Diocese of Las Vegas

SEMINARY

Vocations Information Links

Vocations Page
Voices in the Desert
Vocation Director
Journey to the Priesthood
Seminary and Seminarians
Recently Ordained Priests
Priests of the Diocese
Diocesan Vocation Prayer

The Diocese of Las Vegas does not have a seminary, so all of our seminarians are sent to the following seminaries:

THEOLOGY: St. Patrick Seminary

320 Middlefield Road

Menlo Park, California 94025

Phone: 650-325-5621

or St. John Seminary

5012 Seminary Road

Camarillo, California 93012-2598

COLLEGE: Mt. Angel Seminary

1 Abbey Drive

St. Benedict, Oregon 97373

Phone: 503-845-3951

Bishop Pepe chooses the Seminary to which he will send each of his seminarians.

MEET OUR SEMINARIANS

For the 2008-2009 School Year, the Diocese of Las Vegas has 5 seminarians. If you wish to e-mail any of our seminarians, they would be glad to hear from you.

DEACON JOHN ASSALONE - 4th Year Theology
St. Patrick Seminary

E-mail: JTAHarrington@aol.com

My name is John Assalone and I am a Seminarian for the Diocese of Las Vegas. I was the Executive Director of Entertainment for the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

In was Ordained as a Deacon on May 31, 2008 at the Guardaian Angel Cathedral. I just completed my 3rd year of Theology and when I return to St. Patrick’s Seminary in September I will complete my 4th and final year of Theology before Priesthood.

My desire to become a priest began when I was very young. I remember being in seventh grade and wanting to be just like our pastor. I was involved with the choirs at St. Joseph in Kings Park Long Island and involved with teaching Catechism. I was also the Director of the Hand Bell Choir at that parish and was the teen representative for our Parish Council.

I attended mass regularly. I was always completely absorbed into the Eucharistic celebration and visualized many times myself in the role of a priest. My grandfather, parents and uncle had a strong influence on my vocation. To this day, I think my grandfather was the strongest influence. I did very well in school and enjoyed music and the arts. I was involved with band and theatre. I never had to be convinced to go or dragged to church. As my Junior High School years passed, I found that I wanted to be in a Church every free moment. I did odd jobs around the church just to be close to what was happening there.

When I was in 10th grade I told my parents that I wanted to be a priest. I believed then that God was calling me. I was told by my family and friends to enjoy my high school and college years before making a final decision. So I put the process on hold, but the “tuggings” from the Lord continued. These tuggings became so strong that they became a challenge for me. Was I ready to accept the challenge? Did I really want to answer the call. For some reason things began to change for me and I found myself resisting the call. My resistance led me to actually stop going to church at all. What was once a sense of interest became for me something I feared and couldn’t accept. This was all taking place at a time in my life when I was coming to know myself. Bottom line, I began to doubt that God could really be calling me to be a priest.

During my college years, I literally hid from the Lord. I experienced life to its fullest, constantly avoiding and hiding from the Lord. I did well in college as a Liberal Arts Major in Theatre and Music. I attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and worked my way through UNLV doing stagehand work at the MGM Hotel. I wanted to attend a graduate studies program after UNLV so I applied to Yale. I was one of four that was accepted into the Yale School of Drama in Stage Management that year. After a year at Yale, I transferred to the California Institute of the Arts where I graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Management. Upon graduating from Cal Arts I worked in Los Angeles as a Production Stage Manager for Universal Studios in Hollywood. I resided there for four years until the new MGM Hotel/Casino was built in Las Vegas. In 1994 I was an original cast member. My job was that of being the Assistant Stage Manager for the Grand Theater Celebrity room, where celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli, Steve Wonder and Jay Leno performed. The showroom closed in June of that year. But another new adventure was to be experienced in the opening of the show EFX. This would become one of the biggest spectacle shows ever to be created and staged on the strip in Las Vegas. To say the least this was a big accomplishment for me. I quickly moved up the ranks to Stage Manager, Production Stage Manager, and Director of Entertainment; ultimately to my current status as Executive Director of Entertainment. At this time I was on top of the world, or so I thought.

It was then that the tugging of the Lord re-surfaced in my life. Up to this point I conveniently ignored the tuggings, but now things were about to change. My brother and sister-in-law asked me to be the godfather for their daughter. Being a Catholic, I knew what this responsibility meant and I took their request very seriously. I knew that for me to be a good godfather, I would once again have to return to attending church. I also knew what would come with that. Up to this point I had worked hard, had a successful career, relationships and many material goods. Everything I worked for and wanted I was getting. What could be better than this? So I began to attend mass regularly.

