Three dads will be ordained in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo on Saturday, May 29, at 10 a.m. in St. Joseph Cathedral, 50 Franklin St., Buffalo. Through the imposition of hands by Bishop Edward U. Kmiec, bishop of Buffalo, and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, these men will become permanent deacons, joining 125 other deacons in the diocese.

Michael T. Dulak, Samuel Pellerito and Donald C. Weigel Jr. have diligently studied for years to reach this point. After five years of discernment, including supervised pastoral field ministry formation, they’ve reached their goal of being ordained to the diaconate and will be assigned to diaconal ministry in a parish, health care or educational setting, or prison ministry. In addition to their church responsibilities, these deacons will maintain their secular jobs.

Deacon Gregory L. Feary, director of formation for the diaconate, summarized this year’s class of deacons.

“Historically we see that permanent deacons come from all areas of life,” he said, “this class in particular, a small business owner, a retired public school teacher who is now an administrator at a Catholic elementary school and a retired executive of a business who now works in the education field at Christ the King Seminary.”

Deacon Dulak, a resident of Hamburg, is a New York state licensed optician and proprietor of Blasdell Village Optical. He and his wife, Lynn, are the parents of three boys and belong to Our Mother of Good Counsel Parish in Blasdell. Dulak has been active in his parish as a lector, Eucharistic minister, catechist and Respect Life coordinator. His pastoral field ministry was at St. Luke’s Mission of Mercy in Buffalo.

“I wanted to become a deacon because love wishes to express itself in service,” explained Dulak. “To serve Christ, the Church and others as an expression of that love is a great blessing, a source of joy.”

Deacon Pellerito has a similar view of being called to the diaconate. “Serving the Lord and His people has always been a priority in my life and with the help of the Holy Spirit, I am looking forward to spending the rest of my life in this ministry of service,” he said.

Principal of Catholic Academy of the Holy Family, Jamestown, Pellerito and his wife, Kathleen, parents of two daughters and a son, are members of St. James Parish, Jamestown. At the parish, he has served as a Eucharistic minister, lector, catechist and a member of the choir, the bereavement committee and the parish council. As part of his field ministry, Pellerito served in a variety of programs including Pre-Cana, Family Worship Theatre, Cursillo and Koinonia, as well as volunteering at WCA Hospital and a soup kitchen.

Deacon Weigel, husband of Kathleen and father of two daughters and a son, is an adjunct faculty member at D’Youville College and also teaches at Christ the King Seminary, East Aurora. He is an active member of his parish, Immaculate Conception, East Aurora. He has served as a lector, Eucharistic minister, adult formation coordinator, Peace and Justice committee member and a spiritual advisor for the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

I really believe that the Holy Spirit has called me to this ministry,” Weigel said. “In the last five years of formation and spiritual direction, I have come to appreciate more clearly what this call and this ministry is about. I look forward to being able to share my continual learning of the meaning of this ministry with everyone in my parish as well as those to whom I am ministering outside of the parish. In some small way, I pray that my ministry and my life will witness to the Gospel and will radiate the diaconal ministry of Jesus, who came not to be served, but to serve.”

While fulfilling his field ministry requirements, Weigel served in the Collins Correctional Christian Ministry program, worked in the diocesan Office of Parish Life and with the Social Justice Collaborative and Catholic Charities.

Permanent deacons, men who are ordained as deacons but do not continue on to the priesthood, can officiate at weddings, baptisms, funerals and wakes. They may also preach and distribute Holy Communion. The United States leads the world in the number of permanent deacons.