13th Annual Conference
March 4 & 5, 2011
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Opening Mass no need to register to attend |
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Please Join us for a special Rosary and Divine Mercy Chaplet meditation led by Father Mario Elias (St. Columbus Parish) which includes music by Donna Lee and John Grassadonia following the Friday night opening mass. |
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Featured Speakers, Mass and Music Ministry |
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Fr. Seraphim Michalenko, MIC
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Fr. Donald Calloway, MIC
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LaChita Calloway
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Br. Richard Mary Dolan, MIC
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Msgr. Philip J. Riley
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Fr. Richard Huston
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Donna Lee
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John Grassadonia
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A world renowned teacher on the Divine Mercy message and expert on the life of St. Faustina. In 1979 he was appointed Vice Postulator for the cause of Sr. Faustina. After smuggling a photo copy of the Diary out of Communist controled Poland, he, along with several others (including his sister) translated it into English. It took a long time due to the fact that Faustina wrote phonetically and did not use punctuation marks. He witnessed the first miracle and was involved with the second miracle that made Sr.Faustina a Saint. A familiar face to EWTN viewers from his appearances on instructive and inspirational programs dealing with The Divine Mercy Message and Devotion, as revealed to Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, has been involved in spreading this message for over 50 years.
A prominent Marian priest, exhibits an unmistakable zeal for the priesthood and devotion to Our Lady. He is a well-known conference speaker on Divine Mercy and the Blessed Virgin Mary. He speaks passionately about these topics in his moving conversion story. In addition, he is the editor of the books The Virgin Maryand Theology of the Body and The Immaculate Conception in the Life of the Church. In his book, Purest of All Lilies, he explores St. Faustina’s rich relationship with Mary – from her love of Mary growing up in Poland to her life as a nun, when the Blessed Mother taught her important lessons about suffering, purity of heart, and humility. His latest book No Turning Back he introduces his mom and family and recounts the story of his conversion and all the pain he caused them.
LaChita Calloway was born in northwestern Ohio and spent most of her youth in rural West Virginia, where she currently lives with her husband. As a young woman she had no formal religious education or upbringing. In 1972, at the age of 18, she gave birth to her son, Donald; this son proved to be a living nightmare for his mother during his teenage years. However, LaChita and her husband found God and became Catholic during this time. A few years later her rebellious son ended up having a huge conversion and even became a priest. Mrs. Calloway offers a message of hope for all mothers who pray for their children.
Marian seminarian Br. Richard is the College Outreach Coordinator for the Washington, D.C. area, ministering to young adults from 18-35 but primarily to college age students. He leads a Mary and Mercy reflection and discussion group at the Marian House of studies. He shares details of nearly being suffocated as a child and how that trauma influenced his future. After losing a major league baseball contract, Br. Richard felt his identity was lost, sending him into a downward spiral. He also helps out with retreats, catechesis, prayer teams, and a weekly Life in the Spirit Seminar, preparing young adults to encounter Christ’s love and deepen their understanding of the Sacraments and Church teachings by living life in the Spirit, so they can be witnesses of Christ in their daily lives.
Msgr. Philip J. Riley has devoted most of his 50-year-long priestly ministry to the pro-life cause. He fought the legalization of abortion in New York before the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, helped to organize the first national March for Life in Washington in 1974, and served as a witness to uphold the Hyde Amendment banning federal funding of abortion in most circumstances. In 1989, Monsignor Riley founded the Helpers of God's Precious Infants, Inc., to focus on prayer efforts and sidewalk counseling outside of abortion clinics. For over twenty years, five days a week, he has counseled and prayed on the streets outside abortion clinics. He continues to serve as executive director of the Helpers and travels internationally to train others how to hold peaceful, loving prayer vigils and to offer constructive assistance to those in crisis both before and after abortion.
Divine Mercy Movement of San Diego Spiritual Advisor. Fr. Huston was ordained in June 1995 and is currently assigned to Good Shepherd Parish in Mira Mesa. He has been very active in the spreading of the Divine Mercy message in our diocese. We are pleased to have him every year celebrate our closing mass on Saturday. Although Fr. Huston is retired he is also active with the Legion of Mary, Courage, Encourage, and he is the spiritual advisor for the new John Paul II Catholic University.
Three time Unity Award Winner Donna Lee has been ministering with her music for 21 years. She grew up singing at the folk mass at Holy Family parish in San Diego and at the age of 15 wrote her first song for a Catholic youth retreat. She has performed in 13 different countries as well as all over the U.S. Her music can be heard on several Catholic radio stations around the world and she is a regular on the Catholic Familyland TV Network. She can also be seen on EWTN’s “Backstage”. She has recorded several CD’s and is one of the founding members of the Catholic Association of Music founded by John Michael Talbot. Donna will lead us in praise & worship.
John is a six-time Unity Award-Winning Catholic Singer/Songwriting Artist, with two international music awards from Spain and Guatemala to his credit. When he is not performing in the US, he can be found traveling on tour with the Music Missionary Team of Franciscan and Friends,