Denver Catholic

"Jesus said to Simon, Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him." (Lk 5: 10-11) Dear Friends in Christ, How do we become intentional disciples of Christ who are willing to "drop their nets" to follow him like St. Peter and the apos- tles did? Intentional discipleship starts in our homes and with our families but al- so within our Church family—our parish communities, the seminaries and our cat- echetical, biblical and parish schools. As we begin a new fiscal year, it is important for the entire archdiocese to ask how it can respond to the call to form disciples, since the future of the Church both in northern Colorado and throughout the world de - pends on this. With that goal in mind, I present to you the annual financial report of the Archdiocese of Denver for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014. I in- vite you to take a few minutes to review this annual report, which will show you that the archdiocese con- tinues to grow and prosper, thanks to God's blessings and the prayer and commitment of the priests, dea- cons, religious and laity serving the 142 parish com- munities of northern Colorado. I'm pleased to report that we are financially sound. We have been success- ful, both spiritually and financially, because so many of our faithful are willing to commit themselves to prayer, service to others, and providing support to their local parish and the various ministries of the archdiocese. Thank you. In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples that "every good tree bears good fruit" (Mt 16:17). The abundant fruit of our seminaries is a testament to the hard but rewarding work being done by parents, teachers and formators. During the past year, I had the honor of ordaining 5 men to the priesthood, all of whom will serve within the territory of the arch - diocese. Another 5 men were ordained for other US dioceses. The archdiocese currently has 75 men in formation for the priesthood and a record-breaking enrollment of 27 men for the first year of formation, called the Spirituality Year. In addition, 10 men were ordained to the perma- nent diaconate in the St. Francis School of Theolo- gy for Deacons in January of 2014 and, in August of this year; an additional six permanent deacons were ordained. These men will celebrate the sacraments and guide the faithful for many years to come. I al- so want to thank three priests who retired this past year—Father James Purfield, Father Michael Kerrigan and Father Lawrence Kaiser—for their many years of devoted priestly service. Faith formation programs have grown with dedi- cated teachers and administrators whose instruction brings children and adults to a better understand- ing of the holy Scriptures and the Church's teach- ing. Within our 37 parish-based elementary schools and two high schools, we provide pre-kindergarten through 12th grade education for more than 9,300 children and young adults. We are the largest private school system in Colorado. In addition, nearly 25,000 children and young adults participate in parish-based religious educa- tion programs throughout the archdiocese. The Office of Evangelization and Family Life Min- istries continues to enhance its services and efforts to assist our parish communities. In fiscal 2015, the staff of this office will personally assist me and all the priests of northern Colorado on two significant initiatives. The first project, which involves enhanc- ing our teaching of theology of the body and natu- ral family planning, has already begun. This effort to strengthen our catechetical materials will impact couples discerning the sacrament of marriage and our youth. The second effort for 2015 will be the in- troduction of the restored order of the sacraments of Christian initiation. Likewise, our ministry to the growing Hispanic population in northern Colorado continued to ex- pand during the last year. Spanish Masses are now offered at more than 53 of the parishes in the territo- ry of the archdiocese. Our Hispanic ministry facility, Centro San Juan Diego (CSJD), continues to grow and prosper, having served approximately 29,000 individ- uals in fiscal 2014. CSJD provides essential education, leadership development, employment and family support services to the Hispanic commu- nity. In 2015, the staff of CSJD will be fo- cusing its efforts on enhancing our minis- try efforts for families. It is also my sincere hope that our nation and its leaders will enact legislation that respects the human rights of those who come to us as refugees from countries that are plagued by vio- lence, political uncertainty and economic hardship. Any successful legislation must also protect our national security interests and ensure that our communities main- tain respect for the rule of law. In the area of finances, the current year's Archbishop's Catholic Appeal are expected to exceed results from last year's campaign. The 2014-2015 ap- peal, while still in progress, demonstrates the gener- osity of Catholics in the archdiocese and will provide support for the many educational, charitable and pastoral programs throughout northern Colorado. The financial goal of the archdiocese continues to be that it will utilize the financial resources entrusted to it in a manner that neither accumulates unneces- sary reserves nor dissipates those resources to the ex- tent that its overall financial position would not be on a sound foundation. As such, allow me to highlight some of the more important matters relating to the financial stewardship of the archdiocese, as well as some of the current initiatives and challenges that we are working on. Both St. John Vianney Theological Seminary and Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Semi- nary continue to grow and prosper. Total enrollment at the seminaries for men being formed for the priest- hood is 123 men in August 2014 as compared to 115 in August of 2013. In addition, there are an additional 21 men studying to become permanent deacons at the