May 29, 2007 – Toledo, OH – On Saturday, June 2nd at 11am, The Diocese of Toledo will welcome Norwalk native, Deacon Eric Schild into the ordained priesthood. The Most Reverend Leonard P. Blair, Bishop of the Diocese of Toledo, will ordain Deacon Schild at Our Lady Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral at 2535 Collingwood Boulevard, Toledo.

A graduate of St. Paul High School in Norwalk, Deacon Eric attended John Carroll University where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Communications. A 2007 graduate of St. Meinrad School of Theology, with a Master of Divinity, Deacon Eric performed his pastoral internship at Little Flower Parish in Toledo in 2004-2005. He also served a Clinical Pastoral Experience during the summer of 2006 at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center. Once ordained, Deacon Eric will serve as Associate Pastor at St. Wendelin Parish in Fostoria.  

Inspired by both an uncle and a cousin who are priests in the Diocese of Toledo, Deacon Eric says he’s very excited about ordination. “I have been waiting for this day since the eighth grade.” Deacon Eric heard the call to the priesthood at a younger age than the national average of 17 as reported in The Class of 2007: Survey of Ordinands to the Priesthood conducted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Vocations and analyzed by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University. Researchers gathered information from 282 seminarians, estimated to be approximately 60 percent of the 475 potential ordinands. Those surveyed include 221 ordinands to the diocesan priesthood and 60 to the religious priesthood.

Deacon Eric will celebrate special weekend Masses of Thanksgiving as follows:

Sunday, June 3, 2007:
    St. Paul, Norwalk at 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 9, 2007:
    St. John, Defiance at 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 10, 2007:
    Little Flower, Toledo at 10:30 a.m.

For more information on Deacon Eric or the priesthood ordination ceremony please contact Father David Nuss, Director of the Office of Vocations for the Diocese of Toledo at 419-244-6711.