Strong start for strategic planning and commissions as subcommittees name leaders

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Laura Keener

Editor

The strategic planning process continued in earnest the week of May 11–15. The subcommittees of all three currently active commissions met last week, with 11 meetings held across the diocese. The meetings marked an important step forward as leaders were appointed for each subcommittee and members began their work. For a listing of the commissions, their subcommittees and respective leaders, see box at (left/right).

Deacon Jim Fortner, diocesan chief operating officer who is overseeing the planning process, said he has been encouraged by the response. “There’s so much energy for this from day one,” he said. He added that many people are showing strong commitment by attending meetings after a full day of work and some are serving on more than one committee.

The newly appointed leaders were chosen from the 373 people from across the diocese — lay faithful, clergy and women religious — who had signed up to take part in the planning process.

Jim Hess, diocesan director for Stewardship and Mission Services who is also leading the process, said registration forms asked whether people were open to serving in leadership roles, which created “a great pool of candidates” for chairs and co-chairs.

“I think overall people are very excited to be a part of a transparent planning process in the Church, where they can have a real impact,” Mr. Hess said.

Deacon Fortner said organizers also looked for people with “the right skills” and passion for each area.

The subcommittee meetings are more than discussion or listening sessions. “This is a strategic planning process,” Mr. Hess said, noting that participants are helping shape the way forward. “Bishop Iffert has made it clear that he doesn’t have any preconceived ideas, he doesn’t have an agenda, that he wants the people in the room to be coming up with a way forward. He has given them a lot of responsibility, and it’s really encouraging to see how people are taking that on.”

The subcommittees have two more scheduled meetings in June and July before they will develop a plan and present it to Bishop Iffert. Committee members will also take part in scheduled webinars to hear from local and national experts in their field.

Deacon Fortner and Mr. Hess said that the strong turnout and willingness of so many to take on leadership roles show that people are ready to serve and help guide the commissions’ work.

For more information and to keep abreast of the strategic planning process, visit www.covdioplanning.org.

Annual Catechetical Awards recognize 22 catechists from across the Diocese

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

The annual Catechetical Leadership Awards, May 14, recognize catechists from across the Diocese for their outstanding work in areas of catechesis, evangelization and leadership. For 43 years, the Office of Catechesis and Evangelization has hosted the evening of celebration, this year they honored 22 catechists for outstanding work.

Keynote speaker, Bishop Emeritus Roger Foys, spoke to the catechists and their families, thanking them for their years of dedication. Praising their faith in action, “the function of catechesis is to teach, catechize, the faith of the Catholic Church … both by word and example. We can say all the words in the world, but if we don’t live those words in the sight of others, then our words are empty,” he said.

“The words are important, teaching is important, but the living out those teachings is what really matters,” said Bishop Foys. Through their work in the schools, parishes and in youth ministry, the catechists live their faith and influence the lives of others. Their recognition by the Office of Catechesis and Evangelization is an honor which denotes their outstanding work in pursuit of the catechetical mission of the Church.

“The Churches directive for catechesis states that faith must be known, celebrated, lived and turned into prayer. This is what your called to do, the faith must be known, celebrated, lived and turned into prayer in a personal and total encounter of the heart, mind and sense with Christ,” said Bishop Foys. “It’s an awesome mission. Frightening, actuate, to put people not only in touch, but in communion, in intimacy, with the person of Jesus Christ.”

In his closing remarks, Bishop John Iffert reflected on Pope Leo XIV’s first papal exhortation, “Dilexi Te,” which focuses on the Churches love of the poor. “There are many ways of being poor,” said Bishop Iffert, “we can be poor in material goods, we can be poor in not having enough to eat, we can be poor in our prospects … the students you work with are poor in their experience and understanding of the world. So, to wade into their lives, to invite them to share yours, to be there for them, to be rich in the Word of God and in the connection that we offer to people who we care for them, this can be a great gift.”

The first award category to be recognized was Outstanding Early Childhood Teacher/Catechist, which recognized: Jean Collins, St. Joseph Parish, Crescent Springs; Marci Hagedorn, St. Joseph School, Crescent Springs; Mary Beth Meisenhelder, Blessed Sacrament School, Ft. Mitchell; and Anna Webster, St. John the Evangelist Parish, Carrollton.

Mrs. Collins was recognized for her significant role in preparing students for the sacraments of reconciliation and first Communion, through hands on activities, including a child-sized Mass kit, helping them to truly understand the sacramental process.

Mrs. Hagedorn, a second-grade teacher, weaves faith into every aspect of her classroom, helping to prepare students for the sacraments in a way that not only guides them intellectually, but spiritually, so that they can see the beauty of these sacraments.

