Tim Glemkowski left Franciscan University in 2011 with a degree in philosophy and theology and a taste of what it’s like to be part of an authentic community of disciples.
Both propelled him into the work he has been doing ever since, seeking to contribute to the renewal of the Church through speaking, writing, and teaching, and now as executive director of the National Eucharistic Congress.
Tim was serving as a consultant for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as plans for a National Eucharistic Revival movement were being discussed.
“The more I heard,” he says, “the more I recognized it as an authentic movement of the Holy Spirit.”
When the bishops voted in November 2021 to undertake the three year revival, culminating in a National Eucharistic Congress, Tim remembers telling his wife, Maggie (Boudreau ’11), he thought God might be calling him to the executive director post.
Since April 2022, he has been coordinating the congress, which will take place in Indianapolis July 17-21, 2024, and overseeing the pilgrimage leading up to it.
The goal, he says, is for the eucharistic revival to continue beyond 2024, possibly with a congress every four years.
“We want to mobilize a movement with a vision for priestly and parish renewal,” he says. “We see this as a long-term mission.”
That fits well with Tim’s own desire to take what he experienced at Franciscan into the world.
“The community I encountered in the students and professors has given me a vision and a hope for what’s possible in the Christian life—everyone in love with God and a real experience of Catholic community to the full.”
Tim also has lived out that mission through his life as a husband and father of four, teaching high school theology, working in parish ministry and for the Archdiocese of Denver, and starting the L’Alto Catholic Institute to renew parishes.
He says he is deeply grateful for what he received at Franciscan and for all that is still happening there to make it a center for renewal in the Church.
“It’s hard to express what life would be like if Franciscan University didn’t exist. I don’t know how to put it more eloquently than that.”
Tim Glemkowski received the 2023 Bishop John King Mussio Award for his distinguished and faithful service to the Church.
Judy Roberts writes from Graytown, Ohio
