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“The church is not a business, but the church has business to do,” Bishop John E. Keehner said after attending the recent Church Management and the Diocesan Apostolate program at Villanova University, in Philadelphia.

In coordination with the Office of Vocations for the Diocese of Sioux City, parish catechetical leaders recently organized a retreat for young women. The Ave retreat for young women was held July 30 to Aug. 1 at Domus Trinitatis Retreat Center in rural Carroll. It was open to high school and college-age young women.

Back in January, it was announced that after a four-year hiatus the Bishop’s Dinner for Catholic Schools is returning this fall and the event will be held every other year. Slated for Oct. 11, two couples have been selected to serve as chairs of the event: Jeff and Jackie Arens of Le Mars as well as Matt and Allyson Dirksen of Danbury. “We are excited for the return of the Bishop’s Dinner and happy to help promote the recognition of our many educators and volunteers in the diocese,” said Jackie, who has worked as a paralegal and currently serves at the Plymouth County Attorney’s Office.

Although St. Mary School in Humboldt had a dress code, at times it had become somewhat relaxed. When students head off to school later this month, they will be wearing uniforms. According to Principal Sara Bormann, the school board came to the decision to adopt a stricter dress code as a result of many years of conversation, prayer and reflection - not a sudden change. “St. Mary School had been working to more consistently enforce its existing dress code, but feedback indicated that it was still too loose and did not fully reflect the school’s Catholic identity,” she said.

Four men were ordained as permanent deacons by Bishop John E. Keehner at the Sioux City Cathedral of the Epiphany on Aug. 1. The new deacons include Kevin Holzman of St. Donatus Parish of Alton, Granville and Hospers, Jeff Schoep of Mater Dei Parish in Sioux City, Will Swanson of St. Mary Parish in Storm Lake and Jeff Zyzda of Mater Dei Parish in Sioux City.

Trinity Heights Queen of Peace Shrine in Sioux City recently announced that it will once again hold a pro-life memorial service on Sept. 12 at 11 a.m. in conjunction with the National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children. On that day, pro-lifers from around the country will simultaneously hold solemn prayer services at gravesites where victims of abortion have been buried and memorial sites dedicated in their honor.

“The Second Vatican Council called that Catholics would experience full, conscious, active participation in the paschal mystery of Christ,” said Father Travis Crotty, director of vocations. “We have been invited not to be bystanders but participants in the life, death and resurrection of Christ. One way of participating in the life and mission of the church is to support the formation of seminarians who are discerning God’s call in their lives.”

For the students who graduated from high school in the spring, the majority are headed off to college in a few short weeks. A fair share are also hitting the job market, as is the case for Bishop Heelan High School graduate Kaleb LaFavor. But it’s not just any job, the Crusader baseball standout was drafted on July 12 by the Boston Red Sox in the 10th round of the 2026 Major League Baseball draft. “It was a cool experience to share with my family and friends - all the work that I’ve put in and all the work my family has put in,” said LaFavor, a parishioner at Holy Cross Parish in Sioux City.

(Bilingual) The four Catholic dioceses of Iowa have created the statewide Iowa Catholic Scholarship Granting Organization (Iowa Catholic SGO) to offer K-12 scholarships with funds raised through the upcoming federal “Education Freedom Tax Credit” program. Las cuatro diócesis católicas de Iowa han creado la Organización Católica de Iowa para la Concesión de Becas (SGO Católica de Iowa) para ofrecer becas de kínder a 12° grado mediante fondos recaudados a través del nuevo programa federal “Crédito Fiscal para la Libertad de Educación”.

For months, staff and parishioners at Humboldt St. Mary Parish walked by a damaged statue of Mary, unsure how to bring the artwork back to life. A young parishioner and alumna of St. Mary's School came to the rescue.

The National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) is announcing that the annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection will be held in parishes throughout the Diocese of Sioux City on the weekend of Aug. 8-9. The diocesan faithful contributed just shy of $70,000 to the fund in 2025. (Note that this is different from the local Easter Retired and Infirm Priest Collection the diocese conducts in the spring.)

Retired diocesan priest Father Merle Kollasch of Bode penned this column about his relative and brother priest, Msgr. Louis Henry Kollasch.

After a week-long college mission trip to Honduras, a Humboldt man kept feeling the “nudge” to return to help the people in need. A 2023 graduate of Humboldt High School and alumnus of Humboldt St. Mary Elementary, Will Orness started working in construction right out of high school, developing skills that ultimately led him to make a two year commitment a Honduras mission.

Storm Lake St. Mary School announced July 23 that school administration entered into a sharing agreement with the Storm Lake Community Schools for all grades seven to 12 athletics except dance. The sharing will begin with volleyball in a few weeks as the schools already share a football program.

St. Anthony Regional Hospital in Carroll announced today that it has received a $2 million grant from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to support construction of a permanent PET/CT scanner suite, an important addition to local cancer care services.

Jeff Zyzda of Mater Dei Parish in Sioux City will be ordained to the permanent diaconate Aug. 1 along with three other men. He shares how he was involved in parish life and had been nudged by God to consider a vocation to the diaconae.

Tickets for the returning Bishop’s Dinner for Catholic Schools will go on sale July 27 according to Heidi Probasco, diocesan director of stewardship and development. The return of the dinner after a four-year absence was announced last winter and supporters were asked to save the date of Oct. 11 for this year’s event. She also shares details of the dinner and new features.

(Bilingual) Celebración del Congreso en Sioux City los días 18 y 19 de julio. Congreso held in Sioux City July 18 and 19

"Acts That Diminish or Disregard the Dignity of Any Person or Group of People Should Never Be Normalized in Our Society,” said Bishop Daniel E. Garcia, chairman of the USCCB subcommittee for the promotion of racial justice and reconciliation and Bishop Brendan J. Cahill, chair of the committee on migration issued a pastoral reflection.

Will Swanson of Storm Lake joined the church at the Easter vigil in 2013 and was married a few weeks later at St. John the Baptist in Bancroft, his wife's home parish. Thirteen years later, he is preparing to be ordained as a permanent deacon on Aug. 1 at the Cathedral of the Epiphany along with Kevin Holzman of Orange City, Jeff Schoep of Sioux City and Jeff Zyzda of Sioux City.