A 28-year servant to the mission of Blessed Sacrament School, Mrs. Meisenhelder made her daily priority “saving little souls,” as read in her nomination. Mrs. Meisenhelder imparts on her young students the importance of prayer, service and reverence for God.

Mrs. Webster prepares second-grade children of the parish for the sacraments, while coordinating May Crowning, sacramental retreats and vacation bible school. Her hard work and dedication make learning fun for all the children in her care.

The second award category was for Outstanding Middle School Teacher/Catechist, which recognized Deborah Finke and Jarrod Lux, both of St. Agnes School, Ft. Wright.

Mrs. Finke is a middle school math teacher that seamlessly brings faith into her classroom by beginning each class with prayer. In addition to teaching mathematics, Mrs. Finke promotes faith in the school through parish youth programs such as the Y-Disciple groups.

Mr. Lux is a middle school religion teacher and an active participant in the life of the parish, lecturing and planning Masses, while coordination school activities, like school retreats. Mr. Lux is known for bringing faith to life for his students.

The third award category was for Outstanding Senior High School Teacher/Catechist, awarded to Patty Grothaus, Newport Central Catholic High School, Newport, and Alan Harsin, St. John the Evangelist Parish, Carrollton.

Mrs. Grothaus has been a key part of Newport Central Catholic’s theology department since 2019 and is retiring at the end of 2025-2026 school year. She fosters a culture of service, acceptance and humility and has been crucial in the development and execution of retreats for all grades.

Mr. Harsin has been a tireless servant of the parish youth and CCD programs for over 12 years. In addition, he works to enhance the parish and their Spanish-speaking community through a men’s group. Mr. Harsin actively participates in the life of the parish through many parish activities and his service as a lector at Mass.

The fourth award category was for Outstanding Catechetical Leader, awarded to Soshana Bosley, Villa Madonna Elementary, Villa Hills; Anita Dunn, St. Agnes Parish; Pamela McQueen, Villa Madonna Academy, Villa Hills; and Erin Redleski, St. Agnes School.

Mrs. Bosley was recognized for her outstanding work as principal of Villa Madonna Elementary, where she championed a new organizational house structure for students grades K-6, bringing students closer than ever, and forging bonds in Christ that will last a lifetime.

In her role as director and coordinator of religious education, Mrs. Dunn organizes the Parish School of Religion program and at the diocesan level trains new directors and coordinators of religious education at other parishes. She lives her faith and is a shining example to her students.

Mrs. Klare is director of religious education serving with a tireless devotion. She makes it her personal mission to bring her students closer to a life in Christ through the development of a personal relationship with him.

Mrs. McQueen has served as principal of Villa Madonna Academy of 30 years. A champion for an era of success, Mrs. McQueen saw three Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Awards, five Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Light House Awards, and led the school through five years of recognition as one of America’s most challenging high schools — all done in honor of the school’s Benedictine traditions of scholarship, service and hospitality.

As school principal, Mrs. Redleski has created a culture of trust and support, strengthening both the school’s academic excellence and Catholic identity. She empowers her teachers to fulfill their own vocations as catechists.

The fifth award category was the Sister Ann Adele Fritz Catechetical Leader Award. Given to Shannon Barnes, of the Diocese of Covington Offices of the Diaconate, Vocations and Worship and Liturgy; Mary Creech, Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington; Divine Providence Sister Lynn Stenken, Sts. Peter and Paul Parish, California; and Shannon Wells, St. Patrick School, Taylor Mill.

Serving the Diocese of Covington, Ms. Barnes uses her knowledge of the faith, and talent has a musician to bring a reverence to diocesan liturgies. Over the years she has shared the faith with her children, grandchildren and all those she encounters in her work, bringing 11 people into the church over the years.

Mrs. Creech is the facilities manager and OCIA catechist at the Cathedral. In her role, she shares her devotion and deep knowledge of the faith to all those she meets, helping to form new disciples in the Mystical Body of Christ through OCIA. She is a true witness to a life lived in service of the Church.

Divine Providence Sister Lynn Stenken is the director of religious education. Sharing her own vocation as a member of consecrated religious, Sister Lynn meets people where they are and walks with them in faith, inviting them into relationship with Christ.

Mrs. Wells of St. Patrick Elementary also serves as the lead preschool catechist at St. Mary’s Parish, Alexandria. She shares her love for Jesus with everyone who steps into her classroom, students and parents alike, a true role model as a disciple of Christ.

Kate Iadipaolo of St. Anthony Parish, Taylor Mill, was awarded Outstanding Homeschool Educator. She has been involved with the Lyceum Catholic Community Co-op for 13 years, teaches theology classes to high school students, and runs a small community group with other homeschool moms that offers enrichment courses that students elsewhere could not receive. In addition, Mrs. Iadipaolo utilizes her education and strong family values when leading sacramental prep for first reconciliation and Communion for the Guatemalan community at St. Anthony Parish.

