After a short hiatus from #TeacherSpotlightTuesday, we are back shining the spotlight on some very important St. Mary's staff members during Catholic Schools Week... our priests!
Father Art Mattulke is a Senior Parochial Vicar for our family of parishes. He graduated from Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora in May of 1996, was ordained as a Transitional Deacon in June of 1996, and was ordained as a Priest in May of 1997. His assignments have included St. Gabriel's in Elma, St. Margret's in North Buffalo, St. Bernadette's in Orchard Park, St. Padre Pio in Oakfield/Elba, St. Peter and Paul in Hamburg, St. Teresa in Akron, and now here in our Akron Clarence Catholic Community.
Father Art loves to play and watch sports and is a big Sabres and Bills fan! He enjoys walking and biking with his dogs - two Yorkshire Terriers named Rasmus Evander and Dylan Tage after members the Buffalo Sabres, his favorite team.
Father Art also enjoys traveling, and hanging out with friends and family. His favorite subject when he was in school was gym, and his favorite food is pepperoni and cheese pizza. Father Art is a fan of Willie Nelson, as his favorite song is "Bring Me Sunshine".
When asked about his talents, Father Art replied, "I'm not sure if I missed the line when God was handing out talents in Heaven, but I like to do a lot of things, just not so well." (In our opinion, Father Art is overlooking his talent used everyday in his vocation as priest - preaching and connecting with his flock, whether students or adults!)
Lastly, Father Art's favorite Bible verse is Philippians 4:4-7:
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
Thank you Father Art, for your service to our parish family!