Retreat Master: Deacon Greg Kandra

“Deacons as Bridge Builders”

Welcome to the 2020 Diocese of Charleston Annual Diaconate Retreat!

We are looking forward to all the blessings that God has in store for us during our annual retreat. Here is some information for the weekend:

Retreat Sessions & Meals will be held on the first floor, in the Congaree A Meeting Room

If you reserved lunch Saturday, please bring the meal tickets enclosed in your folder to pick up

Vigil Mass Saturday at 5:30 PM in the Congaree B Meeting Room

Prayer Request sheet available at the registration table

Adoration Sign up is located at the registration table Sunday check out time is Noon The schedule of events and Mass assignments for the weekend is enclosed. The folder has all the information needed for the weekend sessions.

Please be sure to visit The St. Francis Shop, The Daughters of St. Paul and Jim Alt

Vigil Mass

Retreat Sessions, Meals & Banquet

Adoration

Friday

4:00 PM Check In & Registration

5:00 - 6:30 PM Dinner Buffet

7:00 PM Welcome

7:30 PM Retreat Opening Session

9:00 PM Evening Prayer & Fellowship

Saturday

7:30—8:30 AM Breakfast

8:00 AM Deanery Leaders Meeting

Orientation (only for deacons new to our Diocese)

8:30 AM Morning Prayer

9:00 AM Retreat Session

Noon Reserved Lunch -OR- Lunch On Your Own

FREE TIME

2:30 PM Deanery Meetings

3:00 PM Retreat Session

5:30 PM Vigil Mass (Congaree B)

7:00 PM Banquet

9:00 PM Evening Prayer & Fellowship

Sunday

7:30—8:30 AM Breakfast

8:30 AM Morning Prayer

9:00 AM Deacons Brainstorming Meeting (Congaree B)

Deacon Wives Meeting (Congaree A)

10:00 AM Retreat Closing Session

11:00 AM Announcements and Closing Prayer

Noon Departure for Home

Friday 2/7/20:

Evening Prayer Greenville Deanery

Saturday 2/8/20

Morning Prayer Charleston Deanery

Vigil Mass Columbia Deanery

Evening Prayer Myrtle Beach Deanery

Sunday 2/9/20:

Morning Prayer Rock Hill Deanery

Perpetual Adoration will be held in the

Newberry Room

Beginning

Friday 8:00 PM through Saturday 5:00 PM.

Please sign up at the registration table.

D eacon Greg Kandra is the creator of “The Deacon’s Bench.” The blog has garnered over 20 million readers from around the world since its inception in 2007. Additionally, he serves as the Multimedia Editor for Catholic Near East Wel-fare Association (CNEWA), a pontifical association founded by Pope Pius XI in 1926. He oversees the agency’s blog “One-to-One” and is one of the editors of its award-winning magazine, ONE.

Before joining CNEWA, Deacon Greg spent nearly three decades in broadcast journalism, most of that time at CBS News, where he was a writer and producer for several programs including “48 Hours,” “60 Minutes II,” “Sunday Morning” and “The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.” He was also the founding editor of “Couric & Co.,” Katie Couric’s blog at CBSNews.com. In addition to his work with CBS News, from 2000 to 2004 he served as a writer and producer on the live finales of the hit reality series “Survivor.”

In 2002, he co-wrote the acclaimed CBS documentary “9/11,” hosted by Robert DeNiro, which told the story of firefighters on September 11, 2001. The film showed the only footage shot inside the World Trade Center that day, and featured the last images of Father Mychal Judge, moments before he became the first official fatality of the attacks.

Deacon Greg has received two Emmys, two Peabody Awards and four awards from the Writer’s Guild of America. His spiritual writing and essays have been honored multiple times with awards by the Catholic Press Association. He also travels the country directing re-treats and parish missions. In May 2016, at the invitation of the Vatican, Deacon Greg was one of the featured speakers at the interna-tional Jubilee for Deacons in Rome. In 2017, he became the first deacon to be honored as Clergy of the Year by the Catholic Guild at Our Lady of the Skies Chapel at John F. Kennedy Airport. He was one of the speakers at the 2018 diaconate Congress in New Orleans, marking the 50th anniversary of the restoration of the diaconate as a permanent order.

He is the author of two books: “The Living Gospel: Advent Reflections for 2018” (Ave Maria Press) and “The Busy Person’s Guide to Prayer” (Word Among Us Press)

A Maryland native, Deacon Greg graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.A. in English in 1982. He was ordained a deacon for the Diocese of Brooklyn in 2007. He and his wife live in Forest Hills, New York, where he serves at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs parish.

DUNBAR FUNERAL HOME 3926 Devine ST, Columbia, SC

Knights of Columbus Council 7122 Knights of Columbus Council 16903

Most. Rev. Robert E. Guglielmone, Bishop of Charleston Msgr. D. Anthony Droze & Msgr. Richard Harris, Vicars General Deacon André Guillet, Director of the Permanent Diaconate Deacon Greg Kandra, Retreat Master Mrs. Cristene Diesso, Coordinator, Diaconate Office Deacon Regi Armstrong, Assistant Director Deacon Stephen Brown, Coordinator of Deanery Leaders Deacon Roger Schonewald, Coordinator of Deanery Leaders Deacon Joe Stocker, Coordinator for Deacon Transfers Deacon John Tempesco, Columbia Deanery Leader Deacon Mark Gray, Columbia Assistant Deanery Leader Mrs. Ann Marie Smigelski, Continuing Education for Wives Mr. Michael Palyok & Mr. David Anderson, Vigil Mass Music Deanery Leaders & Assistant Deanery Leaders