Good Priests, Good Shepherds

Bishop Frank J. Dewane poses for a photo with the priests who took the Good Leaders, Good Shepherds course run by the Catholic Leadership Institute and graduated Oct. 21 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat and Spirituality Center in Venice.

BOB REDDY | FC
Bishop Frank J. Dewane poses for a photo with the priests who took the Good Leaders, Good Shepherds course run by the Catholic Leadership Institute and graduated Oct. 21 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat and Spirituality Center in Venice.

BOB REDDY | FLORIDA CATHOLIC STAFF

Posted: 11.04.09

VENICE | One by one, 20 priests of the Diocese of Venice came forward to receive a certificate of accomplishment for completing the two-year “Good Leaders, Good Shepherds” program.

Priests who graduated:
Father Vincente Clemente, administrator of St. Michael Parish, Wauchula.
Father Joe Clifford, pastor of St. Columbkille Parish, Fort Myers.
Father Jim Cogan, parochial vicar of Sts. Peter and Paul the Apostles Parish, Bradenton.
Father Jack Costello, rector of Epiphany Cathedral, Venice.
Father Eddie Gibbons, parochial vicar of Incarnation Parish, Sarasota.
Father Jose Gonzalez, pastor of St. Catherine Parish, Sebring.
Father Anthony Hewitt, parochial vicar of St. Jude Parish, Sarasota.
Father Robert Kantor, administrator of St. Agnes Parish, Naples.
Father Jean-Marie Fritz Ligonde, administrator of St. Finbarr Parish, Naples.
Father Jean Woady Louis, priest in charge of Haitian Ministry in Manatee and Hardee counties.
Father Tim Navin, pastor of San Marco Parish, Marco Island.
Father Luis Pacheco, parochial vicar of St. Leo the Great Parish, Bonita Springs.
Father Rafael Padilla, administrator of St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish, Port Charlotte.
Father Philip Scheff, parochial vicar of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Port Charlotte.
Father Jim Simko, parochial vicar of St. Francis Xavier Parish, Fort Myers.
Father Dan Smith, parochial vicar of St. John Evangelist Parish, Naples.
Father Remigious Ssekirana, parochial vicar of St. Andrew Parish, Cape Coral.
Father Fausto Stampiglia, Society of the Catholic Apostolate, pastor of St. Martha Parish, Sarasota.
Father Teofilo Useche, pastor of Holy Cross Parish, Palmetto.
Father Russell Wright, parochial vicar of St. Peter the Apostle Parish, Naples

The men are the first class from the Diocese of Venice to complete the Catholic Leadership Institute program, which is designed to give priests added skills on how to be a leader in a parish setting. There was a graduation ceremony Oct. 21 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat and Spirituality Center.

Father Anthony Hewitt, a parochial vicar at St. Jude Parish in Sarasota, said the course reminded him about the importance of the brotherhood of being a priest. “We are not alone, but we always need to remember that Christ is the center of everything we do. That is something very simple but easy to forget.”

The mission of the “Good Leaders, Good Shepherds” course is to help increase the confidence of priests, while strengthening their appreciation for their vocational identity, ministry and sense of growing fraternity by using Jesus Christ as the ultimate role model for leadership.
Matthew Manion, president and CEO of the Catholic Leadership Institute, said the program provides priests with a renewed humanity and heartfelt concern as Pope Benedict XVI has sought in every priest.

Father Russell Wright, parochial vicar at St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Naples, said he took the course with no real expectations except to meet more of his fellow priests. “What I got out of it was a vision for the future that I never would have had. I also learned that together, we would have something very powerful. That is very reassuring to know as I take what I have learned.”

Father Fausto Stampiglia, Society of the Catholic Apostolate, who turns 75 in less than a year, said he didn’t think he would gain anything from the course, but quickly realized that by channeling his energy he could bring his mind and spirit together. “You can teach old dogs new tricks. This is something every priest should go through.”

Each of the men who gave their testimony noted that their seminarian studies had not adequately prepared them to handle the daily problems associated with running a parish.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane said the unique program serves the purpose of providing priests with additional tools for their chosen vocation.

“You have made a choice like no one else and have the same struggles and challenges as everyone else added on. With what you have gained from this program, go out and practice it.”
The Diocese of Venice plans to make the Good Leaders, Good Shepherds course available to another group of priests starting in 2010.

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