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Fostering Salesian Leadership
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The Joseph F. Power, OSFS
26th National Salesian Conference
on the Spirituality of St. Francis de Sales
and St. Jane de Chantal
July 31 - August 3, 2008
Mendota Heights Visitation Monastery
St. Paul, Minnesota
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Sponsored by DeSales Resources and Ministries
About the conference
If we accept that our baptism in Christ is a call to leadership
in our church and our world... then the question arises, are we
up to the challenge? Can Francis de Sales, the learned diplomat
and Jane de Chantal, mother and founder, teach us to be unifying
leaders in the Body of Christ?
Our 2008 Conference will invite us to be and to call for leaders
who lovingly inspire gentle compassion and optimistic reform, and
who work toward enabling every person to be who they are: holy and
beloved.
Conference Features
- Thursday Evening: ***Newly Revised Feature***
"A Salesian Primer: An introduction to the Salesian Family
and its Spirituality" with John Graden, OSFS. Different
from past orientation sessions, this is specifically designed
to help anyone "new" to understand what we mean when we say "Salesian
Spirituality." Don't miss this session if you are asking the question:
"Just what is this Salesian Spirituality that people are talking
about?"
- Three Morning Keynote
Speakers
- Option for four out
of five afternoon presentations
- Friday evening: "Leadership in Action"
Meet "Salesian Leaders" with a variety of experiences.
- Saturday evening: "A Salesian Thanksgiving Celebration" with
all of the trimmings!!! followed by an original musical production
created just for the 2008 Salesian Conference! The evening will
culminate with a "backstage coffee house"... share refreshments...conversation...music
and poetry (bring some of your own to share!)
- Eucharistic Liturgies
- Common Prayer
- Salesian Marketplace with displays from today's "Salesian Leaders."
- Used Book Sale...bring your Salesian used books to sell!
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Conference Dates and Location
Thursday, July 31- August 3
Presentations, prayer, meals and marketplace will take place at
Mendota Heights Visitation Monastery
2455 Visitation Drive, St. Paul, MN 55120
Registration: Thursday, 3-8 p.m. at the Monastery
(supper will be served on Thursday from 5-8 p.m.) The Salesian Marketplace
will open on Thursday from 4-8 p.m.
The Conference will conclude on Sunday with 10:15 a.m. Eucharist
followed by brunch.
Lodging
Lodging ONLY will take place at Mendota
Heights Courtyard Marriott
Room check-in will take place on Thursday after 3 p.m. at the Hotel.
Hotel check-out is at noon on Sunday. This is a non-smoking facility.
***A continuous shuttle between the Monastery and the Hotel (approx.
2 miles) will be available throughout the conference. Parking is
available at both locations.
Travel
The St. Paul/Minneapolis Airport is five miles from the Marriott
Hotel and six miles from Visitation Monastery.
Directions
Directions
and Map to the Mendota Heights Courtyard Marriott
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Keynote
Speakers
Morning Keynote Speakers
Friday
Salesian Secrets on the Art of Leadership
Type in "leadership" on Google and in .05 of a second, 137,000,000
entries are a computer click away. The topic is immense and the theories
are countless. Two masters hidden in the mammoth maze are our very
own Saints Jane de Chantal and Francis de Sales.
Neither Saint was born a leader. But rather each developed and honed
their leadership skills and styles through a lifetime of prayer, training
and experience. Helen will walk us through key periods of Saints Francis
and Jane's lives that demonstrate their evolving leadership styles
and highlight pearls of wisdom they have bequeathed to us. Through
our Founders we can learn to recognize and support today's leaders
and become leaders ourselves.
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Helen Wilkie was a member of
the Visitation Monastic Community in Mendota Heights, Minnesota
from 1989-1996. During her formation training, Helen earned
a Masters Degree in Salesian Spirituality from DeSales Hall
in Washington, D.C. Currently she runs Wilkie Communications,
a marketing firm specializing in serving faith-based organizations
and businesses. |
Saturday
A Journey of Faith - St. Francis de Sales
The crest of a bishop is designed to incorporate the images of the
heart and spiritual formation of the one who it represents. Bishop
Peter's coat of arms pays homage to St. Peter, the first bishop of
Rome and to St. Francis de Sales. Bishop Peter will recall some of
the teachings of St. Francis which guided his spiritual journey to
this point. The Bishop's journey is ours too...one where we are invited
to seek God's Will in our lives. As St. Francis writes, we can answer
our baptismal call to "Do everything calmly and peacefully. Do as
much as you can as well as you can. Strive to see God in all things
without exception and consent to His will joyously."
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Bishop Peter F. Christensen
was ordained to the priesthood in May of 1985. He attended St.
