.

Read here how Rebecca set a goal to cut enough Campbell’s Soup labels to earn a laptop computer. http://bit.ly/rd2bCi

I did get in some time with the students. I had supper with William Home (4th-5th grade girls). They were cutting soup labels when I arrived – saving up for prizes for both the home and themselves individually.

At the office, a couple of our high school girls dropped by to talk. Erin and Danisha are both seniors, and starting to plan for senior pictures. I happened to have my high school yearbook on the bookshelf and opened it up where they both got a good laugh at how I looked many years ago. It lead to lots of stories and sharing.

Author: St. Joseph's Indian School

At St. Joseph's Indian School, our privately-funded programs for Lakota (Sioux) children in need have evolved over 90 years of family partnership, experience and education. Because of generous friends who share tax-deductible donations, Native American youth receive a safe, stable home life; individual counseling and guidance; carefully planned curriculum based on Lakota culture and individual student needs and tools to help build confidence, boost self-esteem and improve cultural awareness. All of this helps children to live a bright, productive, possibility-filled future.

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