The Bishop Arthur J. O’Neill Assembly 2381 Clergy Appreciation Dinner held recently at St. Mary Catholic Church parish center in Huntley offered recognition for priests, nuns and deacons of 10 local churches.
The Bishop Arthur J. O’Neill Assembly 2381 is composed of six councils. Elgin chartered in 1902. Carpentersville chartered in 1962. Dundee chartered in 1984, Algonquin chartered in 1992, Huntley chartered in 1997, and Hampshire chartered in 2002.
The 2015 Holy Family Award was presented by Don Oomens, of Hampshire, to Monsignor James McLoughlin, who recently celebrated his fiftieth anniversary as a priest. Oomens pointed out that McLoughlin is well known in the northern Illinois area.
“In June 1965, he was assigned as associate pastor at St. Therese of Jesus parish in Aurora,” Oomens said. “In June 1966, he came to St. Mary in Elgin as an associate pastor, a teacher at St. Edward Central High School, chaplain at Elgin Community College and area vocation director. In 1969, he became the diocesan director of religious education and assisted at St. James parish and St. Peter’s parish in Rockford.
“In 1976, he was assigned as pastor of St. Michael parish in Galena, followed by his assignment in 1983 as pastor of St. Peter parish in Geneva. In 1997, he became the pastor of St. Mary in Woodstock. In 2001, he was appointed as a diocesan parish priest consultor and pastor of St. Patrick parish in Hartland Township in addition to his duties at St. Mary.”
In 2007, McLoughlin became the pastor of St. Joseph in Richmond. He retired June 30, 2011.
Oomens said that while McLoughlin was serving as the pastor of St. Peter in Geneva, he was hijacked.
“He was with a group on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land,” Oomens said. “Upon their return, their airplane was hijacked by terrorists. Father Jim and others were kept as hostages for 17 days in Beirut, Lebanon, before they were released.”
In 1995, Oomens said McLoughlin was invested as a knight of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre, the highest papal award conferred on both clergy and laity. In January 2003, he was appointed chaplin of the Holy Father with the title of reverend monsignor. In June 2003, he was appointed dean of the McHenry Deanery.
Today, Oomens said, McLoughlin enjoys playing golf and visiting hospitals and prisons where he celebrates Mass. One of his goals is to visit all of the nation’s presidential libraries.
“By now, you may be wondering which of his accomplishments gave rise to his selection for our award this year,” Oomens said. “Actually, none of them. And all of them. He was selected for all of his accomplishments as a priest of the Lord and as a representative of the Holy Family. Congratulations, Monsignor McLoughlin.”
The priests who were honored this weekend included: the Rev. Matthew DeBlock of St. Catherine of Siena in Dundee and St. Mary in Gilberts; the Rev. Andrew Mulcahey of St. Laurence in Elgin; the Rev. Max Striedl, the Rev. Ervin Pio Caliente and the Rev. John McNamara of St. Mary in Huntley; the Rev. Josue Rodrigo Lara and the Rev. Carlos Monsalve of St. Monica in Carpentersville; the Rev. Piotr Sarnicki, the Rev. Andrzej Brzezinski, and the Rev. Witold Adamczyk of St. Margaret Mary in Algonquin; the Rev. Christopher Kuhn and the Rev. Jorge Loaiza of St. Mary in Elgin; the Rev. Richard Rosinski and the Rev. Louis Tosto of St. Thomas More in Elgin; the Rev. Jesus Dominguez, the Rev. Manuel Forero, and the Rev. Rafael Tunarosa of St. Joseph in Elgin; and the Rev. Sylvester Nnaso of St. Charles Borromeo in Hampshire.
Three nuns from St. Monica who were recognized were Sister Julieta Mondragon, Sister Esperanza Reyes and Sister Cleotilde Orduna.
Honored deacons included Steven Fox, Hank Schmalen and William Whitehead Jr. from St. Catherine of Siena and St. Mary; Robert Plazewski of St. Laurence; George Coltman III, Frank Englert, Louis Farinella, Policarpo Jimenez, Chris Lincoln, John McPhee and Anthony “Gene” Schubert of St. Mary in Huntley; Dennis Garber of St. Monica; Howard Fischer, Simon Grossmayer, Mike LeRoy, Patrick Maher, James McDonough, Donald Miller and James Woeste of St. Margaret Mary; Luis DeLeon, Loc Nguyen and Henry Orlik of St. Mary in Elgin; Bob Newton, John Roder and Greg Stevens of St. Thomas More; Francisco Fausto and Armando Martinez of St. Joseph; and John Nelson, Jerry Ryndak and James Ward of St. Charles Borromeo.
Bishop David Malloy talked about the importance of sharing the values of the past with the young people of today.
“I was thinking of how singing ‘God Bless America’ and saying the Pledge of Allegiance were very normal things to do while we were growing up,” Malloy said. “Now things like that are on shaky ground. We need to give our young people encouragement and confidence. Pray for them and let them know they are not alone. Pass on the kinds of values that you have always believed in.”
Denise Moran is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
