Welcome to Nativity Church in Brockport!
I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am to come and serve you. I have been serving the Parish of St. Catherine of Siena in Ithaca for the last thirteen years. It has been a blessing in my life to serve the people in Ithaca. I know that many blessings await me in Brockport, Hamlin, SUNY and the Migrant community. This new part of my journey offers some wonderful opportunities for personal growth. Therefore, I begin ministry with you with an attitude of deep gratitude.
It is my philosophy to conform to the communities that I am serving…not the other way around; so I look forward to learning your traditions and customs. I do ask that you be patient with me while I learn your ways. I have one and only one agenda and that is to serve and to love you…that is my whole purpose in life. You do not need fixing…you need loving and that is what I intend to do.
A little bit about myself, I grew up in East Irondequoit (I still own my family’s house there so I am grateful to moving closer). I have six living siblings and one deceased, God rest her soul. Both of parents have also gone to God. One of my siblings lives about ten minutes away from Brockport, which is a great joy for me. My family were members of St. James parish in Irondequoit where I also attended Grammar school under the tutelage of the great Sister of Mercy. I went to Bishop Kearney High School…many of my classmates were from Brockport, Spencerport and Hamlin. I’m kind of hoping many still live in the area so we can reunite. Academically, I attended many institutions. MCC for my Associates, The Franciscan University of Steubenville for my BA in Theology and Philosophy, Oxford University in England for Renaissance History, the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium for seminary, I also did a concentrated course in Loyola in Chicago for Islam studies. So, lots of school…it was fun but not as fun as serving God’s Holy people!
I am also the only Roman Catholic Priest serving in the New York Army National Guard. For good or ill, that particular part of my ministry takes me away from parish life one weekend a month and two weeks out of the year for annual training which means I will be absent from the parishes for over a month cumulatively. I want to thank the communities from the get go for making this sacrifice. In all manner, I serve at the prerogative of the Bishop; he has given me permission to minister in this capacity. I am extremely grateful.
One of the greatest joys in my life is that every year since my ordination in 2001 I have been able to serve the families who attend ‘Family Camp’ at Camp Koinonia in Italy Valley, NY. It is a week-long retreat for families and I provide spiritual care for them every summer.
There is, of course, much more to me than a short paragraph can convey, but I thought I would begin our journey together by sharing a bit about myself and I eagerly look forward to learning about your lives. I pray that we laugh lots, cry when we need to and comfort each other always. Counting the days.
Peace,
Fr. Joe