Ordained

Michael Stanley Bodzioch

Birth date: July 7, 1957

Where born and reared: Elizabeth, NJ

Seminary: Blessed John XXIII National Seminary, Weston, Mass.

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? Very excited. It has been a challenging and rewarding journey from initial interviews to this point. And I do realize ordination has been a goal, to be sure.  More importantly, however, it is also a step into something new, something very special.

Full Interview available here

Dennis James Garrou

Birthdate: Nov. 21, 1946

Parish: Christ the King Church, Evergreen

Occupation: Detention chaplain, Jefferson County Detention Center

Wife’s name and wedding date: Jill Garrou; June 1, 1968

Children: Steven, 40; Sara, 37; Jonathan, 33

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? I feel wonderful; I feel excited and complete. At my diaconate ordination, Bishop Conley, speaking about Cardinal John Henry Newman, said that it wasn’t conversion from Anglicanism to Catholicism — it was completion. I see it that way. I’ve always had the privilege of knowing and loving Jesus Christ and serving him as best I knew, and I find that in the Catholic Church, this comes to a fulfillment.

Full Interview available here

Gerónimo González

Birthdate: Oct. 31, 1983

Where born and reared: Jalisco, Mexico, also reared in Colorado

Seminary: St. John Vianney Theological Seminary

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? I am very excited, nervous, and everything in between. I am very excited because I have been looking forward to this moment for a long time. My ordination to the priesthood is a very important moment in my life, which God will grace me with.

Being ordained a priest is a great gift not only to me but also for the Church. Becoming a priest is a great blessing but it is also a great responsibility. I am aware of the responsibility and the challenges that the priesthood will bring, and these are daunting, but I trust that God will guide my steps and help me in my ministry as a priest.

I am filled with excitement, nervousness, and hope as I approach this momentous occasion.

Full interview available here

Brian Patrick Colby Larkin

Birth Date: June 28, 1980

Where born and raised: Born in Denver, raised in Littleton

Seminary: St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, Denver, Colo.

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? I’m very excited to be ordained a priest of Jesus Christ; I believe God created me with this purpose, and that I am now entering my life’s mission in a more concrete way.

I am grateful to all the people who have helped me to reach this stage in my life, but especially the Lord, who called me despite my unworthiness. I know the coming years will be anything but uneventful.

God always has surprises in store for me if only I am open to His will, sometimes that’s a little scary, but as a Christian I have already experienced that following the Lord brings a life full of meaning and purpose.

Some days it’s hard to believe that I’m actually going to be a Catholic priest, and I hope that sense of amazement remains with me the rest of my life.

Full interview available here

John Nepil

Birth date: Aug., 27, 1983

Where born and reared: Denver, CO

Seminary: St. John Vianney Theological Seminary

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? The closer I come to the priesthood, the more I am astonished by its mystery and beauty.  In these final weeks, I feel a strange blend of tremendous enthusiasm and profound humility.

Full interview available here

Gregg Pedersen

Age: 34

Where born and reared: Colorado Springs, Colo.

Seminary: St. John Vianney Theological Seminary

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? The closer the day comes, the more excited I become. Although, a good Carmelite friend of mine reminded me that love is not a feeling (like excitement), but love resides in the will.

I will be choosing an act of love and faith for Christ and His Church. Sometimes I feel excited about it, sometimes not.

I do have a deep peace and I am grateful to God for this.  I trust that Christ is calling me to himself in this special call to priesthood and that he will sustain me in all the joys and sorrows.  Please pray for me, my brother seminarians, and all the people we will serve as priests.

Full interview available here

Braden “Brady” Steven Wagner

Birth date: Nov., 16, 1981

Where born and reared: Carmel, Ind.

Seminary: St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, Denver, Colo.

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? I am filled with awe at the gift of the priesthood, being able to hold Jesus in my hands and saying those words in the first person, “This is my body…given up for you.”

I pray the Lord gives me the grace to live that mystery.  And to be able to speak a word of mercy and hope to the penitent and the dying, giving them the peace and freedom of the sons of God.  It is entirely something too great for me, both profoundly humbling and filling me with gratitude.  The only thing I can say is, “Jesus, I trust you.”

Full interview available here

Grzegorz Wójcik

Birthdate: Jan. 14, 1980

Where born and reared: Kwidzyn, Poland

Seminary: Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary, Denver, Colo.

How do you feel about being ordained to the priesthood? I am certain not to be worthy to change the wine into the blood of my Lord. Feeling greatly privileged to partake in the One Priesthood of Christ, I bless God for having elected me to work in his vineyard for the salvation of souls. In my response I am willing to give my life for his Church, for his love is everlasting.

Full interview available here