April 29, 2025 // Bishop

Catholic Educators Honored in Fort Wayne

Nicole Hahn

Director of Secretariat for Communications

Quality Dining Hosts Second ‘You Can Lend a Hand’ Luncheon

Hundreds of people gathered for a special luncheon and awards ceremony at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne on Tuesday, April 22, to honor Catholic educators on that side of the diocese. A similar event was held on March 25 on the South Bend side. Bishop Rhoades joined teachers, administrators, students, priests, staff, donors, volunteers, and Catholic school supporters to celebrate the 43rd year of You Can Lend a Hand, a program sponsored by Quality Dining that has raised more than $12 million to support Catholic schools in northern Indiana and western Michigan through the sale of coupon books.

Dan Fitzpatrick, chairman and chief executive officer of Quality Dining Inc., kicked off the event by addressing the attendees and gave special thanks to the educators who offer their time and talent to teach children to become disciples of Christ and to help them become saints.

“We are parents and grandparents. We are pastors. We are administrators and friends of Catholic schools,” Fitzpatrick said. “Today, we want to look you deeply in the eye and sincerely tell you, ‘Thank you.’”

Fitzpatrick then welcomed Father Jay Horning of St. Bernard Catholic Church in Wabash up to the stage to offer the opening prayer before lunch.

Following lunch, Fitzpatrick told everyone about an award given during the event in South Bend. Every year, the team at Quality Dining puts out a request to students to design a poster that incorporates the logos of their restaurants and the You Can Lend a Hand logo. They use the poster to advertise the coupon sale and to track the progress of sales. Adalina Bacon, an eighth-grader from St. Rose of Lima in Monroeville, one of 200 students who entered the contest, had the winning poster. Though she is from the Fort Wayne area, she was honored at the South Bend luncheon because she was on a field trip when the program was held in Fort Wayne.

The next award presented was the Monsignor J. William Lester Award. Superintendent of Catholic Schools David Maugel told the audience how Monsignor Lester, a long-time priest in the diocese and the former superintendent of Catholic schools, was a great champion of Catholic education and helped ensure the continued existence of Catholic schools through financial accountability. “Priests, administrators, teachers, and parents admired him for his wisdom,” Maugel said. “He was always the first to step up in times of need. Monsignor Lester set a wonderful example of what it meant to dedicate his life to others through Christ.”

Due to Monsignor Lester’s wonderful example of supporting Catholic schools in the diocese, the award is given each year to someone who does the same. Diane Karst was the recipient of this year’s award for her dedication to and financial support of Bishop Luers High School.

“Diane Karst began teaching at Bishop Luers High School in 1983 and enjoyed an amazing career, which culminated in her retirement from the classroom in 2016,” Maugel said. “Upon her retirement from teaching, Diane continued to give back to the school, serving as the assistant athletic director, a position for which she refused a stipend.” Maugel added, “In addition to her service, Diane has long been a financial supporter of Bishop Luers students.” Maugel said her wish is to assist student needs outside of tuition expenses, including things like sports fees, lunch money, uniforms, personal items, club fees, spirit wear, and much more.

After Karst came up to receive her award, Bishop Rhoades then took the stage. Before his keynote speech, he began with a special prayer for Pope Francis, who died just one day prior to the luncheon.

“I wanted to begin with a prayer for Pope Francis. I thought, ‘The whole world’s eyes are on the Catholic Church this week.’ In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. O God, who in your wondrous providence chose your servant Pope Francis to preside over your Church, grant, we pray, that, having served as the Vicar of your Son on earth, he may be welcomed by Him into eternal glory. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the holy spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen”

Bishop Rhoades then went into his planned speech, with the focus of hope.

“Hope is the virtue that gives inward direction and purpose to the life of believers. It is represented in art as an anchor,” Bishop Rhoades said. “Hope is the anchor for our souls amid the storms and winds of life, keeping us safe and secure. Without an anchor, we can’t remain steady amid adversity; we can drown in despair. We need a steady anchor. That anchor is hope: hope in Christ and His cross, and hope in His resurrection, and His promise of our resurrection.”

