The Official Newspaper of the Diocese of Little Rock
   

Parishioners experienced bishop in a real, personal way

Leadership, character and love are often most remembered

Published: June 24, 2006   

By Tara Little
Associate Editor

Arkansas Catholic file
Bishop Sartain cuts a ribbon in August 2005 to officially open a new religious education and administration addition at Our Lady of Good Hope Church in Hope.

As Arkansas says goodbye to Bishop J. Peter Sartain, Catholics statewide wanted to share their memories and reflect on how he has touched their lives over the last six years.

Whether it was through prayer, a homily, a sacrament, a column or simply being present to the flock, the bishop's impact has been evident throughout the Diocese of Little Rock.

"Our diocese was so fortunate to have Bishop Sartain, even if it was only for a short time," 14-year-old Karina Sanders said. "I felt so blessed to have him preside over my confirmation before leaving. His words at that Mass were especially meaningful, about how confirmation shouldn't be seen as an ending, but as a beginning."

Sanders, a member of St. John Parish in Hot Springs, was confirmed May 21 at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Hot Springs Village along with others from Hot Springs, Hot Springs Village and Benton.

Michael D'Almeida, 30, of St. Joseph Parish in Conway, said the bishop has blessed his life. "I admire and strive to imitate the genuine love and concern he has for everyone."

D'Almeida said he has visited with the bishop over the past three years because his twin brother, Eddie, is a diocesan seminarian currently studying in Rome.

"Bishop Sartain is an outstanding shepherd because he is an outstanding apostle and disciple of Christ," he said. "What I find most remarkable about him is that he demonstrates the quality of his leadership and the excellence of his character first by being a holy, joy-filled and gentle servant and teacher."

Gina Gomez, 32, of Blessed Sacrament Church in Jonesboro, said she "can't say enough about his love of the Hispanic community."

Gomez is executive director of Hispanic Community Services Inc., in Jonesboro.

"He was close to us and did a lot to make us feel more comfortable in the United States," she said. "I really appreciate the way he reached out to our community and made us a part of everything. I'm going to miss him."

Gomez, mother of two, came to the United States in 1999 from Columbia with her husband, Andres Acosta, on his student visa. Now she has a religious visa with Bishop Sartain as her sponsor.

Matt Stengel, of St. Anthony in Ratcliff, said he and his wife, Mary, took the bishop up on his offer to bring him their prayer intentions after a Mass. At the time they were trying to decide if they should marry. "As all the doubts fell away through prayer, we were engaged," he said.

"We invited the bishop to our wedding celebration, and he graciously attended and gave us his blessing," he said. "Who were we, a young couple with nothing, to have the honor of his presence at our wedding?"

The Stengels, both 25, were married at Sacred Heart Church in Morrilton May 23, 2003. Their first child, Emily, was born June 10.

Danny Ellis, 39, of St. Paul Church in Pocahontas, said he met Bishop Sartain in Jonesboro at the Rite of Election in 2004.

"I have never met anyone like him," he said. "Being a convert from the Southern Baptist tradition, he understood my background and made me feel a part of the Catholic Church."

Since then, Ellis said whenever he saw the bishop he always remembered his name.

"With all of the people he deals with on a daily basis, for him to remember our past conversations and even my name, simply amazes me," he said.

Janice Della Rosa, 49, of St. Joseph in Tontitown, said she found the bishop to be "a down-to-earth sort of person" when she met him in 2000. Her daughter, Suzy, was a candidate for Queen Concordia at her community's annual grape festival.

"My first impression was he seemed very genuine, very spiritual and not somebody that in unreachable," she said.

Rob and Liz Kissell knew the bishop as "Father Pete" at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Memphis. He officiated their wedding nearly 17 years ago.

"We live by something he told us that day," Rob Kissell said. "That our job is to get each other to heaven. That's really stuck with us all these years."

The Kissells are now members at St. Mark Parish in Monticello.

"We've never met anyone like Bishop Sartain," Rob Kissell said. "He is such a dynamic person with such incredible charisma. I've never heard the man say anything that wasn't upbeat and positive, and he always says the right thing at the right time."

"He walks the faith," Liz Kissell said. "He truly has the spirit of God about him."

Recent Marmaduke High School graduate, Payden Blevins, was a member of the diocesan Youth Advisory Council for two years and active in Search. He said what meant a lot him was the way the bishop reached out to the youth in a one-on-one, personal way.

Bishop Sartain is "always at the youth events, and being a very good speaker, the youth would always respond."

Blevins, 18, a new diocesan seminarian and member of St. Mary Parish in Paragould, said he plans to enter Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas this fall.

The bishop is "very respectful of youth," he said. "I hope that I could be that to them as well -- approachable."

Confirmation catechist Shaun McCaffrey, of Christ the King Parish in Fort Smith, said he met Bishop Sartain shortly after his appointment to the diocese.

"Through meetings, personal notes and his weekly column in the Arkansas Catholic, I experienced him as a man of prayerfulness, sincerity, wisdom, balance and encouragement," McCaffrey said. "Bishop Sartain's new diocese is very blessed to have him as their shepherd and teacher."

Marvin Young and his wife, Lucy, originally from Nebraska, have lived in Arkansas since 1977. They are members of St. Mary Parish in Hot Springs.

"When I heard his homilies at the Mass for Life and read his weekly articles, he challenged me to take our faith into our daily lives and make that faith a life-long work in progress."

Sheila Harrison, Patricia May, Linda Webster, Tara Piatt, Susan Thielemier, Jodie Hightower, John Verser and Maryanne Meyerriecks contributed to this story.

Click here for the index of stories about Bishop J. Peter Sartain's six years in Arkansas. For the complete report, see the June 24, 2006 print edition of Arkansas Catholic.

Please read our Comments Policy before posting.

Article comments powered by Disqus