Paul Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. He served as a priest
for the Archdiocese of St. Paul/ Minneapolis for 23 years. He
enjoyed that time during which he served as Rector of St. John
Vianney College Seminary and spent 8 years as pastor of Nativity
of Our Lord Church and School in St. Paul. On September 14,
2007, he was ordained Bishop of the Diocese of Superior. Bishop
Christensen holds a Master of Divinity degree and a Master of
Applied Spirituality. |
Sunday
The Salesian Charism: an Invitation to Lay Collaboration.
According to Vatican Council II, lay men and women are appointed
to the apostolate by Christ himself. The Council called for a collaboration
between the laity and the ordained. Yet a true collaboration with
the laity is unusual in our Church. Fr. Michael will address: what
collaboration requires, what has impeded it, and what opportunities
for collaboration are suggested in the charisms and mission of St.
Francis de Sales and St. Jane de Chantal.
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Fr. Michael Sweeney, O.P was
appointed in June, 2004 as the president of the Dominican School
of Philosophy and Theology (DSPT) at the Graduate theological
Union, Berkeley, California. Ordained in 1979, Fr. Michael has
served as university chaplain and pastor. In 1997 he co-founded
with Sherry Weddell, a lay woman, the Catherine of Siena Institute,
whose purpose is to assist parishes to provide a formation for
lay men and women for the sake of the mission of the Church
to the world. He has developed and offered workshops in priestly
formation, in the theology of the laity, the theology of vocation,
and the theology of pastoral governance. Fr. Michael teaches
the theology of the laity at the DSPT. |
Afternoon Speakers
Loving Persuasion: Leading Others in the Salesian Tradition
By all accounts, Jane de Chantal and Francis de Sales exercised superbly
the art of calling forth the best in people. Francis was explicit
in his assertion of the central role of persuasion -- of winning hearts
to Jesus-- in his method of spiritual guidance. (cf. the Introduction
to the Devout Life, III, ch 23). As for Jane, she is often depicted
as holding a heart in her hand on which is inscribed the name of Jesus.
Her manner of exercising leadership led others to that same heart.
By looking at the writings of both saints as well as concrete examples
of how they actually led others, we will distill the fundamental principles
of Salesian leadership.
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Fr. Louis Fiorelli, OSFS served
as Superior General of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales from
1994 through 2006. Prior to that, he taught systematic theology
and Salesian spirituality at the De Sales School of Theology
in Washington, DC. He has served as chaplain and spiritual guide
to a number of Salesian groups including the two American Federations
of the Order of the Visitation and the Daughters and Sons of
St. Francis de Sales. Lou has often written on the subject of
leadership from a Salesian perspective as well as other Salesian
themes. His recent articles include: " 'Winning Hearts': Ministering
in a Salesian Manner" (in Human Encounter in the Salesian Tradition,
edited by Joseph F. Chorpenning, OSFS; published in 2007 by
the International Commission for Salesian Studies, pp. 389-408);
"Centering Prayer and Salesian Spirituality: Connections," in
forthcoming book entitled, Basil Pennington by the People Who
Knew Him (2008). |
Touching Young Lives...The Salesian Leadership Program
Twenty years ago, Fr. Tom Helfrich, OSFS and Sr. Karen Mohan, VHM
ran the first Salesian Leadership Program at Camp De Sales in Brooklyn,
Michigan. The program has been offered every year since, touching
the lives of over 800 high school students as it encourages Salesian
leadership and spirituality in schools and parishes. Participants
come from Oblate and Visitation institutions across the country. Meet
some of the young adults in person and on video and see how their
lives have been nourished by this program, its philosophy, goals and
methods. Experience Salesian Leadership in the making!
The workshop will be facilitated by:
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Fr. Ken McKenna, OSFS was appointed
the director of Camp De Sales in 1999. The Oblate novitiate
is also located at camp, where Fr. Ken serves as the novice
director. When possible, he enjoys ministering to the Catholic
deaf communities of the Detroit and Lansing (arch) dioceses. |
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Mr. Rudi Schwarzkopf, OSFS
is a native of Toledo, Ohio and a graduate of St. Francis de
Sales High School. After completing his undergraduate degree,
Rudi taught for two years at Lumen Christi Catholic High School
in Jackson, Michigan. He is currently working on a graduate
degree in theology at St. Michael's College in Toronto, Ontario. |
Show Up - Listen Up - Make It Up: The 3 Cardinal Rules of
Life.
The practical application of the Salesian Spirit in the workplace.
Francis and Jane developed a living philosophy of blooming where
you are planted, being who you are and being it well and doing ordinary
things in extra ordinary loving ways. This lifestyle leads us into
intimate real relationships with ourselves and others. Can this happen
at my job? Is there really a place for Salesian leadership in my workplace?
John will share his experiences and invite his audience to share theirs.
