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CHARLOTTE — “The faith is something that needs to be lived out day-to-day,” said Deacon Joseph Yellico.

For the six men who will be ordained priests June 14, the beauty of the Catholic faith has unfolded from their roots in St. Joseph College Seminary to the doorsteps of the priesthood that awaits them.

One of them, Deacon Yellico, reminds us that in the monotony of daily routine, we can easily lose sight of the “wonder” of our faith.

For the first time, all the men being ordained priests for the Diocese of Charlotte started their formation within the diocese at its St. Joseph College Seminary. This diverse class brings men from parishes across the diocese. They are:

• Deacon Christopher William Angermeyer, 28, of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Charlotte
• Deacon Anthony del Cid Lucero, 30, of St. Joseph Parish in Newton
• Deacon Nicholas James Kramer, 25, of St. Margaret Mary Parish in Swannanoa
• Deacon Kolbe Raymond Murrey, 25, of St. John the Baptist Parish in Tryon
• Deacon Andrew Jeffery Templeton, 26, of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Gastonia
• Deacon Joseph Gerard Yellico, 30, of St. Mark Parish in Huntersville.

All are welcome to the Ordination Mass

• When: 9 a.m. Saturday, June 14
• Where: St. Mark Church, 14740 Stumptown Road, Huntersville, N.C. 28078.
• Seating: Once seating inside St. Mark Church is at capacity, overflow seating will be in the St. Mark School Gym. Ushers will direct people upon arrival.
• Additional parking: St. Mark's parking lot will fill quickly, so overflow parking with shuttle service will be available starting at 7:30 a.m. from nearby Grand Oaks Elementary School at 15410 Stumptown Road.
• Reception and first blessings: Stay for the reception and light refreshments after Mass at 11 a.m. in the Monsignor Kerin Center. The new priests will offer first blessings from 1 to 3 p.m. inside the church.
• Can't attend in person? Watch from anywhere with our livestream. Follow along with the Mass here. 

‘Looking forward to serving in a parish’

The six men recently received their Master of Divinity degrees from Mount St. Mary’s Seminary and School of Theology in Cincinnati, Ohio, the final academic step of their formation.

Deacon Murrey, who also received a Master of Arts in Theology, said he is excited about becoming a priest.

“I’m most looking forward to serving in a parish,” he noted. Deacon Murrey said that during his summer assignments and ministering as a deacon, he’s seen that the life of a priest is being in the parish. “I’m excited to be with the people and in a parish and bringing them to Our Lord on a daily basis.”

He is one of three deacons who entered the college seminary shortly after high school, making him and Deacons Kramer and Templeton three of the younger priests to be ordained.

Deacon Kramer is also the first from “Charlie class,” the third class at St. Joseph College Seminary, to be ordained priests.

Not having to leave the diocese to take the leap to seminary, Deacon Kramer said, is one of the reasons he is days away from becoming a priest. Being able to easily visit the seminary before he made a commitment and then to stay within the diocese – with other students he knows and with priests he has known – played a vital role in building his vocational foundation.

“It is a really important thing for us early on in our formation to get connected to our diocese, because for us, our diocese is the place in which, unless the bishop decides to send me somewhere else, I will be ministering for the rest of my life,” Deacon Kramer said. “It’s very important to know your diocese and for them to know you, so that when you do show up at their parish 10 years down the road, you’re not a new face.”

Deacon Templeton said he’s looking forward to the beautiful moments he’s going to have as a priest, from his first confession to his first Mass and first anointing.

In addition to the seminary, the diocese has helped foster many vocations through its programs.
Quo Vadis Days, a week-long vocation discernment camp for young men, helped several deacons determine their path to the priesthood at an early age. Deacon Angermeyer, for example, attended the diocese’s first camp in 2013.

“It was very helpful in being able to talk to priests and discuss how to live a good life, how to live a holy life, so I can actually hear my call,” Deacon Angermeyer said. “It was very influential on actually helping me develop my spiritual life so that I could actually hear our Lord’s call.”

It was always exciting to see the Church outside of just my parish,” he recalls of going to the annual event as a young child. “I saw people from different backgrounds and kids my own age engaging in the faith in a deeper way.”

Any time a classmate becomes a priest, Deacon Yellico says, it’s inspirational because they’ve played a role in each other’s vocational path. Yet Deacon Yellico, the first from the “Delta class” – the fourth class at St. Joseph College Seminary – is especially excited to be receiving holy orders alongside five others who walked the same path.

