Deacon David Geary
Deacon David “Dave” Geary celebrated the 45th anniversary of his diaconate ordination on May 19. His journey in faith has also included a four-year stint in the U.S. Air Force and 26 years as an FBI agent.
Deacon Geary was ordained May 19, 1979, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, California, by Timothy Cardinal Manning. Deacon Geary was only 36 years old at the time.
He first began discerning seven years earlier, in 1972. His pastor, Father James McKeon of St. Peter Claver parish in Simi Valley, asked him to think about it, even though he was too young at the time to be ordained a permanent deacon.
A few years later, Deacon Geary said he was at the Rose Bowl with Father McKeon on January 1, 1976, when he turned to his pastor and said, “Father, I am ready.” The next morning, there was a knock at his front door and Father McKeon handed him the application for the diaconate.
He said Father McKeon had been keeping the application in his desk drawer, waiting for Deacon Geary to answer. “He knew what I did not know or see in myself,” said the deacon.
He admitted that it took four years of discerning – including a marriage encounter weekend, a Cursillo weekend, and spiritual seminars before he answered the call.
He shared that he also had two visions – one of “intense and overwhelming love,” and another “experiencing the abandonment on the cross.”
Deacon Geary was serving in the Diocese of Arlington in 2007 when he learned from a friend that Father Christian Haydinger, then-pastor of St. Mary of the Annunciation, Ladysmith, was looking for a deacon to serve at the parish.
Deacon Geary received approval from Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo and served at St. Mary of the Annunciation from 2007 until he retired in 2018. He also served outside the parish as a facilitator for deacon formation classes and on the deacon council here in the diocese.
He said he has found joy in the many facets of the diaconal ministry. “Preaching is something I deeply enjoyed. But there is an incredible experience, sitting with someone who has just lost a loved one,” he shared. “No words, just being there in their grief.”
If he meets a man who is discerning the call to be a deacon, he would tell him, “Discern long and hard. This is not about you. This is a lifelong commitment to serving the people of God. Service is not easy.”
Deacon Geary and his wife, Barbara (who goes by Penny), will celebrate 59 years of marriage this July, and have two children and three grandchildren. He said his wife “has been very supportive of my ministry, although she tells me that she did not think I should be a deacon until the first time I preached. Then, she knew I was called.”
To the wife of any man who is discerning the diaconate, he would say, “Discern your husband’s calling long and hard. You may think this is a calling for your husband, but you and your husband are one.”
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Deacon Robert Kruse
Deacon Robert “Bob” Kruse celebrated the 20th anniversary of his diaconate ordination on May 22. Being a deacon for 20 years has taught him that “anyone who wants to experience the love of Christ must give away Christ’s love. Through that giving, one receives back his love multiple times over.”
Deacon Kruse was ordained in 2004 at the Cathedral of St. Agnes, in Rockville Centre, New York. He and his wife, Karen, have four children and six grandchildren. They moved to the Diocese of Richmond in 2019 after they retired and their children had moved away.
Deacon Kruse served at St. Mary, Lovingston, and St. Francis of Assisi, Amherst, from 2019 to 2022, before deciding to move further east in the diocese to be closer to family. Last August, he began serving at St. Olaf, Williamsburg.
This September, Deacon Kruse and his wife will celebrate 40 years of marriage. He explained that he was Lutheran when he was married and his wife never pushed him to become Catholic, but she continually prayed for it.
“Her intercessions prompted the Holy Spirit to tap me on the shoulder one day,” Deacon Kruse recounted. “Her support has been my foundation.”
Deacon Kruse said his wife’s parents were also very instrumental in his conversion and that he was inspired by their deep faith. Both of his in-laws died relatively young; first, his mother-in-law lost her battle with breast cancer. Then, his father-in-law was diagnosed with brain cancer and passed away about a year later.
“I think it would not be inaccurate to say he died of a broken heart,” Deacon Kruse said, recalling the strong bond between the couple.
He also shared that his parents-in-law were models of Christian faith, never questioning it, even in the last moments of their illnesses.
When asked about hearing the call to become a deacon, he said, “It was not like a light switch that was flipped, but a gradual building over a number of years. … It also took a while of discernment to sort out whether it was a true calling.”
He said a close friend of his wife’s family, Deacon Herman “Rody” Rodenburg, made an impression on him because of “his love of Christ and for the people of God.” A few years later, Deacon Kruse said one of his parish priests helped him move forward in answering the call to the diaconate.
He said hearing the call means accepting God’s grace with humility. “None of us are capable of doing anything to deserve Christ’s call,” Deacon Kruse said. “However, when there are moments of surrender, it brings peace and joy.”
His advice for a man discerning the diaconate would be to make sure he has the total support of his wife and family; their support will be crucial. “I think the family makes a bigger sacrifice than the deacon,” he explained.
“The deacon always needs to keep that in mind while serving and pay special attention to one’s relationship at home,” he continued. “It would be a mistake if a ministry drove a family apart.”
In his 20 years of ministry, Deacon Kruse said the biggest joy is in “sharing the love of Christ with others and helping to point the way to Christ.”
He added, “It is always enjoyable to witness another person’s faith grow, which also nurtures my own faith.”