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John Downey has worked for
over 40 years as a General Manager of fine dining restaurants,
private golf and country clubs and health and fitness clubs
with a European style SPA. He holds a BA in Business Administration
from the University of St. Thomas. He and his wife Nancy are
consecrated members of the Society of St. Francis de Sales and
take part in the companion gatherings with the Minneapolis Visitation
Sisters. |
Salesian Leadership in Education and the Formation of Youth
We live in a morally complex world and our children grow up in a
world that does not always support the values of faith and the virtues
we embrace as members of the Salesian family. As parents and educators,
we have a special responsibility to form and shape those in our care
with the gentle spirit of Francis and Jane. This session will discuss
ways Salesian spirituality can be a countercultural alternative to
what contemporary culture promotes. We will discuss some of the successful
programs that do this in place in Oblate and Visitation schools and
parishes.
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Dan Kerns is in his 23rd year
at Georgetown Visitation having served as School Head since
1989. Dan attended St. Bonaventure University and has a law
degree from George Mason University. He has served on a number
of boards and spent six years on the National Catholic Education
Association (NCEA) Board of Directors representing secondary
Catholic education. He was the Board's Vice Chair for three
years. Dan is married to Alice Fleury Kerns, a fourth generation
Visitation alumnae, and they have four children, the youngest,
Katie, is slated (hopefully) to be in Georgetown Visitation's
Class of 2022. |
Empowerment and Surrender: Women in Leadership.
Solid, intelligent leadership in our church and in our world has
never been more necessary and demanding than it is today. For women
especially, this is a most daunting and exciting challenge. Drawing
from women in the Salesian tradition, from women of today, living
their spirituality around us and from her own lived experience, Susan
will look at the blessings and the challenges of servant leadership...
being a woman disciple of Jesus in today's world.
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Susan Gardner, Regional Director
for the De Sales Spirituality Center, also serves as Director
of Educational Support Services at Salesianum School where she
has been a member of the faculty since 1985. A certified spiritual
director, Susan has an extensive background in catechesis and
religious education. |
Schedule
Download and print the 2008 Conference Schedule:
 Conference
Schedule
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Conference Rates++
| Registration Type |
Through June 20 |
After June 20 up to July 7 |
| Program, meals, single room |
$480 |
$490 |
Program, meals, double room
(one king or two double beds) |
$355 |
$365 |
| Program, meals, Commuter |
$240 |
$250 |
| *One Day Registration (meals incl.) |
$95 (Sun. $65) |
$95 (Sun. $65) |
| ++ The conference costs reflect a $22 discount
made possible through a generous donation from a friend of DeSales
Resources and Ministries. |
Deposit: $75 non-refundable deposit (applied to your conference
fee) must accompany registration)
Please note:
Prices are per person and include: Hotel, Meals, and Program Costs.
Some scholarship money may be available. Inquire with registration.
You must register for the hotel through DeSales Resources and Ministries
or you will be charged the prevailing hotel rate.
Arriving a day early or staying an extra night will depend on hotel
availability. Please let us know your needs and we will do our best
to arrange this with the hotel at conference rates.
*Attendance at the full program is recommended; if this is not
possible, pro-rated over-night costs can be arranged PRIOR to the
registration deadline only. Call 716-754-4948 for information.
****IMPORTANT NOTICES, PLEASE READ CAREFULLY ****
1. THOSE REGISTERING FOR HOUSING AFTER THE JULY 7 DEADLINE
WILL NEED TO REGISTER DIRECTLY WITH THE Courtyard Marriott SUBJECT
TO AVAILABILITY AND AT THE PREVAILING ROOM RATE OF approx. $100+
per NIGHT AND register WITH DE SALES RESOURCES AND MINISTRIES separately
AS A COMMUTER, AT THE COMMUTER RATE.
2. All guests of the Hotel will need to provide a valid credit
card to the Hotel at CHECK-IN to cover incidentals that might be
incurred by that guest, e.g. toll phone calls, movies, etc.
3. Cancellation Policy...from the Hotel contract...
"DeSales Resources and Ministries will be charged for rooms held
after 6 p.m. and not untilized by registered guests." Please
note that these charges will be passed on to the person canceling.
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Registration
Register for the 26th Annual Conference using our Online
Registration with payment!
Deadline for early registration is June 20th, 2008.
ONLINE REGISTRATION
or print our Registration
Form and mail payment to:
DeSales Resources and Ministries
4421 Lower River Road, Stella Niagara, NY 14144
Sponsor
the 2008 Salesian Conference
Please consider becoming a sponsor fo the 2008 Salesian
Conference!
- Salesian Saint (donations of $250+)
- Spirtual Friend (donations of $100+)
- The Little Virtuous (donations of $10+)
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