good-bye to Dolan

Nice article from the paper...
Outgoing Dolan leaves positive impact on local Catholics
Milwaukee archbishop tabbed to lead Archdiocese of New York
BY LAURIE RITGER • The Reporter • February 24, 2009

Buzz up! The highest-ranking Catholic leader in Fond du Lac says Archbishop Timothy Dolan will be a “great gift” to the Archdiocese of New York.

The Very Rev. Patrick Heppe, who recently was selected by Dolan to serve as Vicar for Clergy at the Milwaukee Archdiocese, said Dolan will be missed for his energy and positive way of looking at things.

“I know the Archdiocese in Milwaukee responded very well to him,” Heppe said. “Because of that response, they may look for (a replacement) with a similar sense of pastoral care.”
Fond du Lac, Dodge and Sheboygan counties are part of the 10-county Milwaukee Archdiocese.

Heppe said one of the auxiliary bishops will be appointed to temporarily fill Dolan’s position — one that could remain open six months to a year or longer.

One man identified as a front-runner for archbishop is the Most Rev. Joseph Perry, an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

“Someone is appointed by Rome to be the next archbishop and it’s usually not a person from the Diocese,” Heppe said.

The official news Monday morning that Dolan has been appointed archbishop of New York, came after more than a year of speculation.

Heppe said he hadn’t spoken with Dolan recently, but noted that Dolan is scheduled to hold the 10:15 a.m. Easter Sunday mass at Fond du Lac’s Holy Family Parish. In light of the transfer, Heppe said he would not be surprised if Dolan could not keep the commitment.

Dolan, as part of a letter e-mailed to Heppe and church leaders at other parishes, said he was only recently told of his appointment to New York.

“It’s hardly a position one applies for!” Dolan said in the e-mail. “I was surprised, and still am. I was not asked if I would accept the position. The Papal Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, gently informed me, ‘The Holy Father has appointed you archbishop of New York.’”

Dolan admitted sadness at the prospect of leaving Milwaukee.

“In my brief six-and-a-half years as your pastor, I have come to know, love and appreciate you very much. I am home here. It will be very tough to leave.”

Still, he said that in the end, it’s not about his wishes — “It’s about Jesus and His Church.”

Dolan mentioned the start of Lent this week on Wednesday. He said he’ll be Milwaukee’s archbishop throughout the 40 days of Lent and will use the time for more intense prayer, penance and acts of charity as he opens himself to “the grace and mercy of Christ on the cross.”

He closed his e-mail by stating, “Tuesday I’m back with you, because I can’t find a paczki (Polish pastry traditionally eaten on Fat Tuesday, the last Tuesday before Lent) in New York!”

The e-mail was sent at 4:50 a.m. Monday — about 10 minutes before the Vatican was set to announce that Pope Benedict XVI had named Dolan archbishop of New York.

The touch of humor present in Dolan’s message was not surprising to Heppe, who recalled Dolan’s first visit and how Dolan drove his car into Heppe’s open garage.

The New York archbishop post is the most prominent in the American Catholic Church. Pope John Paul II called it “archbishop of the capital of the world.” The archdiocese is the second-largest in the U.S., behind the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and serves 2.5 million parishioners in nearly 400 churches.

Heppe also remembered the visit came around the Feast of Three Kings (Epiphany). At one point, he heard Dolan singing the song “We Three Kings” at the top of his lungs from the bathroom.

Heppe, who has served the Fond du Lac Catholic community since 1989 and currently is moderator of the priest-team serving the merged parishes known as Holy Family, is moving into a leadership role with the Archdiocese.

He will leave Holy Family Parish sometime in June and begin duties in July as Vicar of Clergy at the Archdiocese in Milwaukee. Heppe’s major responsibility will be working with the personnel department to coordinate clergy opportunity.

The move will come with some unknowns as Dolan, his appointer, will have departed more than two months before Heppe begins his new role.