Msgr. John J. Dreese - 65
Born in New Lexington. Ordained on May 30, 1959 at Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral by Bishop Clarence Issenmann. Shares title of senior priest of diocese in time of service with Father Francis Stanton. Associate pastor, Zanesville St. Nicholas and Columbus Holy Name churches and Cathedral. Administrator of Cathedral. Co-pastor, Columbus Holy Spirit Church. Pastor, Crooksville Church of the Atonement and New Lexington St. Rose of Lima churches and Perry County Consortium. Teacher, Zanesville Bishop Rosecrans High School, Columbus St. Charles Seminary. Cincinnati Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, Pontifical College Josephinum, and in Kenya. Scout chaplain, Muskingum Valley Council. Assistant diocesan vocations director. Pro-Synodal judge. Perry County vicar. Chairman, Catholic-Jewish Dialogue Committee. Priests’ Senate president. Co-founder, Columbus Open Shelter. Longtime Catholic Times columnist. Author of articles for magazines and the Oxford edition of The New English Bible. Named monsignor with title prelate of honor by Pope St. John Paul II, Sept. 24, 1992. Retired in July 2002. Lives in Perry County.
Father Francis M. Stanton - 65
Columbus native. Ordained on May 30, 1959 at St. Joseph Cathedral by Bishop Clarence Issenmann. Shares title of senior priest of diocese in time of service with Msgr. John Dreese. Associate pastor, Columbus St. Agatha, Dennison Immaculate Conception, New Lexington St. Rose of Lima, Columbus St. Stephen the Martyr, New Philadelphia Sacred Heart, Columbus St. Peter and Columbus Our Lady of Peace churches. Administrator, Wheelersburg St. Peter in Chains Church. Pastor, Crooksville Church of the Atonement. U.S. Navy chaplain for 20 years, serving for two deployments. Diocesan vocations committee member. Emergency relief chaplain. Riverside Methodist Hospital, Columbus. Brother of deceased Father Joseph Stanton. Retired on Dec. 31, 2004. Lives at Villas of St. Therese, Columbus.
Msgr. David R. Funk - 50
Born in Lancaster. Ordained on May 27, 1974 at Bremen St. Mary Church by Bishop Edward Herrmann. Associate pastor, Chillicothe St. Peter, Columbus Corpus Christi and Columbus Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal churches. Pastor, Portsmouth Holy Redeemer, Columbus St. Agatha and Reynoldsburg St. Pius X churches. Teacher, Chillicothe Bishop Flaget and Columbus Father Wehrle high schools. Vicar forane for Vicariate 14. Priests’ Personnel Board member. Named monsignor with title chaplain to His Holiness by Pope St. John Paul II, Oct. 11, 1995. Retired on July 10, 2018. In residence at St. Pius X Church.
Msgr. John G. Johnson - 50
Born in Waukegan, Illinois. Ordained at Chicago St. Thomas the Apostle Church by Bishop Nevin Hayes, OP, on June 1, 1974. Associate pastor, Columbus Immaculate Conception, Columbus Our Lady of Peace and Hilliard St. Brendan the Navigator churches and St. Joseph Cathedral. Administrator pro tem at St. Brendan. In residence at Columbus St. Agnes, Columbus St. Thomas the Apostle and Reynoldsburg St. Pius X Church. Pastor, Columbus St. Philip, Columbus St. Peter, Columbus St. Timothy and Columbus Our Lady of Peace churches. Campus minister, Capital University. Pontifical College Josephinum faculty member. Notary, officialis and judge for diocesan Tribunal. Named monsignor with title chaplain to His Holiness by Pope St. John Paul II, Sept. 24, 1992. Retired on July 9, 2019, continuing in service to Tribunal. In residence at Columbus St. Agatha Church.
Father David A. Kenehan, OSFS - 50
Born in Erie, Pennsylvania. Member of Columbus Bishop Hartley High School Class of 1963. Professed vows with Oblates of St. Francis de Sales in 1968. Ordained in 1974. Teacher and principal for 11 years at Judge Memorial High School, Salt Lake City, Utah. U.S. Army chaplain for 29 years with deployments in Texas, Germany, Alaska, Kansas, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Belgium, Virginia and at the Pentagon. Gulf War veteran. Weekend assistant for parishes at Reston and Vienna, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Moved to Columbus in 2023 to be closer to family members and Oblate provincial headquarters in Toledo. Lives at Villas of St. Therese and celebrates Masses there and at Mother Angeline McCrory Manor, New Albany Church of the Resurrection and Bishop Hartley High School.
Father William Thomas Kessler - 50
Born in Newark. Ordained at Newark St. Francis de Sales Church by Bishop Edward Herrmann on July 20, 1974. Associate pastor, Columbus St. Agatha, Columbus St. Timothy, Mount Vernon St. Vincent de Paul, Columbus St. Anthony and Westerville St. Paul churches. In residence, Columbus St. Ladislas and Mount Vernon St. Vincent de Paul churches. Spent periods of monastic life at St. Louis Abbey, Missouri and Our Lady of Gethsemani Abbey, Kentucky. Pastor, Ada Our Lady of Lourdes, Bremen St. Mary and Lancaster St. Bernadette churches. Teacher, Columbus Bishop Watterson High School and Pontifical College Josephinum. Assistant chaplain, Riverside Methodist and Ohio State University hospitals. Chaplain, Kenyon College. Pro-Synodal judge. Director of continuing education for diocesan clergy. Diocesan College of Consultors and Priests’ Senate member. Catholic Times editor, Diocesan vicar for communications. Retired on July 10, 1918. Lives at Villas of St. Therese.