He continued: “Hope, founded in faith and nurtured by charity, enables us to press forward in life. This is the hope we teach in our Catholic schools. This is the anchor we give to our students. It’s an anchor for the rest of their lives. We have outstanding principals, teachers, and staff who witness to this hope.”

Bishop Rhoades talked about how the Blessed Virgin Mary is Our Lady of Hope, Our Mother of Hope, and how happy he is to see “a strong devotion to our Blessed Mother” in all our Catholic schools. “May she intercede for all of us and our Catholic school communities and guide us in our mission,” he concluded.

Julie Williams, associate superintendent of diocesan Catholic schools, then took the stage to explain the Christ the Teacher Awards. “Every day, our teachers and administrators face the tremendous challenge of ensuring the academic growth of their students,” she said. “But they go far beyond that. With enthusiastic devotion to the mission of the Catholic school, these educators dedicate themselves to ensuring that our children grow in faith, develop their God-given gifts, and become true disciples – students who know, love, and serve Christ.”

As Williams stepped back to hand the awards to the recipients as they were called, Jeff Keiffer, associate superintendent of diocesan Catholic schools, began announcing the award winners in alphabetical order.

Winners include Savannah Albertson from Our Lady of Good Hope; Angie Benner from St. Bernard; Michelle Bradtmueller from St. Rose of Lima; Deb Brough from Bishop Luers High School; Heidi Busch from St. John the Baptist in New Haven; Dawn Case from St. Jude; Liz Cauhorn from Sacred Heart; Jenna Corson from St. Louis Academy; Nicole Esslinger from St. Joseph in Garrett; Tina Garman from St. Mary in Avilla; Kristin Hoersten from St. Charles Borromeo; Chad Hormann from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton; Katelin Pleus from St. John the Baptist in Fort Wayne; Madison Prall from St. Therese; Brian Quigley from Bishop Dwenger High School; Darcy Quinn from Most Precious Blood; Julie Ramp from Huntington Catholic; Meagan Richard from St. Aloysius; Joe Rorick from Queen of Angels; Heather Sorg from St. Joseph – Hessen Cassel; Kristina Tsuleff from St. Joseph in Fort Wayne; Amy Wilson from St. Joseph in Decatur; and Ashley Wilson from St. Vincent de Paul.

Following the Christ the Teacher awards, Kieffer announced the winner of the St. Mother Théodore Guérin Administrator Award. St. Mother Guérin is remembered as a woman devoted to prayer, an educator, caregiver, and leader as well as a champion of justice who was empathetic to those who suffered.

“This honor goes to an administrator who has demonstrated outstanding dedication to Catholic schools like St. Mother Théodore Guérin portrayed,” said Kieffer. The award was given to Mike McClain, principal at Sacred Heart School in Warsaw.

A surprise to the awards ceremony, which also occurred in South Bend, was a presentation by Mackenzie Ritchie, chief executive officer of the Catholic Community Foundation of Northeast Indiana. Through charitable giving and estate planning, foundation officials work with individuals and families to grow endowment funds that support parishes and schools in the diocese.

“The impact has been nothing short of remarkable,” Ritchie said. “In just the last five years, our foundation has granted nearly $12 million back to our diocesan community, with more than $8 million dedicated to our Catholic schools.”

Funded by an endowment, Ritchie presented two of the Christ the Teacher award recipients with the Catholic Community Foundation Teachers Award. Ritchie called it a “tangible thank you for making a difference in the lives of their students, peers, and entire school community.”

The winners, Joe Rorick of Queen of Angels School and Angie Benner of St. Bernard, were each given a $1,000 personal award, $500 for them to spend in their classroom or school, and $500 to go toward their school’s endowment fund.

Fitzpatrick wrapped things up by thanking those in attendance for another successful year of the You Can Lend a Hand program. “We had 40 schools from two different dioceses participate this year, and it is so wonderful to see that money stay at your schools,” he said. “This is truly your fundraiser.”

Nicole Hahn is Secretary of Communications for the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.