We baptized my niece at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Las Vegas. I really believe that God brought me to this parish for a reason. Again, He began to challenge me with His request to “come follow”. For some reason I found myself more open to His call than I was before. I found myself becoming more at peace while at the same time challenged in accepting His call. I became more active in my parish as a lector which only deepened my desire to give the priesthood another thought.

Following every mass, our parish would pray a special prayer for vocations. Little did I realize how these prayers would change my life. I continued to wonder what it would be like to be a priest. The vocation prayer spoke about courage which is what I needed to take the next step.

At this time the Diocese of Las Vegas was offering a day of reflection for men thinking about the priesthood. An open invitation was given in the weekly bulletin for those wanting to attend. Did I really want to go? Did I really want to find out if God was truly calling me, and if He was would I be open to His call? The day before I attended this event I found myself waking up in the middle of the night feeling both excited and scared. I remember going to work the next day and taking with me the phone number to call the vocation director stating that I would attend. The phone call was difficult to make, but when I hung up I felt a sense of relief, after all I could always change my mind and not go and no one would be the wiser.

I went to the day of reflection and it started to happen. The call to become a priest became stronger than it ever had before in my life. What was a nice surprise was that I got to meet other men who were experiencing similar calls. I was no longer alone but found people with whom I could share my own story. Following this event I asked my pastor to become my spiritual director. With his help and guidance I began to enter into my call on a very personal level. It was at this time that I began to meet with our vocation director. He invited me to attend monthly discernment meetings that he was offering for those considering the priesthood. Through these meetings with him and my pastor I found myself responding to God more openly than I ever had before. In time I met with Bishop Walsh. Toward the end of the year I found myself making a decision to enter the seminary. I signed papers and completed my application to the seminary, but then something happened. I found out that I wasn’t quite ready to make the next step. I asked to put my entering the seminary on hold for a while. For personal reasons I felt that I wasn’t as ready as I thought to enter the seminary. I asked Bishop Walsh if I could put my application on hold until such time that I could make a more peaceable transition. I continued to attend the monthly discernment meetings and met regularly with my spiritual director. Yet, more signs from God continued to appear.

One Sunday at my parish our Vocation Director, Fr. Tony, came to speak on vocations. He spoke about the need for all of us to become vocations seekers. He stated that sometimes we simply need to invite or encourage those we feel would make a good priest or religious. It was at work that week when I was approached by a co-worker from my parish. She asked, “John, were you at mass last weekend?” I said, “Yes.” She then asked, “Did you hear Fr. Tony speak?” I said, with a grin, “Yes.” She said, “You know, you would make a great priest!” What was surprising was that she knew nothing of my desire to become a priest. Similar situations happened later with people who also did not know my interest. It was almost like they saw something in me that I thought was very private.

Another incident happened involving my family. When I told them that I was seriously considering applying for the priesthood, they became quite concerned. “What about your career and all the work that you have done in your job?” As I shared my decision with them, I told them that my career, though important, did not give me the peace of heart and mind that I was now experiencing. I told them that I was at a point where I had to search this out one way or the other. I could no longer live the rest of my life with a big “what if” over my head.

Within a year I found myself truly ready to continue my journey toward priesthood in the Diocese of Las Vegas. I sold my home and moved into Serra House as a live-in seminary candidate. I met with our new Bishop, Joseph Pepe, and was accepted. I completed my application for the seminary and was accepted into pre-Theology I at St. Patrick’sseminary in August.

It has truly been a long and strange journey from those high school years until today. There have been many turns and changes in my journey, but I have come to see a loving God who has always been there waiting for me to respond. I pray that He remains patient with me as I continue to journey towards priesthood.

SAM MARTINEZ - 2nd Year Theology

St. John's Seminary

I am Sam Martinez, seminarian, studying for the diocese of Las Vegas. My family comes from Santa Fe, New Mexico, but I was born and raised in Las Vegas. I am the last of eight children. I was baptized as an infant and received my first communion at about age ten. After receiving my first communion, I didn’t

practice my faith at all and my life showed it. It wasn’t until God called me back home to the Catholic Church in 1999, that I received the sacrament of Confirmation and my call to discern a vocation to the Catholic priesthood. Wow! My life hasn’t been the same since. I’m really looking forward to serving God’s people in the Diocese of Las Vegas.