Hannah Ubelhor, St. Timothy Parish, Union, received the Outstanding Catholic Retreat Minister award. Ms. Ubelhor serves as the Youth Commission Evangelization Team (YCET) co-director and uses her energy and passion for the faith to enliven each retreat she has served on.

Bradley Barnes, a volunteer youth minister in the Diocese of Covington and teacher at Newport Central Catholic High School, was awarded Outstanding Youth Ministry Innovator. Mr. Barnes is gifted in all facets of youth ministry and has served with the Diocese of Covington in a volunteer capacity for three years. He inspires, and is inspired by, the youth of the Diocese every step of the way.

The Outstanding High School YCET Leader was awarded to Alex Chadwich, St. Joseph Parish, Crescent Springs, and Eva Rousseau, All Saints Parish, Walton.

Mr. Chadwick serves as a disciple of Christ, living the call to evangelize, by inviting his peers and their families to join him for daily Mass before school every Friday. Each week, these students and their parents join Mr. Chadwick for Mass and breakfast, a testament to the effect of personal relationships in the faith.

Ms. Rousseau is a senior in the Divine Mercy Home School Co-Op, and attends Thomas More University, Crestview Hills. She is a living witness of the faith in her work with prayer, study and YCET leadership. She often welcomes and invites new people to Church, and faith events, spreading the Good News of Christ.

At the conclusion of the awards, Bishop Iffert, still reflecting on the papal exhortation, “Dilexi Te,” told those who were recognized, “I thank you for your work, with young people and old, who are poor in one way or another, and I ask us all to join in being a Church of the poor and broken, for the poor and broken.”

Crosier Guild event highlights how DPAA gifts help neighbors in need

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Laura Keener

Editor

Bishop John Iffert welcomed new members of the Crosier Guild at a special evening event, May 12, at St. Barbara Parish’s Sterling Event Center, Erlanger. The Crosier Guild honors people who have faithfully supported the Diocesan Parish Annual Appeal, or DPAA, year after year. Hosted by the diocesan Stewardship and Mission Services Office, the Crosier Guild recognized 11 attending new members of the 66 total new members this year. Their gifts help fund ministries across the diocese and provide grants to local groups that serve people in need.

During the evening, guests heard from Jim Procaccino of Action Ministries and Chris Goddard of Catholic Charities. Both men shared stories that showed how DPAA support helps real people every day. Their message was simple: these gifts do more than pay bills. They bring food, hope and dignity to families across Northern Kentucky.

Mr. Procaccino explained that Action Ministries began in 1994 as a resource room in Ryle High School when school leaders saw that children were coming to class hungry. Today, the ministry serves families in several counties and provides food for more than 1,000 households. He said the group exists “to share the love of Jesus Christ by providing groceries, hope and encouragement to low-income families.” He also thanked DPAA donors directly, saying, “You are an extension of what God does for us every day.”

Mr. Goddard spoke about the work of Catholic Charities, especially the Parish Kitchen, the Mobile Food Pantry, jail ministry and Pickett’s Corner bike ministry. He said the goal is not only to meet urgent needs, but also to build relationships and walk with people toward a better future.

At the Parish Kitchen, he said, “What they receive is more than food. They receive welcome, dignity and human connection.” He shared one story about a man who once came for meals but later found work and returned with a donation to help feed others.

Mr. Goddard also described signs of hope in other ministries. In the jail ministry, Catholic Charities recently celebrated the baptism, first Eucharist and confirmation of an inmate at the Kenton County Detention Center. At Pickett’s Corner, a donated bicycle helped one person get to work until he was able to save enough money to buy a car. Across all of these programs, Mr. Goddard said, “We meet people where they are. We treat them with dignity. We walk with them towards something better.”

Bishop John Iffert closed the evening by thanking Crosier Guild members for their steady support of the annual appeal. He said their gifts strengthen ministries throughout the diocese and offer “seed money to people who are making a difference” in local communities. He also pointed to the way Catholic and non-Catholic groups are working side by side at Action Ministries to care for the poor, calling that shared effort a powerful Christian witness to overcome modern day “paganism — a new kind of reaction against the message of Christ and His gospel in the world,” he said

“I think one of the ways that we can work most effectively against that is to overcome the scandalous divisions among Christians, and to work together to demonstrate love for God and neighbor,” Bishop Iffert said as he thanked Action Ministries for giving witness to Christian collaboration.

