Rev. Eugene J. Konkel, S.S will host our annual Day of Recollection, which will be held on Saturday, February 7, 2009. Begun in 1998, this will be the 12th year that your Alumni Association has scheduled this very special day. Father Kunkel, S.S. currently is a Spiritual Director and he is the Director Emeritus of Vatican II Institute.

There is a special connection between Father Eugene J. Konkel and Bishop John Wester who hosted our Day of Recollection back in 2001. Fr. Konkel first met the young seminarian John Wester when he was attending the minor seminary when he was high school age. He then taught Bishop Wester English at the seminary. As a long-term mentor, Fr. Konkel has watched his former high school student grow and become a popular bishop. The picture on this page show the two of them at a farewell dinner for clergy following Evening Prayer at St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park.

One year ago, Father Konkel took part in a roast of Bishop Wester, which he said the bishop took with his usual good sense of humor. “At the roast, I said I’ve known the man more than 40 years, and there is nothing I wouldn’t do for him. There is also nothing he wouldn’t do for me. So, that’s what we’ve done for each other for 40 years - absolutely nothing. Of course, that isn’t true, but it got a good laugh.”

We are indeed honored to have Father Eugene Konkel as our host at the 12th annual Day of Recollection. We hope to see many of you there. Please contact Jim Murphy for the details.

This will be the twelfth annual Day of Recollection given for us ex-seminarians. Previous leaders (facilitators) were:

Reverend Jerry Brown, R’58, S.S on 2/21/1998 – Theme: Questions for the Disciples from the Gospel of John -- Prayer in My Life

Reverend Jerry Brown, R’58, S.S, and Larry Percell, Ph.D (now Rev.) on 2/20/1999 – Theme: Forgiveness

Rev. Robert Gavin, S.S. on 2/26/2000 Theme: The Holy Longing: A Spirituality for Today

Bishop John Wester, C'72, on 3/24/2001 – Theme: The Face of Christ: A Lenten Reflection

Rev. Tom Allender, S.J., R’59, on 1/5/2002 – Theme: God Loves an Unmade Bed: Spirituality for the Imperfect

Rev. Joe Healy, 3/8/2003 – Theme: Identifying a mature spirituality (Click here to see more detail)

Rev. Dan Danielson, R’57, 2/7/2004 – Theme: Letting the Lord speak to our hearts

Brian T. Joyce, R’57, 2/5/2005 – Remembering Well...Finding Hope...Celebrating Forgiveness

Rev. Msgr. J. Warren Holleran, R'47, on 2/4/2006 – Theme: Prayer in Faith and Love

Rev. Robert J. Silva, R'59, on 2/3/2007 – Theme: Is what I am doing life-giving? The Stations of the Cross as a Paradigm of Life

Reverend Jerry Brown, R’58, S.S on 2/9/2008 – Theme: Living the Beatitudes

Rev. Eugene J. Konkel, S.S on 2/7/2009 – Theme: Thanksgiving