Fr. Maurice Okolie, Pastor
See Pastoral Team page for bio.
Fr. Thomas Reddy Basani SAC, Associate Pastor
See Pastoral Team page for bio.
Deacon Don Logan, Pastoral Associate / Faith Enrichment
See Pastoral Team page for bio.
Phil Schmidt, Chairman
My wife, Marie, and I and our four children joined Holy Family Parish in May of 1996.
Prior to moving to St. Albert, we were members of St. Peter Celestin parish in Slave Lake where I served as Chairman of the Parish Pastoral Council, Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, Lector and led Sunday celebrations in the absence of a Priest. I also served as a trustee on our Catholic School Board.
As a parishioner of Holy Family, I have served as an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist and as a Lector. After having retired in January 2015 and therefore having more time for stewardship, I now lead the Lector Ministry, sit on the Stewardship and Liturgy committees, am a member of the Brother Anthony’s Knights of Columbus Council.
God has blessed us with a beautiful parish with wonderful pastoral leadership. I pray that through me and all stewards in Holy Family Parish, God will continue to grow us as a faith community and to spread the word that indeed “Jesus Christ is risen”!
Erin Cloutier, Vice Chair and Stewadship Representative
I began attending Holy Family Parish about 10 years ago. Mostly because I live out of town and they had daily mass at 9 am here. I soon fell in love with the people and strong faith and sense of family I feel when I walk in the doors. My family and I love being a part of this Catholic community. Since coming here I have been involved with volunteering in many different areas. From cleaning the kitchen and serving coffee to teaching Catechism, being a part of the Stewardship Committee, and now part of Parish Council. The more involved I am in this "Family" the richer and more fulfilled all aspects of my life seem. It is a joy and privilege to be part of this amazing faith community!
Susie Sirman, Liturgy Committee Representative and Secretary
My first exposure to being immersed and involved in my faith community came as an undergrad at the U of A where I served as a lector, Eucharistic minister and in the choir at St Joseph's Chapel on campus. I moved to St Albert in 2004 and but was hesitant to leave my community at St Joe's. It wasn't until my husband Jonny and I had kids that we decided to call Holy Family parish home.
With three young boys, we felt that the ministry in which to serve would be Children's Liturgy. Shortly after volunteering, Jonny and I became the coordinators for the program. For me, that led to a position on the Liturgy Committee, followed by the PPC, where I serve as the secretary. With each new opportunity to serve has come a deepening of my faith and a greater sense of belonging in our parish. If you're looking for a way to add meaning to your faith life, get involved!
In my spare time, I am an art and science teacher at Archbishop O'Leary High School where I have been for the last ten years. In August, I will be moving into a position as the Assistant Principal at HE Beriault Junior High.
Marieta Paul, Pastoral Care and Music - Preparation for Sacraments, School Liaison, Music Ministry Coordinator
See Pastoral Team page for bio.
I grew up on a farm near Riviera Qui Barre, and obtained a CREDO Diploma from Gonzaga Jesuit University in Washington (1976), and from Newman Theological College a Bachelor of Theology With Distinction (1979) and a Master of Theological Studies With Distinction (2014).
Douglas Paul and I were married in 1979 and we have four children, all married now, and six grandchildren so far. We have belonged to Holy Family Parish since 1983. I loved being at home with our children when they were young, and Douglas and I volunteered with many different ministries and groups in the parish and Archdiocese during those years. I have worked in Holy Family Parish since 1991 in a variety of roles, and since 2007 I also work at Covenant Health / Youville Home in Spiritual Care.
Dennis Woytas, RCIA Representative
My wife Patricia and I joined Holy Family Parish when we moved to St. Albert from Regina in 1997. We have three married sons all living in the Edmonton / St. Albert area. Patricia and I have been very blessed at Holy Family having the opportunity to be welcomed into our faith community and be involved in a number of ministries including Faith Enrichment and RCIA. We have had the opportunity to travel with many of our fellow parishioners on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, Rome, Fatima and Lourdes. In 2014 we also travelled to Spain to walk the Camino de Santiago. Truly a rewarding pilgrimage for us! I look forward to working with my colleagues on Parish Council to serve our faith community.
Megan Findlay, Youth Liaison Representative
Nicole Schoenberger, Office Administration
See Pastoral Team page for bio.
Bill Van Hoof, Maintenance Representative
Prior to moving to St. Albert, my wife, Kathy, and I were members of John Bosco in Edmonton where we served as lectors. We have 2 children, both in university, one of whom is doing an after-degree in Education.
As parishioners of Holy Family, Kathy and I were involved with Baptism Preparation for a number of years and then Marriage Preparation. I am a member of Brother Anthony’s Knights of Columbus Council and have been Chairman of the Maintenance ministry since 2008. I am also on Parish Council representing Maintenance.
Ginny Blerot, CWL Representative
My husband John and I moved from Saskatchewan to Edmonton in July, 1968 and bought our first home in St. Albert in 1969. We raised our three children, John, Amy and Jeff in St. Albert. Initially, we were members of St. Albert Parish, then joined Holy Family Parish 24 years ago. I enjoyed my years at home with our children until they were established in school. I then resumed my teaching career at Neil M. Ross Catholic School, where I was grateful to be for 18 years.
Retirement freed up more time to spend with my four wonderful grandchildren and this continues to be one of my greatest pleasures. Ten years ago, I joined the Catholic Women’s League and became involved with many activities and roles of the League including the Prayer Shawl Ministry, Funeral Lunch Convener and one term as President.
I now serve as CWL liaison on Parish Council and look forward to the opportunity of working with the team of dedicated people in service to our faith community.
Stan Lozinski, K of C Representative
Barb and I, with our children Audrey and Kurt, moved to St. Albert from Saskatoon in 1976. With a B.A. in Economics and a B.Comm. in Acounting, I was a member of the Certified Management Accountants and the Chartered Accountants until my retirement. My professionsal career was spent auditing for various Federal and Provincial government departments and finally tax recoveries relating to GST. There were also three year stints of health care administration as well as commercial real estate sales.
As our children were growing up I volunteered on kindergarten and parents school councils, hockey and soccer associations, as well as St. Albert Parish Council. After those phases ended I joined the Knights of Columbus in 2000 and have been active in many of the councils activities. I joined the fourth degree assembly in 2012 and have been active in their functions.
In October 2015, Father Maurice asked me to join Parish Council as a liason with the Knights and to assist with parish activities.