In his reflection, Bishop Iffert connected the evening’s stories to the Church’s call to love and serve the poor. Quoting recent Pope Leo XIV’s first apostolic exhortation, “Dilexi Te,” (“On Love for the Poor”) he said, “Charity is not optional, but is a requirement of true worship. If we worship without joining it to a life of charity, it’s empty.”

He reminded guests that service to people in need does more than help others. It also renews the Church and teaches deeper faith.

“If you’re tempted to despair about the condition of our society, of our world, of our Church, here’s how you can work for its renewal, love and serve the poor,” Bishop Iffert said. “This is an important piece of teaching. It teaches that we can speak of a preferential option on the part of God for the poor, which is not an attribution of bias to God, but a truth that emphasizes God’s actions, which are moved by compassion toward the poverty and weakness of all humanity, including mine, including ours.”

Bishop Iffert said many people discover they receive more from serving others than they give. Citing “Dilexi Te,” he said Pope Leo XIV teaches that this is “literally true.”

“While we extend ourselves to serve the poor, we are actually receiving from them lessons about how to live under the yoke of Jesus Christ,” he said. Then quoting a favorite paragraph from the document, paragraph 120, Bishop Iffert said, “It says this, ‘love is above all a way of looking at life and a way of living it. A Church that sets no limits to love, that knows no enemies to fight but only men and women to love, is the Church that the world needs today.’”

Father Ed Brodnick celebrates 50 years of priesthood, service marked by those he’s served

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

After 50 years of priestly ministry, Father Ed Brodnick has served seven parishes, from Corbin to Cold Spring, and two schools, influencing the lives of many. None more so than Father Brodnick himself, who has drawn inspiration during his tenure from those he served throughout his ministry. Marking this tenure is Father Brodnick’s particular affinity for youth ministry, where he finds “hope for the future, hope for today and the days to come,” he said.

Father Brodnick grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, with two brothers, a sister and faithful, loving parents. He attended grade school, high school and began college in Cleveland, a self-described “city boy from Cleveland.” Through God’s providence, Father Brodnick became a seminarian in the Diocese of Covington and attended St. John Vianney Seminary, Buffalo, New York.

Father Brodnick credits his experience in New York as the beginnings of his passion for youth ministry. “I was involved in high school retreat work, developing programs, and so I got a taste for youth ministry early on. I think that’s one of the reasons why that was just something that was a part of my vision of what my role was going to be in a parish,” he said.

Following his June 6 ordination by Bishop Ackerman, Father Brodnick was assigned to an Appalachian parish in Corbin, Kentucky. There, he gained firsthand experience in Appalachian ministry, but his passion for youth ministry remained. Bringing Bible school to the children of Corbin and surrounding towns, he explained, “We would run Bible school,” he said “and we would have vans where the people would trust us … to pick up their children, drive them to Williamsburg so that we could have Bible school with them all day.”

Following his time in Corbin, Father Brodnick was assigned to St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, Alexandria, as a part-time associate pastor, and to Bishop Brossart High School, Alexandria, as a part-time teacher. While at St. Mary Parish, Father Brodnick saw a need for the youth of the parish. “When I first came up from the mountains, there were not many choices for teenager retreats up here,” he said. So, Father Brodnick took a group to a Celebration retreat in his hometown of Cleveland. Describing the retreat as “Christ renews his parish, only for teens,” the experience was astounding, and the teens wanted to bring the retreat home.

“I thought it was going to be a one-time deal. We slept on the floor at the old St. Mary school. The cook from Bishop Brossart cooked meals for us and the young people,” he said. This “one-time deal” is in its 43rd year of operations, with retreats ongoing twice a year. “It’s one of those things where every time you thought that it was not going to be enough coming anymore, it would just come back again,” he said.

Father Brodnick remained at St. Mary Parish for five years, before a brief reassignment in the same role at St. Joseph Parish, Cold Spring. There for two years, Father Brodnick was then assigned to a full-time teaching position at Newport Central Catholic High School, Newport, for one year. From there, he was assigned as the inaugural pastor at St. Timothy Parish, Union.

“I think God just kind of guides us,” he said of all these assignments. “Sometimes you got to sit back and laugh, because you don’t realize it till after the fact … I love parish work … the pastoral work is breathtaking.”

Father Brodnick is now retired from active ministry but remains the chaplain at his beloved Bishop Brossart High School. “Getting to know some of these young people on a deeper level, rather than just seeing them once in a while, has been a gift,” he said.

For Father Brodnick, 50 years of priestly ministry is marked by dedication to his parishes, to teaching, but above all else, to the people he serves.

