October 2004 - Father Leroy Clementich, CSC
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Day in, day out (usually seven days a week), "Father Clem" is either working at one of his "desk jobs" - he is both the Director of Pastoral Education for the Archdiocese of Anchorage and the coordinator of rural ministry - or he's flying (often the pilot himself) to one of a number of rural parishes to minister to Catholics who don't have a resident pastor. In the past 11 years of his work here, he has become a beloved mentor, advisor, and confidant to the faithful who live in these communities in the Bristol Bay area parishes in Dillingham, Naknek, King Salmon, and other smaller villages and towns.
Winters are famously ferocious and challenging here, and Father Clem could easily have decided to live in a more hospitable environment. He could have chosen a place where you don't need to bundle up and cover your face all the way up to your eyes just to get the newspaper on the front steps, or carry a spare blanket and chains for your tires and a survival blanket in your trunk. But Father Clem has made this Alaska mission his life, and for many remote parishioners, he is the sole connection to the physical Church that they have, and their gratitude to him and the Catholic Extension for helping to make his work possible is apparent.
"I like to meet the people," he laughs. "It's exciting to bring the Word of Christ to people who don't have the opportunity to attend Mass every week. Sure, it's more demanding - the towns are scattered and often inaccessible, the congregations small, the resources limited - but it has been a very, very rewarding ministry."
Though rewarding, Father Clem's ministry also has its challenges. Piloting a plane through the treacherous mountain ranges and adverse weather conditions of Alaska can be hazardous. In fact, several years ago, a plane crash claimed the life of one of Fr. Clem's fellow circuit priests who was on his way to minister to isolated Catholics some 800 miles away from Anchorage. Since that tragedy, Father Clem has increased his travels to that area to help Catholics maintain their spiritual life there.
As a boy, Father Clem attended a one-room schoolhouse and grew up on a North Dakota ranch. He remembers being inspired by a missionary priest who brought Mass and the sacraments to his small church, and felt a calling to his future ministry.
Never did the Holy Cross priest and Notre Dame University graduate imagine he would end up serving as a missionary in Alaska. In fact, it is "beyond my wildest dreams," he says. "Everybody says 'you ought to retire.' Why should I stop if I can do what I'm doing and people appreciate it."
Father Clem is known for his quick smile and easy humility of a favorite high school teacher - a role he, in fact, fulfilled early in his ministry. Although he is highly educated, with three Master's degrees to his credit, he remains one of the most personable, down-to-earth, and humble priests you could ever hope to meet. His door is always wide open, and he is a magnet for those from all walks of live seeking help in their personal lives.
In this bitterly cold, dark, and frozen region, faithful Catholics in the Anchorage diocese can always rely on the shining light of hope and warmth of Father Leroy Clementich.
To learn more about helping a sacrificing missionary like Fr. Clem, please click here: Mission Partner