Father Jerome P. Rodenfels - 50
Columbus native. Ordained by Bishop Edward Herrmann at Columbus St. Matthias Church on May 26, 1974. Associate pastor, Columbus St. Andrew, Marion St. Mary, Columbus Immaculate Conception and Pickerington St. Elizabeth Seton churches. In residence, St. Joseph Cathedral. Pastor, Columbus St. Andrew Church. Administrator and pastor (two separate terms for both), New Albany Church of the Resurrection. Teacher, Columbus Bishop Watterson and Marion Catholic high schools. Campus minister, Columbus Bishop Hartley High School. Chaplain, University, St. Anthony and Mount Carmel West hospitals. Member and chair of Diocesan Presbyteral Council. Diocesan parochial examiner. Retired on July 12, 2016. Lives in Westerville.
Father John L. Swickard - 50
Columbus native. Ordained by Bishop Edward Herrmann at Columbus St. Mary Magdalene Church on April 21, 1974. Associate pastor, Columbus Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Delaware St. Mary and Columbus St. Matthias churches. Pastor, Wellston Sts. Peter and Paul, Columbus St. Anthony and Grove City Our Lady of Perpetual Help churches. Teacher, Columbus St. Charles Preparatory School. Chaplain, Knights of Columbus Council 3864. Associate diocesan vocations director. Priests’ Personnel Board member. Retired on July 12, 2011. Lives in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Father Stanley Benecki - 40
Born in Tarentum, Pennsylvania. Ordained by Bishop James Griffin at St. Joseph Cathedral on June 23, 1984. Associate pastor, Worthington St. Michael and Columbus Christ the King churches and St. Joseph Cathedral. Pastor, Columbus Sts, Augustine and Gabriel and St. Mary Magdalene churches. Member and officer, Central Ohio chapter, Industrial Relations Research Association. Bishop’s delegate for implementation of economic pastoral. Episcopal vicar for Catholic charities and social concerns. Chaplain, diocesan apostolate for the deaf. Retired on July 10, 2018. Lives at Villas of St. Therese.
Father David M. Gwinner - 40
Born in Shelby. Ordained by Bishop James Griffin at St. Joseph Cathedral on June 23, 1984. Associate pastor, Portsmouth St. Mary, Reynoldsburg St. Pius X, Sunbury St. John Neumann and Westerville St. Paul churches. Administrator pro tem, St. Pius X and Marion St. Mary churches. Pastor, Crooksville Church of the Atonement and Zaleski St. Sylvester churches. Chaplain, Portsmouth Notre Dame High School and Kenyon College. U.S. Navy chaplain. Retired on July 11, 2017. In residence at Westerville St. Paul Church.
Father Thomas Blau, OP - 25
Born in Cleveland. Ordained as priest of the Order of Preachers (Dominican Order) in 1999. Resides at Columbus St. Patrick Priory. Assigned to Dominican outreaches at University of Viginia and Providence (Rhode Island) College. Former vicar, Columbus St. Patrick Church. Did mission work in Honduras and Guatemala and had jobs including mail carrier, grade school teacher and drugstore part-owner before entering Dominicans. Completed Camino de Santiago. Currently assigned as itinerant preacher, conducting parish missions throughout the diocese. Appointed by Pope Francis as one of his worldwide missionaries of mercy for 2015-2016 Year of Mercy. Chaplain, Order of Malta and Columbus Legatus organization. Teacher, Pontifical College Josephinum. Founder of St. Barnabas Ministry, providing Dominican priests for parishes whose pastors are on retreat or vacation.
Father Martin J. Ralko - 40
Born in Dearborn, Michigan. Ordained by Bishop James Griffin at St. Joseph Cathedral on June 23, 1984. Currently pastor, Dresden St. Ann and Mattingly Settlement St. Mary churches. Associate pastor, Zanesville St. Nicholas, Columbus St. Mary Magdalene and Newark St. Francis de Sales churches. In residence, Columbus Our Lady of Peace Church. Temporary administrator, Hilliard St. Brendan the Navigator Church. Pastor, Dennison Immaculate Conception and Zanesville St. Nicholas churches. Teacher, Zanesville Bishop Rosecrans and Columbus Bishop Ready high schools. Chaplain, Columbus St. Francis DeSales High School and Children’s Hospital of Columbus. Vicar, West Columbus Vicariate. Dean, Muskingum-Perry Deanery.
Father Marek Kasperczuk - 25
Native of Poland. Ordained in Bialystok. Came to the United States in 2001 and was incardinated into the Archdiocese of Chicago in 2007. Associate pastor of two parishes in Chicago area. Rector, Bishop Abramowicz Seminary program for Polish seminarians preparing for pastoral ministry in Archdiocese of Chicago. Teacher, Liturgical Institute, Mundelein, Illinois. Administrator of three parishes in the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois. Resident for six years at Pontifical College Josephinum, where he is coordinator of Sacred Liturgy, assistant professor and formator.
Father Fritzner Valcin - 25
Born in Petit-Goave, Haiti. Ordained in Port au Prince, Haiti by Bishop Joseph Serge Miot on Sept. 5, 1999. Incardinated as priest of Diocese of Columbus on Dec. 6, 2014. Chaplain for Columbus Haitian community from 2006 to 2015. Administrator, Columbus St. Francis of Assisi Church for past 11 years.
