Nearly 300 students in seventh to 12th grades from 13 parishes attended the Called Youth Conference held Nov. 2 at St. Joseph Parish in Granville. Delores Huemiller, diocesan faith formation coordinator who planned the event with a team of directors of religious education, said they received positive feedback about the speaker’s talks and were thankful Bishop John E. Keehner was on hand for Mass and hearing confessions. “I hope they came away with knowing that they can live a life in relationship with Christ even when it is hard. I hope they took advantage of confession opportunities. And I hope they came away encouraged and knowing that God loves them,” she said.

... the saints, whether they are great theologians like St. Thomas, or missionaries like St. Francis Xavier, or mystics/contemplatives like the great St. Theresas, are exactly like this as well. Their love for the lost and their desire for the salvation of every soul move them to great heights of holiness, to profound union with Christ in his redemptive work.

In response to the cuts in federal funding of the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), the Diocese of Sioux City is making an emergency allocation of $2,500 per parish – nearly $100,000 – to assist with food assistance throughout the 24 counties that make up the diocese’s territory.

Some of the Remsen St. Mary middle school students attended The Called Youth Conference in Granville Nov. 2. Nearly 300 youth from around the diocese came together to learn, share, and grow in their faith.

“With the Administration signaling a severely limited continuation of this historically bipartisan program, we urge due consideration for all those who have long awaited their opportunity for relief,” said Bishop Mark J. Seitz, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration. Bishop Seitz’s remarks follow the Administration’s formal publication of the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026, which allows up to 7,500 refugees to be resettled over the next year. This is the lowest ceiling since the program was created by Congress in 1980.

Catholic schools in the Diocese of Sioux City often commemorate Dìa de los Muertos with ofrendas and photos of their loved ones who have died. Storm Lake St. Mary first, second and fourth grade students created artwork around their display in time for parent-teacher conferences. The Sioux City Cathedral Dual Language Academy has an ofrenda displayed in the school.

Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Sioux City are participating in a three-year pilot program in conjunction with the Archdiocese of Dubuque to attempt to measure faith growth in students over time and using that data in their faith formation approach.

In an effort to encourage reporting of potential wrongdoing in diocesan entities and to protect those reporters, the Diocese of Sioux City recently updated its Whistleblower Policy and is distributing it widely throughout the diocese.

When a dance team member at St. Mary’s School in Storm Lake saw that the Iowa State Dance and Drill Team Association (ISPTA) was promoting a care initiative she wanted to become involved. “On social media, I saw other teams were doing service projects with the #ISDTACares,” said Ruby Phelps, a junior at St. Mary’s. “I had just spoken with Mrs. Amy Halder and had discussed the food insecurity within our school system. I knew that I wanted to take action and figured this was the perfect opportunity.”

Pulse Life Advocates hosts their 15th annual fundraising dinner on Nov. 22 at the Downtown Marriott Hotel in Des Moines with a pro-life Christmas Gala, inspiring advocates for life. Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life, keynotes with a riveting tale of her dialogues on hostile college campuses.

(Bilingual) The Feast of All Saints and the commemoration of All Souls invite us to look both inward and backward—not so we can dwell on the past with longing, not so that we can surround ourselves with pain or mourn for days gone by—but so that we can remember who we are, so that we might look forward to the future not with fear but rather with trust and hope—trust that God will not abandon us even in death, and hope in the resurrection to eternal life which Jesus promises to all who place their faith in him. La solemnidad de todos los santos y la conmemoración de todos los fieles difuntos nos invitan a mirarnos internamente y externamente- no para que miremos el pasado con anhelo, no pare que nos encerremos en doler y lloremos por los días que se han ido- pero para que recordemos quienes somos, para que veamos hacia el futuro, no con miedo, pero con verdad y esperanza, confiando que Dios no nos abandona ni siquiera en la muerte, y esperar en la resurrección a la vida eterna la cual Jesús prometió a todos los que ponen su fe en él.

Catholic school religion teachers, school chaplains and administrators attended a Theology Day Oct. 28 to receive some personal enrichment and tips to help form students in the faith. Sponsored by the Catholic Schools Office, Kelly Kohout said this is the second year their office has offered a day of professional development for those who work in religion/theology in the diocesan schools. The educators in this field had requested it as these types of development days are offered in other subject areas. “Last year people really appreciated getting together to pray together and learn together,” said the director of education services for the diocese. “Some of the smaller schools do not have the opportunity to collaborate and connect over this subject area.”

LUMEN MEDIA REPORT – It was just over a year ago when a four-person production crew was in the Diocese of Sioux City to record video footage and interviews at the two diocesan shrines. The Shrine of Trinity Heights Queen of Peace in Sioux City and Shrine of the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend will soon be featured in EWTN’s series called Hidden Gems: Catholic Shrines in America. According to Terry Hegarty, executive director of Trinity Heights, the Sioux City shrine will be featured in an episode to air on EWTN at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 10. Msgr. Ed Girres, rector of the Grotto of the Redemption, said the West Bend shrine will be aired on Hidden Gems at 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 8.

Decree from Bishop John E. Keehner regarding St. Mary Church in Pomeroy.

On Oct. 26, the religious education students from St. Sebastian hosted Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat. Residents in Pocahontas, Fonda and Newell were asked to set out non-perishable items, if they were able to, and the students would go around and collect them. Over 1500 pounds of food was donated to the two local food pantries.