Bishop Earl Fernandes will ordain nine men as permanent deacons for the Diocese of Columbus during a Mass at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 10 at Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral, 212 E. Broad St.

The candidates are Michael Berger, Dave Collinsworth, Dave Fesenmyer, Louis Griffith, Robert Lancia, Matthew Paulus, Fidel Pitones, Matthew Shaw and Christopher Spiese.

Deacons are ordained ministers of the Catholic Church. The Order of the Diaconate is one of three orders of ordained ministry in the Church, the others being the Order of Presbyter (priests) and the Order of Episcopate (bishops).

During the Mass, which will be celebrated on the feast of St. Lawrence, an early Church deacon and martyr, the 10 candidates will be ordained ministers of the Word, Sacrament and Charity.

As ministers of the Word, deacons proclaim the Gospel, preach and teach in the name of the Church. Deacons also baptize, lead the faithful in prayer, witness marriages and conduct funeral services as ministers of Sacrament. As ministers of Charity, deacons are to identify the needs of others and use the Church’s resources to meet them.

Most active deacons have jobs in the secular world in addition to serving the Church in parishes, hospitals, schools and prisons.

Berger is a specialty practice pharmacist at The James Cancer Hospital at the Ohio State University and a member of Reynoldsburg St. Pius X Church. He is married to Megan and has three children.

Collinsworth is a management consultant for local governments in Ohio and the Midwest. He formerly served as city manager for the City of Westerville and is a member of Westerville St. Paul the Apostle Church. He is married to Jane and has three children.

Fesenmyer is a member of New Albany Church of the Resurrection. He is married to Tina and has three children.

Griffith is a project manager at 2K General Company and a member of Columbus Our Lady of Peace Church. He is married to Karen and has two children.

Lancia is a project manager at software firm CAS and a member of Columbus St. Cecilia Church. He is married to Tonya and has six children.

Paulus is a palliative care nurse practitioner with Mount Carmel Medical Group and a member of Delaware St. Mary Church. He spent eight years in cardiology and four in vascular surgery. He is married to Mary and has six children.

Pitones is a senior project manager at The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company and a member of Worthington St. Michael the Archangel Church. He is married to Andrea and has four children.

Shaw is the owner of Hocking Hills Tiny Houses and a member of Logan St. John the Evangelist Church. He spent nearly three decades working in engineering at Battelle before retiring. He is married to Christine and has five children.

Spiese is a professor of chemistry at Ohio Northern University and a member of Ada Our Lady of Lourdes Church. He is married to Jessica and has four children.

The permanent diaconate was restored in the United States after the Second Vatican Council. Men studying for the priesthood are ordained as deacons before their ordination as priests, but there is no difference in sacramental sign between the transitional and permanent diaconate.