Details, courtesy Deacon Freddy Medina, Director of the Office of Diaconal Ministry for the Diocese of San Angelo:

On June 4, 2022, in Big Spring, Texas, Most Rev. Michael J. Sis, Bishop of San Angelo, ordained fourteen men to the Order of Deacon.

From left to right: Francisco Ocampo, Scott Randolph, Stan Sienkiewich, Sergio Cedillo, Billy Garcia, Alonzo Landin, Rev. Freddy Pérez (Master of Ceremony), Pete Madrid, Mike Hernandez, Alexander Chick, Eduardo Castillo, Johnny Rodriguez, Bobby Porras, and Erick Morgado. Kneeling is Alfonso Moreno.

Congratulations, brothers, and welcome! Ad multos annos!

Deacon Freddy also adds this important news: 

The University of Dayton’s Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation’s (VLCFF) partnership with the Diocese of San Angelo, Texas, is, in my humble opinion, an example of divine Intervention.

First, without the VLCFF’s asynchronous online learning method, much of this diaconal class would not have been able to participate. When we talk about forming men for the diaconate, we talk about men who have commitments to family, jobs and parishes, so they don’t have flexible schedules. With VLCFF, these candidates can set their timeframes for learning and aren’t required to do it at a specific time. One of our deacons would start his day at 4 a.m., while his family slept, so he could keep up with his studies.

Second, two class members whose primary language is Spanish would not have been accepted for formation if we had continued with our former method for the intellectual dimension. And, yet, the two have contributed significantly to this class in so many ways that I cannot envision our formation program continuing without offering tracks concurrently in Spanish and English. VLCFF facilitates this tremendously.

The service, nay, the ministry provided by VLCFF facilitators is unmatched. The facilitator’s attention to detail and the students’ capacity to follow along and participate in the class greatly enhanced each learning experience. I received feedback regularly from our students describing their amazement with their facilitator’s willingness to share their knowledge, guide the student to seek more profoundly into the subject matter and challenge their worldview.

So, why do I refer to divine intervention? If it weren’t for our partnership with the VLCFF, the Deacon Class of 2022 would have undoubtedly become the class of 2024. Because of the pandemic, we could not meet in person for 12 months, or 20% of their formation period. Yet, the course continued non-stop with their formation in all four dimensions.

The Diocese of San Angelo is truly blessed to use VLCFF for formation classes.

This was indeed a gift from Heaven.

Amen!