Felipe Jimenez - 1st Year Philosophy
Mt. Angel Seminary

E-mail: josefelipe1967 @yahoo.com

My name is Felipe, I was born in the state of Jalisco in Mexico. I was born in a family of twelve brothers and sisters. My father died when I was twelve years of age. And Olivia, my mother stayed widow until now.

At this age for the first time I was invited by my teacher Maria Luisa (Principal of my School) to enter into Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in the Diocese of Autlan, Jalisco; where I was born. I ignored this invitation, I was very young to make a decision.

When I was seventeen years old, I came to the United States; at first I stayed in Los Angeles, California. I worked in the daytime and studied at night at Huntington Park High School. And my friend John Murrieta who is a priest at the Resurrection Parish

asked me if I would like to talk with the Vocations Director at the Archdiocese of Los Angeles; I went to see him and after this meeting, he sent me to discernment retreat.

In 1997 the company where I was working closed their business and then I decided to come to the city of Las Vegas. The first thing was to look for a Parish and I found Saint Bridget where I started as Guardian of the Blessed Sacrament In our Chapel which is open 24/7days a week.

In 2006, Ms. Joanna Pollard (Financial Administrator of St. Bridget was looking for a caregiver for Fr. James Swenson (our Pastor at this time), I told her: "I am a Certified Nurse Assistant" She was very happy and she said "I was praying to find the right person".

During the last two years, Joanna was the third person who mentioned my vocation and encouraged me to think of becoming a Priest.

Being close to Father Swenson during the two years of his many sufferings, God let me discover a beautiful way of being a Priest through his example. Before Fr. Swenson died he made an appointment for me to see Fr. Muggaga Lule (Vocations Director in Our Diocese) who is preparing me in the process to the Seminary.

This time I can not refuse God any more to His invitation. I said "yes" knowing that God is coming along in this beautiful journey to the Priesthood in the person of Christ, and to help build his Church with My Bishop in my Diocese of Las Vegas.

MEET OUR SEMINARIANS

SHAWN DRESDEN - 4th Year Philosophy

Mt. Angel Seminary

E-mail: drez.shawn@lycos.com

My name is Shawn Dresden, and I am the youngest of eight children. I was born on December 11, 1979, to the parents of Robert and Mary (Perko) Dresden in Junction City, Kansas. My parents have been married for over 45 years. I have only one sister and six older brothers. Their names are Michael, Patrick (deceased), Joseph, Marcia, Robert, Matthew and Mark (my twin). Currently I have 14 nephews and nieces.

My father was a career military man and he retired from the US Army, after thirty years of service. In 1989 he relocated to Sandy Valley and started his second career with the state of Nevada's Department of Corrections (retired in 1998). Once in Sandy Valley my father fulfilled one of his dreams and started a horse ranch. I have a lot of great memories of day long trail rides, exploring the mountain ranges that surround my home to family get together's where I developed close relationships with many of my cousins and strong family ties. (I think I should also mention that I also have tons of memories of chores). One of the first things I think of when I am thinking about my father is his wonderful sense of humor. He always has a joke that I have never heard or some funny saying for just about any situation. My dad is a great person who always put his family first.

Another person that has helped shape my life is one of the most spirit filled individuals I have ever known, and I have the greatest honor of having her as my mother. The best description I have found for her is 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 and how it describes love as patient, kind and enduring (sounds like mom to me). Having eight children, she has devoted her life to their needs and wants. She is an inspiration to me and the best example of faith that any person could hope to have.

Other memories I have of my mother, is every morning I would see her reading her bible or some other religious text and she would point out some great new insight or new fact that she would find and share it with me, and this was almost a daily occurrence. Or if I had some question she would always do her best to get me an answer; she never disappointed me. Come to think of it my mother is the most influential person in my life and for that I am thankful.

Most of my primary education was at St. Francis Xavier in Junction City, Kansas. I attended middle school at Sandy Valley School. My High School experience might sound like one of those stories that your grandfather used to say about walking to school up a hill both ways. Living in Sandy Valley has given me great time management skills. I had to get up at 4:00 am every morning and go out to feed the horses on my father's ranch (at that time we had about 24 horses) and when that was done I had to get ready for school and walk the 1/4 mile to my bus stop where you guessed it, I was the first student on (which subsequently made me the las one off) and I rode on a bus for about two hours and some 100 miles to Las Vegas where I got to Durango High School about 6:45 am, and the trip home was just as bad.

