Official Website of the
Catholic Diocese of Little Rock
$400,000 raised for seminarian education
Published: September 30, 2016
Thanks to three special events in Arkansas this summer, nearly $400,000 was donated for seminarian education in the Diocese of Little Rock.
A Taste of Faith dinner was held May 21 at the Holiday Inn Convention Center in Springdale with about 300 attendees, raising about $55,000 for the seminarians. Sacred Heart of Jesus Church and the Knights of Columbus in Hot Springs Village held a seminarian endowment dinner with musical performance from the “Village Strings” on July 22. That event yielded a little more than $65,500.
On Aug. 6, a Taste of Faith dinner was held at the Marriott Hotel in Little Rock raising just over $273,000. The 662 people who attended enjoyed a meal, with prayer given by Msgr. Francis I. Malone, pastor at Christ the King in Little Rock, and several musical performances by the diocesan seminarian band.
They performed hits like “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay,” “Wagon Wheel” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” where all the attending priests and Bishop Anthony B. Taylor were invited to join them on stage. All those on stage ended the night by singing “Salve Regina” a cappella. Seminarian Deacon William Burmester was the event’s master of ceremonies.
During the night, newly ordained transitional deacons Ramsés Mendieta and Martin Siebold gave testimonies on their call to priesthood and what it’s meant to them to have the prayers and support of Catholics in Arkansas. See testimonials for all the seminarians available now in our seminarian directory. Click on a seminarian's photo to read or watch them tell their stories of how God has called them to discern a priestly vocation.
Msgr. Friend told the crowd, “Being Catholic really means being stretched for greater glory,” which means sacrificing for the faith, he said. Once they become priests, the seminarians “belong to God and they belong to you” in service to churches in the state, he added.
Diocesan vocations director Msgr. Scott Friend encouraged attendees to “forget the number you came in with” to donate and instead “take a moment to look at the heart of Christ, the heart of Jesus and think of a sacrificial gift.”
“You’re making an investment in faith,” he told attendees. Per tradition, local artists and seminarians Jaime Nieto, Emmanuel Torres and Mark Johns gave away original artwork that included a painting of St. Teresa of Kolkata, the crucifixion, Mary and framed calligraphy.
Msgr. Friend told the crowd, “Being Catholic really means being stretched for greater glory,” which means sacrificing for the faith, he said. Once they become priests, the seminarians “belong to God and they belong to you” in service to churches in the state, he added.
The diocese currently has 34 seminarians with two discerning, making the need for educational funds a top priority. It costs an estimated $41,000 a year to educate a seminarian for the priesthood. If you would like to support seminarian education, you may donate online or contact the Vocations and Seminarians Office at (501) 664-0340.
