On Friday, May 3, Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology held its commencement exercises. It was a time to honor the graduates, but also a moment to say thanks to several members of the SHSST family who are moving on to other positions. Those honored included Dr. Barbara Anne Cusack, chancellor of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and out-going chairperson of the SHSST board of directors. She received the Heart of Christ Award for her years of service to the school. Dr. Cusack also gave the commencement address.
Fr. Vien Nguyen, SCJ, expressed the thanks of the Priests of the Sacred Heart to Fr. Raúl Gómez Ruiz, SDS, for his nearly 30 years of service to SHSST. He leaves the president-rector’s office to assume a leadership position with his religious community.
Also honored was Fr. Steven Avella, who retires from his many years of teaching Church History.
Among the 25 graduates was our own Dn. Paul Phong Hoang, SCJ, who is currently ministering in Mississippi. He will be ordained to the priesthood on June 1 at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Houston.
Click here to view photos from the evening.
“The success of SHSST depends on the unwavering commitment and dedication of many people,” wrote Fr. Vien in a letter to SCJs this morning. “As Dehonians, we hold the responsibility of providing our collaborators with the requisite Dehonian spiritual resources and guidance to enable them to partner with us and carry on ministries that we cannot accomplish alone. We must ensure a working environment that recognizes and values their contributions to our Dehonian mission and vision.
“I am grateful to the Dehonians currently ministering at SHSST: Mark Mastin, Francis-Vu Tran, Zbigniew Morawiec, Yvon Sheehy (residential ECS Program coordinator), and James Walters (professor and spiritual director). John Czyzynski and Frank Wittouck serve as spiritual directors. We rely on them to help us infuse our Dehonian identity and values into our faculty, staff, and students. I am also grateful to those SCJs who are not directly involved at SHSST but continue to support it through their prayers and, when possible, presence. Thank you for your continued commitment to our apostolate.”