I really did not get too involved in extracurricular activities until my sophomore year. At this point in my life I contemplated a career in the military, so I joined ROTC. It taught me the importance of the chair of command and how to interact with different personalities, and aerospace history. I also decided to join some clubs which included FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) this was a club that taught it's members basic business skills and we were also the ones who ran the student store (which is another story all together) and the model rocketry club.

In my junior year I was one of a few students to get into the National Honors Society. (If my memory serves me right I was only one of about four or so Juniors to make it into the club and the only member of ROTC that year). I graduated in 1998 and was in the top 10 percent of my graduating class.

Well, I think that I should describe Prim, NV for you all considering that I have spent the last seven years of my life there. It lies on the Nevada-California state border. It consists of three casinos, three gas stations and a mall. For lack of a better description it would be a tourist trap/truck stop. (Yes, you read it right, I have spent seven years there). I started in the wonderful world of work right out of high school, and it was just by chance a new mall opened up and my family and I went to check it out and as we were walking by the toy store my aunt suggested that I apply for a job, and the very next thing I knew I had a job. And that is where I met a very important person in my life, my first manager Barbara Kruse. This woman was a great teacher for me and I owe her the success that I currently enjoy in my retail career. She gave me a great opportunity by giving me a promotion to supervisor, and she took me under her wing and taught me the key of being a good manager and It was very simple..... Just be fair, and treat people with respect. To this day we are good friends.

My first job was with a company called Toys International. I started off as a regular employee and I worked my way up the ladder and within a year I was the Asst. Manager. I think that, by working my way up the "corporate ladder" was a great way to learn all of the aspects of a job. I held every position in the store, everything from stock to management. The experience taught me the inner workings of the company, and how important every roll is in the overall operations of a business. Once I got a given job under my belt, it was then up to me to train my fellow staff members. This was one of the best jobs a kid could have right out of high school. I got paid to play with toys! This store had a great staff and we all were with the company for about four and a half years. Unfortunately the company went bankrupt and shut their doors.

My second job was with a company called Cole Haan (a shoe store owned by Nike). I was hired as the assistant manager. It was a great learning experience working for a fortune five hundred company. I had many responsibilities, but first and foremost I was responsible for the training and development of the staff and to make sure that all company standards were met. When I was brought aboard to this company, the store was a bit of a problem. It was under performing and had a large shrink rate (stolen product). It took a bit of time, but in partnership with the store and district managers we were able to weed out many of the problems that was facing that store and turn it to the number 3 store in our region. I was with this company for about two years.

I made a name for myself as the Toy Guy of Primm, NV. When my mall friends found out that KB toys was coming they all suggested that I should apply, and so I did and was hired as store manager. It was a great experience to be the first manager of a store, to be there from the beginning. To be the one who decided what went where and who was going to make up my new team, and what challenges were to be taken care of first. In my first year, my store beat it's sales projections, and was the only new store opened that year to make a profit. (When a store was opened in this company, all the cost of the construction, and set up is included on the profit statement for the year, so in essence the store started out in debt and know one expected it to pull out of the red in it's first year). I was with this company about a year and a half, when a good friend of mine offered me a position that I could not pass up.

My last job I worked for GAP Inc. as the store operations manager. This was the highest volume company I have worked for. It was a great job with many challenges. I was the behind the scenes guy whom everyone called.

Well, here is the story of my vocation. As far back as I can remember, I have thought about being a priest. Growing up in a large family I have been exposed to the church my whole life (I guess I would be a "Cradle Catholic"). Some of my earliest memories are connected with the church in some shape or form. One of my earliest memories involving my faith was in religion class in about the third or fourth grades. There was a question asked in class of how come or why we show Jesus on the cross? And this answer has been with me my whole life. The teacher (whose name I can't recall) said, "We show Jesus on the cross because it is a reminder to us how much he loved us". A simple but most effective answer.... As I think about this answer, I think epiphany would be a more accurate term for how I felt about the answer.

Another mile stone, growing up in my faith was moving to Sandy Valley. After attending Mass in a church that was built in 1905 with beautiful stain glass windows and looked like a castle (at least to a 9 year old boy) with hundreds of families; to St. Catherine of Sienna mission, which (when I first got there) was a building on a dirt lot with 10 to 20 people, one room, one door, four multicolored windows, no pews, plastic chairs, former wedding chapel used at a casino... needless-to-say, I was in shock.