St. Francis School of Theology for Deacons, which is part of St. John Vianney Theological Seminary. For the second year in a row, many of our ecclesias- tical entities benefited from the significant improve- ment in the global financial markets and, according- ly, generated positive investment returns from their respective investment portfolios. Not only will this help fund their ministry operations but it will also greatly improve their overall financial health. It is im- portant to note that many of these investment funds and their associated investment returns are perma- nently restricted and must be used pursuant to the donor's stated intentions. We are also mindful that in- vestment return trends can and will change, and that we must manage our investments accordingly. As reported last year, during the summer of 2013, the archdiocese was involved in one lawsuit and one unfiled claim involving allegations of sexual abuse by a priest of a minor. Both of these matters involved al- legations of abuse more than three or four decades ago and both priests are deceased. The single lawsuit was dismissed by the court with no payment by the archdiocese and the unfiled claim remains tolled by agreement of the parties. During fiscal 2014, two new claims, both brought by adult women alleging wrongdoing by priests arose. One of these matters was dismissed by the court with no payment and one was settled for a nominal amount. I renew my com- mitment to the safety of our children and young peo- ple as our highest priority at the archdiocese. Please know that my resolve to prevent sexual abuse is un- relenting and our effort to promote healing for vic- tims continues to be of the utmost priority. In fiscal 2014, the Office of Child and Youth Protection provid - ed sexual abuse prevention training to an additional 28,000 people, including refresher training for clergy, seminarians, employees, teachers, parents, students and volunteers. Earlier this year I challenged staff of the archdio- cese, Catholic Charities, Seeds of Hope and The Cath- olic Foundation to revisit our current fundraising approaches, including the need for improved donor communications, enhancing our current informa- tion systems and working to establish long-term re- lationships with the faithful. In June 2014, I convened a symposium of donors and priests to discuss this matter while members of The Catholic Foundation and my staff presented solutions on how we can do a better job going forward. Thereafter, I asked man- agement and the board of The Catholic Foundation to assist me in creating a new organizational struc- ture, and a plan and timeline to accomplish a reorga- nization of our current fundraising and development activities. I'm pleased to report that in 2015, a newly formed entity to be named The Catholic Founda- tion Alliance (The Alliance) will commence opera- tions. The Alliance will be overseen by the board of The Catholic Foundation and provide fundraising and event management services to the various enti- ties of the archdiocese. Initially, the Pastoral Center, the seminaries, Seeds of Hope, the high schools and Catholic Charities will utilize these services. I'm con- fident that by doing so, these separate entities will benefit as we become more responsive and efficient in reaching out to their donors, who make their min- istry possible. The resolution of the future of the historic Camp St. Malo Retreat and Conference Center, Inc. (St. Malo) located near Allenspark has become more clear to my staff and I throughout fiscal 2014. First impacted by a fire in November of 2011 and then a mudslide in Sep- tember 2013, the damage from the mudslide is signifi- cant and has been estimated at more than $4.4 million to restore the property to its previous condition. Ac- cordingly, in light of the significant remediation costs to the property, the ongoing uncertainty regarding the stability of Mount Meeker, and the unknown impact of future water and sediment flows on the property as noted by outside professionals, it has been determined that it is not prudent to rebuild a conference center or youth camp on the St. Malo property and alternative sites are being evaluated. Nevertheless, the board of di- rectors of St. Malo and I are committed to maintaining the Church's presence at St. Malo and honoring the his- tory of the boys' youth camps that took place from 1934 through 1985, the retreat center that operated from 1988 to 2011 and the historical visit of St. John Paul II in August of 1993. The two significant construction projects on the campus of the St. John Paul II Center for the New Evangelization—$10 million in renovations to the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary and the con- struction of the $6.5 million Holy Trinity Center have progressed well. The seminary project was substan- tially completed in August of 2014 and within budget, and the Holy Trinity Center, in which construction commenced in January of 2014, will be completed in March of 2015. Because I know that we are in God's hands, I view the future with great confidence. I am thankful to the Arch- diocesan Finance Council and its various subcommit- tees for assisting us in the financial administration of the archdiocese. All that has been accomplished could not have been done without the generous support of so many people within the Church of northern Colo- rado sharing their time, talent and treasure. I also want to thank the employees of the parishes, the Pastoral Center, the seminaries and the other related entities and agencies throughout the Archdiocese of Denver. Through your ongoing dedication and sacrifices, you give the priests, deacons and religious in your respec- tive communities the opportunity to humbly serve the faithful of northern Colorado. Finally, I would like to recognize the leadership of Msgr. Thomas Fryar, who served as moderator of the 2014 FINANCIAL REPORT ARCHBISHOP SAMUEL J. AQUILA See Letter, Page B2

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