“For some reason, God decided that he needed me in each of those places for some time, to live and to be a part of that community and to lead them as best I could,” Father Brodnick said. “We [priests] try to do the best we can with whatever the Lord calls us to do … We’re not perfect at it, but somehow, with the working of the Holy Spirit and a lot of good people around us in a parish, a lot of the young people are hungry to know the Lord. It’s an exciting life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Inmate finds faith behind bars, receives sacraments inside detention center

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

It was a buzz and the click of a lock, disengaging inside of large metal doors, that granted jail ministry volunteers access to a multipurpose room inside of the Kenton County Detention Center, Covington. The drab gray walls, plastic folding tables and worn-down carpet, set the scene for the events of May 8, when inmate Winston Gaines was welcomed into the Catholic Church through the Sacraments of Initiation. Administered by Father Jeff VonLehmen, pastor, St. Patrick Parish, Taylor Mill, and assisted by Deacon Barry Henry, director of Community Ministries and Outreach for Catholic Charities Covington, folding tables became an altar inside a makeshift chapel.

Father VonLehmen prepared the water for baptism, pouring holy water from a cleaned and repurposed Powerade bottle into a pitcher full of tap water, blessing it, preparing it to be used in the baptism. He said to Mr. Gaines, “Water, filling this bowl, let it fill your heart, let it cleanse, let it change, let it transform, let it nourish. In that sense, you can be free from all your sins, all our sins, you can always be free in that sense and strengthened to live a happier life.”

Then, taking the water, Father VonLehmen baptized Mr. Gaines who, though handcuffed, was set free of the stain of original sin and all those he has committed. Later, taking the perfumed chrism from a vial, Father VonLehmen confirmed Mr. Gaines, as the hands of jail ministers rested on his shoulders, a symbolic sign of support.

Those same hands rested on Mr. Gaines as he received Christ in the Eucharist for the first time, as Father VonLehmen told him in the homily, “there’s no place that Jesus can’t find us, come to us … now, from the Eucharist, born from above, he can reach people where nobody else can reach, in our hearts.”

Mr. Gaines said that he has been “anticipating” receiving the sacraments, and “looking forward to it.” Through these sacraments Mr. Gaines was initiated into the Catholic Church, but they also provide for him a continued path towards healing. With Mr. Gaines saying that he is most looking forward to receiving the sacraments now that he is Catholic, and that he hopes his newfound faith will “help me to be closer to God.”

The latest success story through the work of Catholic Charities, Covington, jail ministry program, Mr. Gaines approached jail ministers inside the detention center in January and inquired about becoming Catholic. However, his journey to the faith began long before his incarceration.

Mr. Gaines’ first encounter with his faith was through his grandmother, though it was not until his adult life that he began exploring a personal faith journey. “I had been doing research and was learning about the sacraments. I was going to different churches and trying to figure out why there are so many different churches and which church to go to. I realized that Catholic is the church,” he said.

After his incarceration, Mr. Gaines made the decision to become Catholic. “When I was here, the people from the Covington Diocese, I asked them and they hooked me up with Vince,” he said.

Vince Lonneman, one of Catholic Charities’ jail ministers, and new volunteer coordinator, accompanied Mr. Gaines through OCIA, working with him on matters of the faith: Old Testament and New Testament theology, the meaning of the Sacraments, the Eucharist as the true presence of Christ, how to pray the rosary and even stations of the cross.

Mr. Lonneman was “very excited” to work with Mr. Gaines, saying, “it was a very enriching, exciting, spiritual experience for me … One of the best gifts you can give to somebody is give them their faith. It was very enriching and rewarding for me, and I’ll never forget it the rest of my life.”

Though Mr. Gaines, a quiet and introspective person, said only that his OCIA experience was “interesting,” the emotion was evident when he announced his confirmation saint, St. Vincent.

Calling the sacramental experience, “happy,” and “almost overwhelming,” Mr. Gaines looks forward to practicing the Catholic faith, and learning more with the Catechism of the Catholic Church gifted to him by Deacon Henry.

Mr. Lonneman reflected on the fruits of the jail ministry team, saying, “they are always very appreciative, and that’s what we do. We go in and we give them hope, we give them some Scripture, we give them some things they can fall back on.” And in the case of Mr. Gaines, he received new life in Jesus, and a new community in the faith.

To learn more about the jail ministry program and how to volunteer go to: covingtoncharities.org/services/community-outreach-services/jail-prison-ministry.

St. Joseph School students who share God’s love through homeless ministry are recognized by Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky

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Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

Students at St. Joseph School, Crescent Springs, were recognized by Kim Webb, chief executive officer, Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky, Covington, with the Ralph Drees Impact Award. This annual award is presented to volunteers of the shelter and recognizes those who make an impact on the shelter and its guests. This year the students of the St. Joseph School Cavaliers Care Ministry awarded, in surprise, following an all-school Mass.

