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| Capt. Guy Gruters Speaking to a Veterans Group |
I sent the following
introduction and press release to secular newspapers within a 200 mile or 3
hour radius of Caldwell, OH, our Men's Conference site. Thus I included secular newspapers in
Gallipolis, Athens, Marietta, Parkersburg-WV, Zanesville, Cambridge, St.
Clairsville, Wheeling, Steubenville, and as very long shots Columbus,
Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh.
The addresses were easy to obtain by googling
the internet. Essentially, I sent the
press release by e-mail all at once to the entire list. My philosophy was if only one or two of the 14
newspaper pick up the release and print at least part of it, the effort is
worthwhile. Even if the reader does not
attend the Conference, at least s/he receives the message behind the Conference. In 2011 and 2013 the Gallipolis Daily Tribune
published the entire article. The Steubenville
Herald Star picked up the press release in 2016 and 2017. There may have been others.
AMDG
“Beth Sergent – Editor Gallipolis Daily Tribune
- Pomeroy Daily Sentinel - Point Pleasant Daily Register”
<bsergent@civitasmedia.com>, <GDTnews@civitasmedia.com>,
“Steubenville Herald Star
Executive Editor” <rgallabrese@heraldstaronline.com>, “City
Editor” <jpowers@heraldstaronline.com>, “Janice Kiaski – Editor Community Page”
<jkiaski@heraldstaronline.com>,
“Wheeling Intelligencer” <myer@news-register.net>,
“St. Clairsville Times Leader
Managing Editor” <bkapral@timesleaderonline.com>, “Area Editor”
<timesleader@timesleaderonline.com>, “Lifestyles Editor”
<sdunder@timesleaderonline.com>,
“Jennifer Compston-Strough -
Managing Editor” <jcompston@timesleaderonline.com>,
“Cambridge
Daily Jeffersonian Publisher – Andrew S. Dix” <asdix@dixcom.com>, “Editor”
<rbooth@daily-jeff.com>, <newsroom@daily-jeff.com>,
“Zanesville Times Recorder -
Managing Editor” <psjames@nncogannett.com>, “Local Desk Editor”
“Marietta Times News Editor”
<kyork@mariettatimes.com>,
<tshipley@nncogannett.com>,
“Assistant Editor” <vgrace@nncogannett.com>,
“Columbus
Dispatch” <storyideas@dispatch.com>,
“Cleveland
Plain Dealer Metro Editor” <kturner@plaind.com>, “Deputy Managing
Editor” <dkannber@plaind.com>,
“Cincinnati
Enquirer Community Editors” <therron@communitypress.com>,
<jkey@communitypress.com>, <rmaloney@communitypress.com>,
“Athens
Messenger” <jhiggins@athensmessenger.com>,
“Parkersburg
News & Sentinel”
<editorial@newsandsentinel.com>,
“Executive Editor - Christina Myer”
<cmyer@newsandsentinel.com>, “Paul
LaPann – Managing Editor” <plapann@newsandsentinel.com>, “Jesse Mancini – City Editor” <jmancini@newsandsentinel.com>,
“Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ?” <localnews@post-gazette.com>,
March
9, 2017
As
the person responsible for publicity on the Steering Committee for the
Steubenville Diocesan Men’s Day of Renewal, I am submitting for your
consideration the following article for your News, Events, or Religion sections.
The Men's Conference described in the
article submission below is open to men of all faiths and it's good for the
people of different denominations to know what other churches are doing. For those who do not attend, the article also
gives a taste of the speaker's message, which challenges the men to become
better spiritual leaders in the home, the parish, the community, and on the job. Too many men are relegating that
responsibility to their wives.
Feel
free to edit and condense it as you see fit.
If space is lacking, please at least consider the short announcement at
the end for your Events section or Church Calendar. You may contact me at 740-245-9404. Photos of the main speaker, Capt. Guy Gruters,
are attached and also the Conference brochure.
Thank
you for your consideration and God bless.
PRESS RELEASE
STEUBENVILLE DIOCESAN MEN’S DAY OF RENEWAL SATURDAY MARCH 18
If the mother takes the spiritual lead in the family, the
probability that the children will remain faithful to the Church as adults is
about 40%. If the father takes the
spiritual lead, that probability doubles to 80%. This is crucial because we are losing our
youth. As Danny Abramowicz of “Crossing
the Goal” on EWTN likes to point out, “The children love Mom, but tend to
follow Dad.” Thus the participants in
the Diocesan Men’s Day of Renewal
will be held on Saturday March 18 from 9 am to 3:30 pm at St. Stephen’s Church
in Caldwell off of Exit 25 of I-77. The men are challenged to become true men of God........dynamic Catholic leaders
who will change the world, beginning with their families, their parishes, their
communities, and the marketplace through their jobs.
