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DIOCESE & PARISHES

On July 25, 2006 Bishop Frank J. Dewane was installed as only the second bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida. Three months prior to his ordination, on April 25, Pope Benedict XVI named him coadjutor bishop of the diocese.

To assume his new role as spiritual leader of 250,000 Catholics in Southwest Florida, Bishop Dewane left his position as Under Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, a post he had held at The Vatican since 2001. The primary responsibility of the Pontifical Council is to promote justice, peace, development and human rights worldwide. As Under Secretary, then-Monsignor Dewane was an official delegate of the Holy See to numerous international conferences and world summits.

Prior to his work on the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Bishop Dewane served on the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum" for six years, from 1995 to 2001. Cor Unum is considered the charitable arm of the Holy Father.

In 1991 Bishop Dewane first became a delegate for the Vatican when he was appointed to serve as a member of the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York City. He had been serving in the Diocese of Green Bay as assistant pastor at Ss. Peter and Paul Parish in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Bishop Dewane currently serves on the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops Committee on National Catholic Rural Life which examines rural areas and determines what the Church is doing to help. As a member of the Florida Catholic Conference Bishop Dewane sits on the Committee for Farmworker Justice and Immigration.

Bishop Dewane was born in Green Bay on March 9, 1950, the third child of Eleanor and Ben Dewane, devout Irish-Catholics who owned and operated a dairy farm. St. James Parish in Cooperstown, WI was the center of community life for the Dewane family, which included four children. After high school graduation, Bishop Dewane attended the University of Wisconsin where he earned a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences. He then earned a Master’s Degree in International Administration from The American University in Washington, D.C.

Prior to entering the seminary, Bishop Dewane worked for the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) in Moscow, Russia, and then for a subsidiary of PepsiCo in New York City.

Bishop Dewane began his studies for the priesthood at Notre Dame University in South Bend, Ind., where he completed one year of philosophy. He then studied theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. While in Rome, Bishop Dewane also completed advanced studies in canon law at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas.

On July 16, 1988, Bishop Dewane was ordained to the priesthood and appointed to the Diocese of Green Bay as assistant pastor. He also worked for the diocesan Tribunal.

CHRONOLOGY:

March 9, 1950- born in Green Bay, WI to Eleanor and Ben Dewane.
July 16, 1988 - Ordained to the priesthood
1988 – 1991 - Served as assistant pastor at St. Peter and Paul Parish in Green Bay
1991 - 1995 - served as a member of the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York City
1995 to 2001 - served on the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum"
From 2001 – 2006 served as Under Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace
April 25, 2006 – Appointed Coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida
July 25, 2006 - ordained as Bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida

WORLD CONFERENCES AND OTHER INFORMATION:

1992, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Conference on Environment and Development
1994, Cairo, Egypt - Conference on Population and Development, Cairo
1995, Beijing, China – Women and Development, Beijing (China);
1995, Copenhagen, Denmark - World Summit for Social Development, Copenhagen
1996, Istanbul, Turkey - Conference on Human Settlements
1998, Rome, Italy - Diplomatic Conference instituting the International Criminal Court
2001, Durban, South Africa - World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, Durban
2002, Monterrey, Mexico - Conference on Financing for Development
2003, Kyoto, Japan - Third World Water Forum
2006, Mexico City, - Fourth World Water Forum
2003, Cancun, Mexico - Fifth Ministerial Meeting of the World Trade Organization
Annual Meetings of the Board of Directors of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
May 2007 - Member of an international delegation of Church leaders on a mission to press G8 European leaders to honor commitments made to aid Africa.
Serving on the USCCB Conference on National Catholic Rural Life
Florida Catholic Conference Committee regarding migrant workers and immigration.

Dr. Kathleen Schwartz – Director of Education

Dr. Kathleen Schwartz currently serves as Director of Education for the Diocese of Venice in Florida. Prior to assuming that position in 2008, she was Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Schools in the Archdiocese of Washington, DC, a position she held for six years. The Diocese of Orlando was home to her for seven years before her move to Washington. There she served as Assistant Principal and then Principal of St. Mary’s School in Rockledge, Florida, not far from Cocoa Beach. Dr. Schwartz also has sixteen years’ experience teaching high school (English and Drama) and two years teaching English as a Foreign Language in Tokyo, Japan.

She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English and Secondary Education from Niagara University, her Master’s in Education from the University of Maryland, and her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Central Florida. Dr. Schwartz is married to Walter Schwartz, a retired Army counterintelligence officer and theatre director, and lives with their Golden Retriever, Murphy, outside of Sarasota, Florida, a few hours away from four of the seven children and all eight (soon to be nine) grandchildren.

Diocesan School Board

Mr. Christopher Treston, Chair
Mr. Brian Baacke
Mr. Ted Baszto
Dr. Dick Gennett
Dr. Erin Harrel
Dr. John Thomas Huysman
Mrs. Christine Jenkins
Mrs. Connie Kantor
Mrs. Elizabeth Lane
Mrs. Moira Miner
Mrs. Jane Motosko
Mr. Frank Rosenthal
Dr. Kathleen Schwartz
Very Rev. Fausto Stampiglia, S.A.C., S.T.D., V.F.
Mrs. Judy Sullivan
Rev. Robert D. Tabbert
Mr. Don Thomson

Parish Directory

Very Rev. Robert J. Kantor, V. F.
Administrator
St. Agnes Catholic Church
7775 Vanderbilt Beach Rd.
Naples FL 34120

Rev. Michael Vannicola, OSFS
Administrator
St. Ann Catholic Church
475 9th Ave. S
Naples FL 34102

Rev. Dennis Harten, Pastor
St. Elizabeth Seton
2760 52nd Terrace SW
Naples FL 34116

Rev. Tom Heck, Pastor
St. Finbarr Mission
13520 Tamiami Trail E
Naples FL 34114

Very Rev. John J. Ludden, Pastor
St. John the Evangelist
625 111th Ave. N
Naples FL 34108

Rev. Dr. Stan Strychartz, Pastor
St. Leo Catholic Church
28290 Beaumont Rd.
Bonita Springs FL 34134

Rev. Gerard F. Critch, Pastor
St. Peter the Apostle Church
5130 Rattlesnake Hammock Rd.
Naples FL 34113

Rev. George Ratzmann, Pastor
Saint William Catholic Church
750 Seagate Dr.
Naples FL 34103

Rev. Timothy Navin, Pastor
San Marco Catholic Church
851 San Marco Rd.
Marco Island FL 34145

Rev. Hugh McGuigan
Our Lady Of Light
19680 Cypress View Dr.
Ft. Myers FL 33967

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