The Cavaliers Care Ministry is a parent-run volunteer organization that encourages St. Joseph School families to volunteer in their communities. The ministry has partnerships with four organizations, but Christie Pavia, founder, said that it is the Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky that impacts the students the most.

“Every time a student goes down there and humbly submits themselves to the most vulnerable in our community it’s extremely rewarding, and I think it just feeds the soul of the kids and encourages them to be the hands and feet of Jesus,” said Mrs. Pavia.

Families can register for the volunteer opportunities at the shelter through the Cavaliers Care Ministry, and serve food donated by local organizations. As guests of the shelter come through the line to receive a meal, the students and families greet them with a smile, a conversation and a human connection.

When it came time to decide who would be the recipient of the 2026 Ralph Drees Impact Ward, Mrs. Webb said that it was the students of St. Joseph who “immediately” came to mind. Their work with the guests of the shelter, “brightens up their mood and the shelter. They get excited when they see the students in here, and they just bring an energy and a joy, often in ways only young people can do.”

“To witness our guests engage with these students as they’re going through the meal line, and they’re talking to them, and the students in return talk to our guests like they are worthy of a conversation, it removes the homelessness side of it,” said Mrs. Webb, “they normalize that experience for our guests, in terms of feeling valued in our community, feeling heard in our community.”

Timothy Maines, principal, St. Joseph School, Crescent Springs, said, “we have so many students wanting to help and do things that there’s just not enough space for it, and there’s not enough space at the shelter … the students and the parents, just the whole community, want to give back and show that Christ-like attitude of helping others.”

“I feel nothing but pride for these students,” said Mr. Maines. “I am just so incredibly proud of all the accomplishments they have, and everything they do.”

Mrs. Pavia shares a message with all the students who volunteer through the Cavaliers Care Ministry, telling them, “God gives you gifts, not to store them up in your school or your church or your house, but to be the vessel” that pours them out.

Pam McQueen to step down as principal after 30 years at Villa Madonna Academy, will continue as president

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Laura Keener

Editor

Long before Pam McQueen ever walked the halls of Villa Madonna Academy as its first lay principal, a paperback copy of The Great Gatsby helped chart her course. Assigned by her high school English teacher, the novel gripped her so completely that, she said, “I don’t know — I read the first couple of chapters, I couldn’t put it down,” and “there was something about the characters in this that just changed my life.”

Mrs. McQueen said she saw herself most in Nick Carraway — the observant narrator who tries to make sense of the people around him and, ultimately, chooses integrity over illusion. As a young reader, she was drawn to Nick’s role as listener and truth-teller, she said, and to “the way he watches everything and then decides what really matters.”

That perspective, Mrs. McQueen explained, stayed with her in education: paying close attention to students’ stories, weighing competing voices and leading with a steady moral compass.

This spring, Mrs. McQueen will deliver commencement remarks one more time — like always, with Gatsby “in there” — and then retire from the principal’s office after 30 years leading the Benedictine school. She will remain at Villa Madonna Academy in the role of president focusing on strategic planning, alumni engagement and the next phase of fundraising.

Mrs. McQueen became principal three decades ago after teaching English at St. Henry District High School and Newport Central Catholic. “Brand new principal — first lay principal here,” she recalled.

She remembers arriving to an unfamiliar culture and quickly learning that the job was more than first-day excitement. “The first days were challenging,” she said, but she found mentors and, importantly, a warm welcome from the Benedictine Sisters who founded the academy. “They were incredibly supportive … and from the get-go, made me feel like part of their family,” Mrs. McQueen said. “I always felt welcomed, always.”

Over the years, Mrs. McQueen worked to make Villa Madonna’s Benedictine identity unmistakable. “I set out [that] the minute you walk into this building, you need to know you’re in a Benedictine school,” she said, describing graphics, a prominent Benedictine cross and giving each freshman a copy of the Rule of St. Benedict. “Every day we talked about hospitality and respect and reverence and stewardship. It’s in our announcements and it’s in everything we do.”

Those values, she said, helped sustain a close-knit faculty community through decades of change. “We don’t go to work in the morning — we go to school,” Mrs. McQueen said. She points to milestones such as opening the new gym in 2000, earning multiple National Blue Ribbon recognitions and other honors and navigating a major capital campaign that began in 2019 and paused during the pandemic. Despite rising costs, “we raised the money to renovate that building,” she said and the campus’ new STEM wing is nearing completion.

Mrs. McQueen also championed a distinctive grade-level model, integrating junior high students into the high school setting. The approach, she said, reframes early adolescents as “young adults,” giving them expectations and role models while surrounding them with a Benedictine house system designed to teach community. “It works. The model really works well,” she said.

