News & Events | September 15, 2025
49th annual Powwow this weekend
The 49th Annual St. Joseph’s Indian School Wačhípi is September 20. Last week, the royalty competition kicked off the powwow activities. This year’s Miss St. Joe’s is Persais Swift Hawk from Ft. Thompson, Junior Miss St. Joe’s is Arihanni Archambeau-Quiver from Sioux Falls, and the Eagle Staff Bearer is Hehaka Wambli (Tristan) Black Lance from Rapid City. They are pictured here with Fr. Greg Schill, SCJ, president of the school.
The powwow is free and open to the public, including handicap accessibility. For more information and a complete schedule of events, contact St. Joseph’s Indian School at 605-234-3313 or visit stjo.org/powwow. If you cannot attend in person, follow postings and live updates virtually with St. Joseph’s Indian School on Facebook at www.stjo.org/facebook.
Welcome!
Nora Kubacki is the newly hired house manager for the Sacred Heart Community at Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake. Her email address is Mmanager@usprovince.org and her work phone is: (414) 435-8815. She will be taking over the duties of Barbara Haag. Welcome Nora, and many thanks to Barb for stepping in to help at SHML for a few weeks!
Redemptive grace
“Redemptive grace” was the theme of the September issue of As a Rule. Jenny Drzewiecki, Ministry and Communications Director at St. Martin of Tours parish in Franklin, WI (and one of four people who became Dehonian Associates this year on feast of the Sacred Heart), wrote about how her studies in theology at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology helped her to understand God’s grace.
“God, in His infinite wisdom, knows every one of my imperfections, yet He loves me unconditionally,” wrote Jenny. “His grace is this constant, unwavering presence that restores my relationship with Him every single time I stumble. When I miss the mark, His grace allows for a new beginning, wiping away the anxiety of whether I’ll be trusted again. The answer is always, ‘yes.’ This incredible gift, given through Jesus Christ, assures me of complete forgiveness. When I fall, I can rise, renewed and ready to strive to live a life like Christ.
“One of the most significant ways I connect with Christ and try to make a positive difference in the world is through my work for the Church. I’m far from perfect, but every day, I dedicate myself to helping others and improving lives. Whether it’s through parish ministries, serving at the food pantry, or reaching out to those in desperate need, this is how I serve Him. I offer my work to Him, striving to ‘live in love, as Christ loved us’…
“God’s grace empowers me to begin anew, to maintain a relationship with Him that’s free from shame or worry, all thanks to that ultimate gift of redemptive grace. My past shortcomings no longer need to haunt me. I am unconditionally loved by God, and that’s a truth that sets me free.”
Click here to read Jenny’s full text, as well as a reflection by Fr. Wayne Jenkins, SCJ, our province archivist.
Please remember
+ Fr. Pasquale Nalli, a member of the South Italian Province, died on September 4. He was born in 1952, professed in 1969 and ordained in 1978.
+ Fr. Thomas Eddy Susanto, a member of the Indonesian Province, died on September 6. He was born in 1967, professed in 1989 and ordained in 1997.
+ Fr. Guillerno Agustin Exner Baraicheval, a member of the Argentina-Uruguay Province died on September 7. He was born in 1939, professed in 1960 and ordained in 1966.
+ Vera Garth, the sister of long-time SHML employee Linda Mitchell, recently died. Services for Ms. Garth will be at Grace Memorial Family Service Center, 6151 N. Sherman Blvd in Milwaukee on September 29. Visitation is 11:00 a.m. to noon followed by a service at 12:00 p.m.
Also, Tom Brown, a long-time resident at Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake and frequent cantor at province liturgies, died on September 8. He had battled with a number of health concerns in recent years.
Tom and his wife, Pat, credit Fr. Charles Yost, SCJ, with their conversion to Catholicism. The Browns had moved to SHML shortly after they retired. Pat had been a medical transcriptionist and Tom spent over 50 years as a church music director, though not in a Catholic parish.
A priority for Tom and Pat following their move to SHML was to find a church. While seeking a new faith community they attended Mass at SHML. Fr. Charlie noticed that they attended church regularly but that they didn’t go to communion. One day after church he asked them why. “We aren’t Catholic” Pat said. And thus began a friendship with the SCJs that eventually led to the Browns conversion.
Family and friends are gathering between 10:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. on Saturday, September 27, at the Max Sass Funeral Home, 8910 W. Drexel Ave., in Franklin, WI. Funeral services will be at 12:30 p.m.; Fr. Jim Schroeder, SCJ, will preside.
Click here to access the obituary.
Welcome!
Several members of the Generalate staff from Rome are visiting in Hales Corners this week to learn about fundraising methods used in the US Province. Among those taking part in the meetings is Fr. Willyans Prado Rapozo, SCJ, a member of the General Council who previously served in the Canadian Region, as well as Kory Christianson, development director for the Province Development Office and St. Joseph’s Indian School. The meetings are the result of discussions about fundraising methods at the last General Chapter.
Keep in prayer
Fr. Steve Pujdak, SCJ – As noted last week, Fr. Steve, who was recovering from hip replacement surgery, went back to the hospital to be treated for AFib. The AFib is now well controlled but while in the hospital he was diagnosed with a fracture in his back. He has lost weight and strength. Fr. Steve is being fitted for a back brace to help him stand and walk. It is hoped that the brace will also alleviate some of the pain that he has been experiencing. Members of the Sacred Heart Community in Pinellas Park, FL, visit him each day.
Fr. John Czyzynski, SCJ – Fr. John, who is being treated for cancer, was hospitalized for two days last week for tests after experiencing tingling along the right side of his face, neck and hand. Initial tests were inconclusive; he will have further testing. Fr. John thanks people for their “love, prayers and concern.”
The “True Solutions”
The Dehon Study Center’s next book club session will focus on Fr. Leo John Dehon’s Christian Social Manual, Section I, Chapter VI. The title of the chapter? “The True Solutions: Action by the Church.”
“‘It is your priests,’ Leo XIII said again during an audience with the Bishop of Liege, “whom we must urge to go to the people. They cannot remain shut inside their churches and rectories. They must be animated with apostolic spirit, with the spirit which animated St. Francis Xavier who went about everywhere, preaching the Christian doctrine to everyone.’
“‘The priest,’ says the Bishop of Liege, following Leo XIII’s teachings, ‘must have his role in the occupational associations. He must become the instigator, the leader, the propagator. He must even lend the assistance of his knowledge, his heart, his devotion, his influence, and his action for the pursuit of the temporal good of those societies. The old works are not sufficient. They do not reach the workers of the cities and the factories. It is through concerning himself with their interests, through the corporations, that the priest will have access to them.'”
Click here to download a PDF of the Christian Social Manual.
Held on the First Friday of the month, both in-person and via Zoom, the Dehon Study Center book sessions are open to anyone. The next meeting will be on October 3 at 1:00 p.m. (Central). To take part via Zoom, click on the following link:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81515880849
The Meeting ID is 815 1588 0849
Click here or on the image above to view a YouTube recording of the September book club meeting.
Dehonian Associates
Next week Tuesday, September 23, is the first ONLINE meeting of the Dehonian Associates; 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. (central). For more information, contact Monica Misey at 414-427-4267 or via email at mmisey@dehoniansusa.org.
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