Month: July 2026

Before the Pandemic, I had the chance to attend several conferences led by Fr. Joseph Tetlow, SJ at Montserrat Retreat Center in Dallas, which Fr. Tetlow founded. Every time I was there, I tried to savor every word Fr. Joe and the other presenters offered. The best adjective I can apply to those experiences is transformative.

At one of my one-on-one sessions I had with Fr. Joe, he asked me if I led eight day retreats. I told him that I had attended ten annual retreats (with the same amazing director), but I had not led one. Fr. Joe encouraged me to reach out to a local retreat center near my home, and get on their schedule to offer an Ignatian eight day retreat.

With the help of several others, we did just that, and because we had very positive feedback, Bon Secours kept inviting us back each summer for this special retreat, held in silence, with the exception of daily one-on-one-conversations with a trained spiritual director.

A bit of feedback that we received from many was that because other retreats were taking place at the same time as ours, with those groups generally not in silence, it was sometimes hard not to be distracted by the noise. Although I never mentioned it to the center, I also experienced the distraction too. After several conversations, the retreat center agreed to set aside the entire retreat house for our directors and retreatants so that we could truly experience a silent retreat. Of course, because this is a busy retreat center, almost always booked months/years in advance, it would take us a couple of years for our silent retreat to be realized. That day has come, and we are sold out, with a waiting list.

I know that this will be a remarkable retreat, for both the retreatants and the spiritual directors leading them. I am so grateful to God for that initial conversation with Fr. Tetlow, since he gave me the confidence and training to coordinate such an endeavor.

My team and I feel confident that this retreat is just the beginning of, please God, many years of truly silent retreats to come. May God bless our labors, and may these retreats lead to long lasting spiritual growth for everyone.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us!

Happy Independence Day! It’s hard for me to believe, but in 1976, fifty years ago, my godfather invited me to visit him in Boston to celebrate the Bicentennial. It was my first big trip without my family, and looking back, it’s amazing how many adventures my godfather and I had during those three weeks. We spend days walking the Freedom Trail around Boston, and then, because he was a salesmen, traveling around New England.

The years between 1976 and 2026 flew by, and I’m grateful to have had the chance to travel throughout the United States and Europe many times and I’ve loved every adventure I had. One remarkable trip with my family took us to Colorado, Wyoming, and the Dakotas. It was a ton of time in the car, but I will never forget the places we saw, especially the Grand Tetons and Cripple Creek, Colorado, my father’s birthplace.

A few weeks ago, I took the train down to Washington DC. I hadn’t been there for a few years, and I wanted to visit and walk the Mall. I recently started working on my stamp collection after many years of my Minuteman Album sitting in a drawer. My first stop was to the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum, just across the street from Union Station. I wish I could have spent the whole day there, but maybe next time. There’s so much to see at this museum, even if you aren’t a stamp collector.

After leaving the museum, I walked to the Lincoln Memorial, which was quite a trek, but it was a beautiful day, and I enjoyed seeing so many school children visiting our nation’s capital. With all the division we are experiencing as a country right now, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I was grateful to see the crowds of people, and most seemed happy and peaceful. I guess none were politicians.

As I walked back to the train station, I went into the National Archives. I wanted to once again look upon our nation’s founding documents. They are certainly faded now and the words hard to make out, but the power and majesty of the words written on those sheets of parchment still pack a punch.

Just like in the past, we will make it through these trying times and, please God, come out better because of these days.

May God bless the United States of America, and may this nation return to unity and civility, so we can grow and thrive for many years to come.