During her tenure, she and faculty members began connecting with 24 other Benedictine high schools in the United States, forming a colloquium. “We have this tight knit group of Benedictine heads of school and we all work together,” said Mrs. McQueen, noting that she, faculty members and students have visited and welcomed students from California, New Jersey, Alabama and more.

Next year, Villa Madonna Academy will return to a leadership structure that separates day-to-day academic oversight from long-range operations and advancement. Mrs. McQueen has held a dual role, but the school is splitting responsibilities so she can focus on the president/executive director portfolio.

In the model, the president leads advancement, finance and community relationships, while the principal concentrates on curriculum, student life and instructional leadership. “It’s become more and more — I think more and more is expected of principals through the years,” Mrs. McQueen said, citing student mental health needs, teacher support and new programming. “So, you really need somebody that can focus 100 percent” on the principalship.

The search for a new principal is nearing completion, with the school down to its final candidates, she said.

As she transitions, Mrs. McQueen says she will work intentionally to give the incoming principal room to lead. “For me, it’s going to be important to step back and let the new principal create his or her culture,” she said, while still staying present with students and families. “I want to do that too … but to not be intrusive … just to be a support, however they might need me to be.”

About her time as principal, Mrs. McQueen said, “Being here has been the gift of a lifetime. It’s bittersweet … I will miss it,” she said, as she looks toward a new chapter — still at Villa Madonna Academy — in a singular role as president.

Sixty women join in prayer with ‘millions of Monicas’ in first St. Mary’s gathering

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

In 2021, three Michigan mothers founded “Millions of Monicas” — a movement of Catholic women coming together to pray, through the intercession of St. Monica, for the return of their children — and young people as a whole — to practicing their faith. Now, with over 100 individual communities worldwide, St. Mary Church, Alexandria, is joining with these other women in prayer as the second Millions of Monicas (MOM) group in the Diocese of Covington, following in the footsteps of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Burlington.

Meeting for the first time, May 4, around 60 women came together to pray hopefully for their children’s return to the faith. Carol Ernst, who coordinates the group at St. Mary’s, was inspired to bring MOM to St. Mary Church after attending the diocesan hosted “Return” workshop last fall with hopes to “learn more about motivating (her) girls to come back to the Church,” said Ms. Ernst.

Intrigued by Immaculate Heart of Mary’s incorporation of the program, as she learned during the workshop, Ms. Ernst recalled that it was “wonderful to be in the company of other women praying for the same thing … It was a form of support by just coming together.”

Now, after having their first gathering, Ms. Ernst and the other women behind St. Mary’s MOM group plan to host time in prayer monthly — on the first Monday at 6:30 p.m.

Judy Schilling, who helped to plan the meeting, reflected on the meeting’s success. “We all have someone that we’re praying for,” said Ms. Schilling. “I just thought it was beautiful to share that and to see so many other women that have the same concerns and want to bring our children and family members back into the faith that we raised them in.”

“It’s a quiet, prayerful ministry,” said Ms. Ernst, who encouraged women across the diocese to join either St. Mary’s or Immaculate Heart of Mary in this ministry of prayer.

“We’re hoping that more women will get involved and attend,” she said.

 

As children celebrate May Crowning and First Communion, Father Ryan Maher invites young communicants to ‘make a dwelling place’ for Jesus in their hearts

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

May in the Catholic Church is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, Mary. Traditionally, and in many parishes today, one way that she is celebrated during the month is through a “May Crowning” — a ceremony where a statue of Mary is crowned, typically by the parish’s children, representative of her role as Queen of Heaven.

May Crowning at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington, coincided with the Sacrament of First Communion for three parish children, May 3. These children were the ones to crown Mary during that morning Mass, celebrating with their parish, families and with Father Ryan Maher, the Cathedral’s rector as well as the Mass’s celebrant and homilist.

During his homily, Father Maher descended from the sanctuary to sit with and speak directly with the first communicants. He began his homily speaking to the children about St. Peter.

“It was Peter that Jesus chose to be the head of the 12 and the head of the Church,” Father Maher said, “and we know about Peter’s life in the Scriptures — Peter sometimes got excited about something and wasn’t able to follow through.”

“Sometimes,” he said, “he wanted to love Jesus with his heart — and then, when Jesus needed him, he wasn’t around. He betrayed Jesus.”

Father Maher pointed out to first communicants the depictions of St. Peter in the cathedral’s windows, where he is seen dressed in gold vestments — “because he was chosen by the Lord to be the head of his Church and the head of all of us in the life of faith.”

Referencing the second reading of the Mass, as St. Peter speaks to the Church’s early disciples, Father Maher told the children, “He says, go to him. Go to him, a living stone. Jesus, he’s talking about, is a living stone. Jesus is chosen and precious in the sight of God, be built into a spiritual house.”

