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News Release #433Released to media on March 8, 2010Bishop of New Ulm announces
2010 Diocesan Distinguished Service Award recipients New Ulm - Bishop John M.
LeVoir will present the 2010 Diocesan Distinguished Service Award (DDSA) to five
members of the Diocese of New Ulm on March 11, 2010, in conjunction with the
annual Bishop Lucker Lecture to be held Thursday, March 11 at the Church of St.
Catherine in Redwood Falls.
Each year, members of the diocese
are asked to submit names for consideration for the DDSA based on outstanding
service exercised in some leadership capacity. From these nominations, the
bishop selects up to five recipients to receive this prestigious award.
Following are the 2010 DDSA
recipients:
Msgr. Douglas L. Grams currently serves as Vicar General of the Diocese of New Ulm, as well
as director of Priest Personnel, and pastor of the Church of St. Mary, New
Ulm. From December 2007 to September 2008, he served as diocesan administrator
before the appointment of Bishop John M. LeVoir. He is a member of the Priests’
Council, the Priest Personnel Board, the College of Consultors, and the
Committee on Parishes. From 1999 to 2002 he served as Chancellor of the diocese
and since 2002, he has served as the Bishop’s Delegate in Matters Pertaining to
Sexual Misconduct. Ordained in June 1987, Msgr. Grams became associate pastor at
the Church of St. Mary in Sleepy Eye and then was associate pastor at the
Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New Ulm. In 1993, he was appointed pastor of
the Church of St. Mary in Tracy serving there until being appointed pastor of
the Church of St. Mary in New Ulm in 1999.
Mary Karnitz has been a
member of the Church of St. Mary in New Ulm for 29 years. She is
recognized for her active involvement with the New Ulm Diocesan Council of
Catholic Women. She has served as Diocesan President and Legislation Commission
Coordinator, and is currently the Organization Commission Coordinator. In
addition to her local CCW responsibilities, she represented the diocese on the
Provincial Board. Karnitz also extends her involvement to her parish where she
has been involved in the Church Commission, "Mission of Love" valentine project
for the San Lucas Toliman mission in Guatemala, Reverence Life, and various
other parish ministries.
Theodore Hilary Mohr and his
wife Elizabeth recently made a large financial commitment to establish the
Hilary and Elizabeth Mohr Scholarship Fund to educate catechists in the Diocese
of New Ulm. The fund has two components, one for scholarship awards to
parishioners from St. Raphael Parish in Springfield, the other for awards to
members of any parish in the diocese. Hilary is a long-time member of St.
Raphael’s and has served on several councils and committees, providing
leadership to the parish. He has also been involved in the leadership of the
Catholic Aid Association, encouraging active involvement in the parish, its
Catholic school, and adult formation program. Hilary’s wife Elizabeth received
the Diocesan Distinguished Service Award in 1990.
Fr. William J. Baer, rector
and president of St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of Saint
Thomas in Saint Paul will be the presenter at the 2010 Bishop Lucker Lecture to
be held on Thursday, March 11 at 7:00 p.m. at the Church of St. Catherine,
Redwood Falls. Sponsored by the Diocese of New Ulm, Fr. Baer’s talk is entitled, An Examination of Recent Trends in the Priesthood. This presentation is
open to the public. Admission is free. Call (507) 359-2966 for further
information or visit www.dnu.org.
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