CHAMPAIGN — Curtis Martin likes everything about St. John’s Catholic Newman Center at the University of Illinois, from the hospitality of Msgr. Gregory Ketcham, chaplain, and his staff to the beauty of the chapel. “The facilities are second to none,” said the founder and president of FOCUS — the Fellowship of Catholic University Students — […]
Continue readingSTREATOR — A funeral Mass was offered at St. Anthony of Padua Church here on Thursday, July 8, for Father Francis “Frank” Joseph Ryan, 83, a Streator native and priest of the Diocese of Peoria for 52 years. Father Ryan, a senior priest and pastor emeritus of St. Paul’s Parish in Odell — where he […]
Continue readingJesus experienced incredible suffering before he was laid in the tomb, but his story didn’t end there and neither can the stories of persons who have lost a spouse through death or divorce, according to Vince Frese, vice president of Journey of Hope Productions. In keynote sessions at the first-ever Diocesan Conference for the Widowed […]
Continue readingBy: By Tom Dermody “St. Vincent de Paul School, Mary Davis speaking.” For 37 years, that greeting has welcomed callers to St. Vincent de Paul School in Peoria. At the end of June, Mrs. Davis — who has served six principals as school secretary and been the gatekeeper for thousands of students and visitors — […]
Continue readingCOAL VALLEY — As a member of the Moline High School cross country team, Eric White has been in a lot of races. On the morning of Saturday, June 26, the 17-year-old incoming senior will be leading two runs in Coal Valley, but the “winners” will likely be people he’ll never see. Eric, a member […]
Continue readingCHAMPAIGN — She started a trend and a business in high school creating colorful headbands, but the best part of Gina Hinders’ story centers on her heart and how she is making charity fashionable. “I decided from the get-go I would do it for charity,” said Gina, who made good on that pledge last month […]
Continue readingBy: By Tom Dermody As they teach the truth of Jesus in parishes, schools, and homes, catechists would do well to look to the example of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, whose cause for sainthood the Diocese of Peoria is promoting. The way the famed media pioneer carried out a teaching ministry with great love is […]
Continue readingBy: By Jennifer Willems They used different images and invoked different spiritual influences, but the three men who talked to the catechists about spirituality at the 2010 Diocesan Summer Institute agreed on the basics: those involved in faith formation must know that they are children of God and allow themselves to be filled with God’s […]
Continue readingBy: By Tom Dermody A Major League Baseball coach known for guiding runners to home plate helped direct the generosity of hundreds toward Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Peoria at the agency’s annual “Light of Hope” dinner on June 12. “We’re here tonight to help people to give back,” said Rich Donnelly, a coach […]
Continue readingBy: By Jennifer Willems “I can be a little imp,” Edie Pearson admits with a laugh that is familiar to anyone who is acquainted with her. In fact, she is known as “Edie Elf” for her regular e-mail reminders of how many months it is until Christmas, which start to arrive almost as soon as […]
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