“The same Jesus who forgave Peter forgives us when we are far away from the Lord,” said Father Maher. “… Peter is telling the early Church to go to him and to become like him because we are chosen. We are precious in the sight of God … and we are to be built into a dwelling place.”

While the Cathedral itself can be considered a spiritual dwelling place, Father Maher said that “Jesus, in the Gospel today, speaks of another type of dwelling place … it’s the place of Heaven.”

“Did you know?” he asked communicants, “Did you know that God, the Father, has already made a place for you in Heaven? For me in Heaven? For all of you in Heaven? That’s how much he loves us.”

“On this day, the day of your First Holy Communion, make a dwelling place in your heart for Jesus,” Father Maher continued, “… Every time you come to Mass, open your heart because you are chosen and you are precious in the sight of God. If we can all remember that we will truly become a dwelling place that’s fit for the Lord Jesus — a place to know in Holy Communion how much we are loved, how much mercy the Father has for us. When we allow ourselves to be built into living stones and our heart becomes a tabernacle for Jesus in the Eucharist, you know what changes? Our whole life.”

A stone mason’s legacy: Building a Mary grotto

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Laura Keener

Editor

May is a month in which we celebrate mothers. Each year, the second Sunday of May — Mother’s Day — is a time devoted to moms. In the Catholic Church, the entire month of May is dedicated to Mary — our spiritual mother. Scripture tells us that it was Jesus who appointed Mary the spiritual mother of the entire Church, when, while dying on the cross, said to her, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then turning to his disciple, John, said, “Behold, your mother.” (John 19:26–27)

We honor Mary under many titles. If you are ever awake listening to Sacred Heart Radio at 5:55 a.m., you will hear a recording of Bishop John Iffert and Diocese of Covington seminarians praying the Litany of Loreto. The Litany petitions Mary under 53 of her titles, which, to name a few, are: Holy Mother of God, Mother of the Church, Mother of Mercy, Seat of wisdom, Ark of the covenant, Morning star, Refuge of sinners, Solace of Migrants, Queen of the most holy Rosary, Queen of families and Queen of peace.

Other titles for Mary are tied to apparitions like Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Lourdes. It is often under these titles that images of Mary find their way into statuary and grottos. These grottos offer the faithful a place of respite, to pray and reflect, to contemplate Mary as she leads all to salvation, her son, Jesus.

St. Anthony Parish, Taylor Mill, is home to one such grotto — a significantly sized stone edifice with a statue of Our Lady of Lourdes perched in its top niche. Recently, Father Ivan Kalamuzi, pastor, met Bob Leen, the grandson of the stone mason who built the grotto, while he was visiting there.

Behind St. Anthony Church, the stone grotto has stood for generations — its rockwork still tight and steady, even after decades of weather. Mr. Leen said that family stories trace the Mary Grotto back to the early 1930s and to his grandfather and Northern Kentucky craftsman: George Henry Ricken, a working stone mason whose hands shaped walls and landmarks across the region.

As the story was passed down through the Ricken family, a priest — remembered as Father Bernard Nurre — asked Mr. Ricken to build a shrine. Father Nurre was pastor at St. Anthony Parish for 46 years, retiring in 1967.

At the time, Mr. Ricken’s family attended Holy Cross; he himself was not Catholic. But the work, and his conversations with the priest along the way, became a turning point that eventually led him to convert to Catholicism.

Mr. Leen said that his grandfather approached the grotto the way he approached every job: by letting the material guide the design. He reportedly walked up and down neighboring Banklick Creek collecting rocks, choosing pieces he knew would set well and last. The result was a grotto built with heavy stone and plenty of mortar — solid enough that visitors still remark on its strength and craftsmanship.

One detail the family remembered most vividly was a cross. According to his grandson, Mr. Ricken didn’t want a cross pieced together with mortar joints. Because he understood the grain of stone and how it would split, he searched until he found a rock that could be cut into a cross from a single, solid piece.

That original stone cross is no longer there — whether it fell, weathered away, or was removed over the years is unclear. Still, the grotto itself remains, its stonework holding firm.

Mr. Ricken was known locally for building things to endure. He worked throughout Northern Kentucky, including stone walls in Devou Park and other projects in the Latonia area. Mr. Leen recalled that he cut stones precisely rather than stacking rough rock — an old-world method that, in the best examples, leaves walls that “never, ever moved,” he said.

Today, parishioners still visit the Mary Grotto for quiet prayer and, at times, community devotions like the rosary. The statue itself needs occasional restoration, but the rock structure remains remarkably intact — an enduring testament to the mason who built it and to the faith journey that, according to family memory, began with stone gathered from a creek bed.