July 15, 2009

Pope names eight local priests to rank of monsignor

Denver Catholic Register

Pope Benedict XVI has named eight priests of the Archdiocese of Denver as monsignors, with the rank of Chaplain to His Holiness. 

The men so honored are Msgrs. Robert Amundsen, David Croak, Jorge De Los Santos, Michael Glenn, Robert Kinkel, Kenneth Leone, Peter Quang Nguyen    and Bernard Schmitz.

In making the announcement on June 7, Msgr. Thomas Fryar, V.G., moderator of the curia, asked that the faithful keep these men in their prayers.
“We hope you’ll join the bishops in congratulating them for their years of outstanding service to the Church and her people,” he said. 

It is the first time in nine years priests of the Denver Archdiocese have been granted the honorary title.

An archdiocesan vesper service investiture and reception for the new monsignors is tentatively planned for the fall.

Msgr. Robert Amundsen
Born in Denver on Sept. 10, 1944, Robert Leroy Amundsen attended St. Thomas Seminary in Denver and North American College in Rome.  Ordained on Dec. 19, 1969, his first assignment was as assistant pastor at Presentation of Our Lady Parish in Denver, becoming pastor there in 1976.  He has also served as pastor at Christ the King Parish in Denver and at Blessed John XXIII University Parish in Fort Collins.  He has been elected as dean of his deanery in the past, served as director of Campus Ministry for the Denver Archdiocese and, since 2002, he has been pastor at Immaculate Conception Parish in Lafayette.

Msgr. David Croak
A native of Janesville, Wis., David Paul Croak was born on Nov. 25, 1939. He attended St. Thomas Seminary and was ordained in Denver on May 28, 1966. He first served as assistant pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Denver and at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Arvada.   In 1973 he became administrator pro tem at St. Louis Parish in Louisville and a year later he became pastor at Holy Name Parish in Steamboat Springs and the mission of St. Martin of Tours in Oak Creek.  He has also served as pastor at St. Francis de Sales Parish in Denver, at St. Therese Parish in Aurora and currently is pastor at Shrine of St. Anne Parish in Arvada.  He has in the past been a member of the Presbyteral Council and a member of the Archbishop’s College of Consultors.

Msgr. Jorge De Los Santos
Born April 7, 1961, in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico, Juan Jorge De Los Santos studied engineering before entering religious life. He studied in Rome and was ordained in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico, on Aug. 9, 1991.  He served as formator at Seminario Menor in Tuainepantla, Mexico, and then as director of Escuela Secuno y Centro Espiritualid in Talanepantla, Mexico, before coming to Colorado in 2002 to become director for Hispanic Catechesis.  He was assistant pastor at St. Therese Parish in Aurora while at the same time serving as liaison to Hispanic Ministry.  He is also a member of the Presbyteral Council and Priests Personnel Board.  Until this last month, he was the pastor at St. Joseph Parish in Denver.  This year, he became full-time vicar for Hispanic Ministry.

Msgr. Michael Glenn
A native of Broomfield, Michael Gale Glenn was born Nov. 15, 1962.  He attended the University of Colorado and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., before earning a theology degree at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio.  He attended seminary at the North American College in Rome.  He was ordained on June 30, 1990, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver.  For two years he was assistant pastor at Spirit of Christ Catholic Community in Arvada before becoming secretary to then Archbishop J. Francis Stafford. During that time he also served as vice chancellor and as ecumenical and interfaith officer for the Denver Archdiocese.  Following additional studies at Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and the Franciscan Biblical School and Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem, he served as director of vocations, and later as pastor at St. Mary Parish in Aspen.  Currently, he is rector of St. John Vianney Theological Seminary.  He serves on a number of archdiocesan boards as well as on the Mission Advisory Council of the Institute of Priestly Formation at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb.  He is a member of the Presbyteral Council, College of Consultors and the Priests Personnel Board for the Denver Archdiocese.

Msgr. Robert Kinkel
Born in Denver on Jan. 1, 1944, Robert James Kinkel studied at St. Thomas Seminary and was ordained on May 30, 1970, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. He was assistant pastor at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Denver and then at Divine Redeemer Parish in Colorado Springs.  His first stint as pastor was from 1975-1981 at Cure d’ Ars Parish in Denver.  He has also served as pastor at St. Jude Parish in Lakewood and Spirit of Christ Parish in Arvada. Today he is pastor at St. Clare of Assisi Parish in Edwards with its missions in Eagle and Beaver Creek.  He is also a member of the College of Consultors and is an ex-officio member of the Presbyteral Council for Denver Archdiocese as well as a former dean.

Msgr. Kenneth Leone
Born Feb. 24, 1941, in Denver, Kenneth Jerry Leone studied at St. Thomas Seminary and was ordained on May 27, 1967, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. After first serving as assistant pastor at Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Lakewood, he held the same position at Blessed Sacrament and at Christ the King parishes in Denver.  Meantime, he served as coordinator of priests in Youth Work and was area youth director for the Denver Archdiocese.  He was associate pastor at St. Thomas More Parish in Englewood from 1978-1981 and then served as pastor at Spirit of Christ Catholic Community in Arvada and later at St. Frances Cabrini Parish in Littleton.  Today he is pastor at Risen Christ Parish in Denver. He too is a former dean for his deanery.

Msgr. Peter Quang Nguyen
Born in Danang, Vietnam on Jan. 1, 1959, Peter Quang Nguyen escaped from Vietnam and came to the United States, eventually ending up in Denver.  He studied at Conception Seminary College in Conception, Mo., and at St. Thomas Theological Seminary in Denver.  Ordained on June 30, 1990, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver, his first assignment was as assistant pastor at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Denver.  He held similar positions at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Northglenn and at Notre Dame Parish in Denver before becoming pastor at St. Mary Parish in Greeley, where he was instrumental in the start of the archdiocese’s newest elementary school.  Today, he is pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Denver.

Msgr. Bernard Schmitz
Born June 22, 1948, in Denver, Bernard Alfred Schmitz attended Western State College in Gunnison before studying at St. Thomas Seminary in Denver and later, North American College in Rome.  After his ordination on May 25, 1974, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver, he served as assistant pastor at St. John the Baptist Parish in Longmont, and at Holy Apostles and St. Mary parishes in Colorado Springs. He has served as pastor at Our Lady Mother of the Church in Commerce City and at St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Aurora.  From 1991-1999 he was pastor at Parroquia de Espiritu Santo in Monteria, Columbia.  Returning to Colorado in 1999, he became pastor at Our Lady of Peace Parish in Greeley, a position he held until becoming the vicar for clergy in 2007, a position he still holds today as well as being pastor at Mother of God Parish in Denver.  He is a member of the Presbyteral Council and the College of Consultors.