Having a very limited amount of people there left a list of volunteers very limited, and so my involvement in church began. I can remember doing many activities for St. Catherine's every thing from pulling weeds out in the parking lot to re-painting walls, to being on the parish council. I am very thankful to God for bringing me to a spot like St. Catherine's (or St. Mary's of the sagebrush, as my sister calls it), because with all I had done for that little church, it has taught me the lesson of a labor of love. I am very proud of my church and I known that God has something very special for it some day. I have learned much abut community, family, friendships, and how they are connected with the meaning of Catholic.

The "Call" to the priesthood, has been a very interesting journey for me. For the longest time in my life I had a feeling of being unworthy, but through prayer, I have come to an understanding that it is not so much a question of worthiness but more of a question of service. So I ask myself am I willing to serve God? YES is my answer.

JESUS GARCIA - 4th Year Philosophy

Mt. Angel Seminary

E-mail: Jesugchuy2@yahoo.com

Hello, my name is Jesus Garcia and I have been studying for the diocese of Las Vegas as a seminarian for the past three years. I am originally from Aurora, Illinois, but I have spent the better part of my life living here in Las Vegas. Growing up I never thought that I would be in the position I am in now. I was always a quiet boy, very shy and reserved, but good hearted. I remember going to Mass moderately throughout my adolescent years, but not enjoying it very much. Actually, I thought Mass was very long and boring, obviously quite the opposite from today. My mother would take on the responsibility of raising my brother and me which was not an easy task after her divorce from my father. She basically raised us herself and taught us what she could about God and the church. I think she did a great job, my brother and I never got into trouble and always knew right from wrong.

During my high school years I became a little more rebellious, but only to fit in with certain crowds, however, I still maintained good moral conduct where it counted the most. I attended Chaparral High School and very much enjoyed my four years there. I built good relationships with friends there, some of which I still keep in contact with today. Having friends is a very important part of life and thanks be to God, I am blessed with many good friends. Immediately after high school I began attending the Community College of Southern Nevada. I did not want to be like some of those people that take a year off after high school only to never return to school; with this mentality I was focused on majoring in education, desiring a degree to teach physical education. The logic behind this goal was that I enjoyed sports and I played them all my life, but perhaps most importantly I felt the need to teach people and pass on the knowledge that I have. Little did I know that I would give that goal up and begin studying for the priesthood to teach and pass on a different kind of knowledge; that knowledge resulted in being the word of God.

After taking some classes here and there, about every other semester for two years, I decided to stop attending community college until I really knew what it was that I wanted to do with my life. By this time, the priesthood entered my mind through an unpleasant experience I had with my girlfriend at the time. We ended our relationship which devastated me enough that I had to seek God for consolation. This opened my eyes to a whole new world and to the point which lead me to the seminary. I began to feel the desire to help people know God more profoundly. It was at this time that I decided, I want to help the people of God by becoming a priest in the Diocese of Las Vegas.

So now I am enrolled in Mount Angel Seminary, in Mount Angel, Oregon. I am entering my forth year of college and looking forward to the many years ahead. The first three years were great, and I have always finished strong and have had plenty of support and motivation from everyone. I have excelled in being active, serving the seminary community as the athletic chair for the college council, as an R.A. (resident assistant) and also playing the last three years on the basketball team. I have also been entrusted with the basics of serving as an acolyte and minister of the Eucharist as well as singing in the choir. Finally, this past semester I was elected college president for the coming year which is a huge responsibility, but I am looking forward to the challenge. Last year I was exposed to the parish life for the first time. I was assigned to Prince of Peace Parish for the summer and experienced the things that occur in a parish throughout the year. I was very happy there and felt extremely welcomed by Fr. Cruz and the parishioners as well as those working in the office, I had fun. This summer I am assigned to Saint Christopher’s Parish with Fr. Bruno. Fr. Bruno is a very kind and generous man and he is keeping me busy with ministries that will really benefit me in the future. Fr. Alberto, the associate pastor has also been very helpful and welcoming.

Well, that brings me to the present time and I would just like to say that I’m happy with the road the Lord has put on so far, and God willing I will continue with my vocation to the priesthood. I also want to make myself available to any man or woman that has considered the call to the priesthood or religious life to contact me so that I may help with answering any questions they may have. The priesthood and religious life is something wonderful. Remember one has nothing to lose in looking into it and a lot to gain. God Bless you all!

Vocations Information Links

Vocations Page
Voices in the Desert
Vocation Director
Journey to the Priesthood
Seminary and Seminarians
Recently Ordained Priests
Priests of the Diocese
Diocesan Vocation Prayer