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Pastor’s Letter: January 25, 2026

Dear St. Philomena Parish Family, 

Blessed Catholic Schools Week to you all! As we kick off Catholic Schools Week at our Masses this weekend, I am struck by how great our school really is!  What a gift to have such a wonderful place for young hearts to encounter Christ, grow in knowledge and love, and practice living our Faith together. I often heard Fr. David say that our St. Philomena School is the best thing we do here. This weekend we celebrate with joy that our school is full of life!

Last summer, our principal Mr. Dippold and I spent a day in prayer and conversation as we were reviewing the mission of our school and laying out the core values which we strive to live by during each school day here. Over and over throughout the day, we kept coming back to the most important gift our school provides—a true encounter with Christ. One of our daily commitments as pastor and principal is helping guide our parish—our church and school—to continue growing closer to Christ each day. Of course, Jesus takes the lead and does the heavy lifting! We are so thankful to work with such a dedicated staff who truly is generous and caring in serving our students and parish families. I shared previously that toward the end of last school year, I interviewed the 8^th grade students asking them what they loved about our school and what makes St. Philomena such a great place. Over and over, the students shared with me that they felt like our school is a true family—with both the beauty and challenges of what it means to be united so closely. Above all, student after student attributed much of the goodness of our school to our teachers and how much they care for our students’ growth and well-being. 

Celebrating Catholic Schools Week, we have an opportunity to..