News Release #424

Area leaders to receive 2009 New Ulm Diocesan Distinguished Service Award

New Ulm, MN – The New Ulm Diocesan Distinguished Service Award (DDSA) is given annually for committed service and outstanding contribution to diocesan mission and ministry. The award consists of an engraved medal and a framed citation signed by the bishop. In giving this award, the diocese seeks to honor people from every walk of life whose efforts help to support the Catholic Church on the diocesan level in a significant way. The awards will be presented by the Most Rev. John M. LeVoir, bishop of New Ulm, at the annual Bishop Lucker Lecture on Tuesday, March 10, 2009, at the Hutchinson Event Center, 1005 Highway 15 South in Hutchinson, MN.  The lecture will take place at 7:00 p.m. followed by the award presentations. This year’s lecture keynote will be a Minnesota native priest of the Diocese of New Ulm and the first priest to be named a bishop from the diocese, Bishop John McRaith, now retired bishop of Owensboro, KY. The public is welcome to attend both the lecture and award presentations free of charge. No registration is necessary.

The 2009 Diocesan Distinguished Award recipients:

Cindy Blickem of New Ulm. Cindy Blickem is a member of the Church of St. Mary in New Ulm. She has worked tirelessly and energetically for the Diocese of New Ulm for over 30 years as administrative assistant for the diocesan offices of Religious Education, Adult Faith Formation, Catholic Schools, and Youth Ministry. She exemplifies excellence not only with daily office operations, but also through her organization and development of promotional materials for major events such as annual diocesan youth rallies, faith formation days, Catholic school events as well as national Catholic events such as World Youth Day and NCYC (National Catholic Youth Conference). Blickem is also active in her parish volunteering with family faith formation and other activities. She and her husband, Joe, have two children, one in high school and one in college.

Al and Bunny Iverson of Spicer. Al and Bunny Iverson are members of the Church of Our Lady of the Lakes in Spicer. Their distinguished service in the Diocese of New Ulm extends from their involvement in Spicer and Willmar to the diocesan mission parish in San Lucas Toliman, Guatemala.Beginning in the 1970s and with their son, Bruce, they visited and helped support the orphanage in San Lucas, even sponsoring a girl who now is married and works as a nurse at a clinic in San Lucas. In addition, they worked at a Catholic charity in Washington, DC, and they have been local hospice volunteers since 1993. They served the diocese by conducting interviews for the Diocesan Tribunal Office. Al worked for over 40 years as a chemical dependency counselor, helping many people to live healthier and happier lives. Bunny worked for both St. Mary’s Parish in Willmar and the former parochial school there. Today they continue to serve their parish by training and scheduling Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.

Mark and Pat Schneider of New Ulm. Mark and Pat Schneider have generously served as a presenter couple for the diocesan Marriage Preparation Program. For the past nine years they have helped engaged couples prepare for marriage, focusing especially on interfaith marriage and parenting. Pat is a member of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity and Mark is a member of Holy Redeemer Lutheran Church. Both are active members of their church communities. They have three daughters, two graduates and one senior of Cathedral High School.

Bishop Lucker Lecture:

The Catholic Diocese of New Ulm will sponsor the annual Bishop Raymond A. Lucker Lecture on Tuesday, March 10, 2009, at the Hutchinson Event Center, 1005 Highway 15 South in Hutchinson, MN. The keynote for the evening will be Minnesota native Bishop John McRaith speaking on “Planting the Seeds of Stewardship.”

Most Reverend John J. McRaith ended his more than 25-year tenure as Bishop of Owensboro, KY, January 5, 2009, at the age of 74 due to health concerns.

He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of New Ulm in 1960. In the 1970s he served as executive director of the NCRLC (National Catholic Rural Life Conference). During his leadership, Rev. McRaith and a team of priests conducted Rural Parish Service workshops across the country to help rural priests integrate family life with parish life and to raise awareness among church leadership about rural ministry needs. Rev. McRaith insisted that food, land, and related natural resources were to be understood and treated as gifts from a loving Creator for the common good. Major policy statements were adopted during his direction addressing land use, taxes, energy, and water. The Heartland Project, which resulted in the 1980 release of the pastoral letter Strangers and Guests: Toward Community in the Heartland signed by Catholic bishops of 44 dioceses in 12 states, was initiated by NCRLC during his tenure. Rev. McRaith resigned from NCRLC in 1978 to return to the Diocese of New Ulm as vicar and chancellor.

Bishop McRaith is acknowledged for his leadership in adapting to serve a growing number of Latino immigrants in the Owensboro diocese. Bishop McRaith praises priests and lay people for learning Spanish and accepting the newcomers.

Bishop McRaith plans to remain in Owensboro to assist the diocese as he is able.