To
complement the Holy Hour at 9 am, Penance Service, and closing Mass presided by
Bishop Monforton at about 2 pm, the featured speaker is Capt. Guy Gruters
(USAF). After graduation from the Air
Force Academy with a B.S. in Engineering Science, Capt. Gruters flew more than
400 combat missions in Vietnam and received over 30 combat medals and
awards. He was shot down twice and
captured the second time in 1967. After
leaving the Air Force, he captained DC-9s and Boeing 727s for Eastern Airlines
until retiring in 1991. Later Capt.
Gruters was an account rep. for IBM and President of PC Software Systems.
In
his morning talk Guy Gruters will reveal how his faith and trust in God carried
him through the ordeal as a Prisoner of War in the notorious “Hanoi Hilton” and
other camps in Vietnam for over five years.
Since bitterness is self-destructing, he will share in the afternoon
talk how he learned to show mercy and forgive his brutal captors who tortured
him. The participants will discover how
they can apply the lessons learned by Capt. Gruters to their daily lives. He is a 4th Degree member of the Knights of
Columbus.
Drawing from his diverse experience
and being a father of seven children, he will also touch on “Leadership and
Teamwork in the Family, Church, and the Community”. An excellent and dynamic speaker, Mr. Gruters
gives talks all over the country and is the author of the book, “Locked
Up With God”.
This
background puts Capt. Gruters in a position to speak on the theme of this
year’s Diocese of Steubenville Men’s Conference, “Mercy and Forgiveness, Faith and
Trust……..Means of Developing Strength
and Holiness in Difficult Times” and apply it to our daily
lives. That is through the power of
faith rise up to be the spiritual leaders of their families, to do their part
in renewing their parishes, be servant leaders in the community, and to make a
difference for Christ by applying the social teachings of the Church to their
professions.
Since Capt. Guy Gruters
exhibits the spirit of sacrifice that veterans have made for our country, the
Conference will briefly honor all veterans present. The MC will thank the veterans and ask them
to stand. Tentatively a prayer will be
offered for those on active duty, especially those in harm’s way.
The goal of the Men's Day of Renewal is to focus on the spiritual
development of the men of the diocese. Having spiritually strong men of faith
and character translates into more solid families, more dynamic parishes, and
better communities. This is crucial to the Church, now and in the future. It is
also critical for nurturing vocations.
It involves sacrificing most of a Saturday with some travel, but Lent is all about sacrifice and the quest for
holiness. That gives a pilgrimage
flavor. During the middle ages, pilgrims
would travel for days by foot or horseback.
The men will see how the participants are moved by the beauty and
power of the faith. The experience of seeing
so many men enthusiastically participating and lifting up their voices in song
is uplifting. There will be a Holy Hour
of Eucharistic Adoration and optional Lenten Confession. The Conference is open to teens so this can also be a father and son event, a shared
experience. Non-Catholics are also welcome. In the past the men have returned spiritually
refreshed, reinvigorated, and enthusiastic. Registration will be taken at the door.
There’s
more information on the home page of the diocesan website, www.diosteub.org and the Conference Blog, “Becoming
a True Man of God” at diosteubmen.blogspot.com
which is also devoted to articles to keep men in spiritual shape after the
Conference. For a greater variety, go to
“A Little Bit for God and His People” at paulrsebastianphd.blogspot.com. One may also contact paulrsebastian@yahoo.com
or call 740-245-9404.
It should be a great day of enjoyable fellowship and
spiritual reinvigoration. But most of all, the organizers
expect that through grace there will be a few more good spiritually strong men
for the kingdom of God in the battle against secularism and other evils and
problems that our troubled society must confront.......men --not spiritual
weaklings and wimps-- who will put Christ into their professions. Finally, the men will become more
knowledgeable, firmer in their faith, and better prepared for a more joyful
Easter, not to mention a greater closeness to God and eternity which life on
earth is all about. The Men's Day of
Renewal is growing into an annual event in the Diocese of Steubenville, thus
fulfilling a great need.
*********************************************************************************
St. Joseph, model of a true man of God, pray for us and for
the success of the Men's Conference.
*********************************************************************************
AS A
SHORT ANNOUNCEMENT IN THE EVENTS SECTION OR CHURCH CALENDAR
Diocesan
Men's Day of Renewal Saturday, March 18 from 9 am – 3:30 pm at St.
Stephen’s Church in Caldwell off of Exit 25 of I-77. The theme is “Mercy and
Forgiveness, Faith and Trust……..Means of Developing Strength and Holiness in Difficult Times”. The main speaker is Capt. Guy Gruters. Dynamic and captivating, this nationally
known author and speaker will show how his faith carried him through five years
as a POW at the Hanoi Hilton in Vietnam and how he learned to show mercy by
forgiving his captors who tortured him. The
home page of diosteub.org gives a link to the brochure, additional information,
and the Conference Blog.
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