Kurt Hickman retires after 24 years; Regina Isaac succeeds him
It’s quite possible that Kurt Hickman visited the Diocese of Richmond’s churches, schools and Catholic Charities facilities more often than the men who served as bishops of the diocese during the last 24 years.
Hickman, who retired as director of the Office of Risk Management on Thursday, March 31, made on-site visits to each entity to make sure they were in compliance with safety codes and guidelines. He was also the contact for pastors and business managers when insurance claims for storm and fire damage needed to be filed.
“We prevented a lot of losses,” he said. “There’s no question about that. I know we prevented some serious accidents.”
Hickman noted that since 1998, the diocese has handled over 2,500 claims and that during the last 19 years, it has covered $16 million in losses, most of which he termed “completely unavoidable.”
“I can say this with pride that we never had a claim from any safety recommendation that wasn’t taken care of properly,” he said. “People have gotten on things and taken care of things. We’ve never had a claim about an unresolved safety discrepancy being taken care of.”
Hickman said that when he would visit the sites, he would be looking for “obvious safety hazards and electrical issues.”
He explained, “A lot of it is common stuff, but when you’re a pastor or business manager and you’re busy, you’re not looking at these things, and you don’t see them.”
Noting that deferred maintenance is an issue because parishes don’t always have the resources to do the repairs, Hickman said the volunteers who do the work are “amazing.”
“Especially in the southwest (part of the diocese), people have done a tremendous job of addressing the issues we’ve asked them to address,” he said.
Reflecting on what he termed “the best job in the diocese,” Hickman said he was “looking forward to retirement, but I’m not looking forward to leaving.”
“What other job is going to enable you to travel throughout a diocese and meet the array of people you meet while at the same time you’re helping them accomplish something?” he said. “Many of them I consider friends.”
Regina Isaac, a member of St. Olaf, Williamsburg, is the new director of the Office of Risk Management. Most recently, she was claims manager for property and liability at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation since 2014.
Isaac, who holds a bachelor’s degree in social sciences from the University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown, is a core team member at St. Olaf where she is involved in youth ministry, confirmation preparation and high school retreats. She also serves as a catechist, arts and environment ministry coordinator and on the worship committee and pastoral council.
A native of Aliquippa, Pa., she credits her involvement in youth ministry to one of her religion teachers at Quigley Catholic High School where she was involved with liturgy and served as an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist.
That teacher, Father David Zubik, became Bishop David Zubik in 1997, and has been bishop of Pittsburgh since 2007.