“We’re going to be serving this diocese, who has been so generous to us. But not only are we going to be serving it, but we’re going to be serving it together as brothers,” he said. “Even when we’re dispersed among the diocese at different parishes that we’re going to, we’ll still be doing it as a fraternity.”

Deacon Angermeyer said it’s a blessing to be among the first full class from St. Joseph College Seminary to be ordained to the priesthood together.

“My brothers are the ones that can challenge me at times and push me to go farther, to be holier, to pursue Our Lord more, and to grow in virtue,” he said.

As diversity in the diocese continues to grow, Deacon del Cid Lucero said he hopes to help unify the communities as one Church.

“Our faith is what’s going to bring us to salvation. One of the things that I hope to work on is bringing communities together – the English-speaking community, the Hispanic community. We’re here to work together to continue building the Church of God. We are one universal Church,” he said.

— Kimberly Bender. Photos and videos by Troy C. Hull and Will Creter

Vesting the new priests

During the June 14 Mass, the newly ordained priests remove their deacon’s stoles and are presented with the symbols of their new office in the Church: a priestly stole and chasuble (vestment). This moment is known as the “investiture.” The priests are assisted by other priests they have personally chosen to vest them.

• Deacon Christopher Angermeyer: Father Matthew Codd, pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas in Charlotte
• Deacon Anthony del Cid Lucero: Father Tim Reid, pastor of St. Ann Church in Charlotte
• Deacon Nicholas Kramer: 
• Deacon Kolbe Murrey: Father Matthew Buettner, spiritual director of St. Joseph College Seminary
• Deacon Andrew Templeton: Father James Ebright, priest in residence at St. Michael the Archangel in Gastonia
• Deacon Joseph Yellico: Father John Putnam, pastor at St. Mark Church in Huntersville

First Masses of Thanksgiving

Following their ordination, the new priests will offer first Masses at their home parishes on Sunday, June 15:

• Deacon Christopher Angermeyer: 2 p.m. at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte. Homilist: Monsignor Patrick Winslow, vicar general and chancellor of the Diocese of Charlotte.
• Deacon Anthony del Cid Lucero: 11:45 a.m. Spanish Mass at St. Joseph Church in Newton. Homilist: Father Alphonso Gomez, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Lenoir.
• Deacon Nicholas Kramer: 2:30 p.m. at St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville. Homilist: Father Brian Becker, vocations promoter for the Diocese of Charlotte.
• Deacon Kolbe Murrey: 11 a.m. at St. John the Baptist Church in Tryon. Homilist: Father Matthew Kauth, rector of St. Joseph College Seminary.
• Deacon Andrew Templeton: 9 a.m. at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia. Homilist: Father Tim Reid, pastor of St. Ann Parish in Charlotte.
• Deacon Joseph Yellico: 9 a.m. at St. Mark Church in Huntersville. Homilist: Father John Putnam, pastor of St. Mark Parish.

Meet the priests-to-be

Deacon Christopher William Angermeyer

Home parish: St. Thomas Aquinas, Charlotte
Birthplace and raised in: Charlotte
Age: 28

How do you feel like your parish contributed to your vocation and a rising number of vocations from St. Thomas Aquinas in Charlotte?

“It helped that the parish is diverse with people from all different backgrounds, so you get to experience the world-wide Catholic faith. One of the biggest things that shaped me was the prayers of the people. There are people who would pray the rosary every single week for vocations and that has led us to have a good amount of vocations come from St. Thomas Aquinas Parish.”

Deacon Anthony del Cid Lucero

Home parish: St. Joseph, Newton
Birthplace and raised in: Hickory, N.C.
Age: 30

When did you first realize you had a call to the priesthood?

“My serious discernment began the year I graduated from high school. I knew that I was called to do great things in life. I always saw the love my parents had for Our Lord and the Blessed Mother and was something that I wanted to have from a young age. As a young adult outside of high school, I started to really ask God what He wanted from me. From there I noticed my profound longing for the Lord in prayer, service, and in the sacraments. The Blessed Virgin Mary was also always a guide through my discernment.”

Deacon Nicholas James Kramer

Home parish: St. Margaret Mary, Swannanoa
Birthplace: Omaha, Nebraska
Raised in: Old Fort, NC
Age: 25

What is something someone would be surprised to learn about you?

“For a while in high school, I worked as a mountain bike mechanic in downtown Asheville. It was a really fun job. I always loved the mechanical aspects of things and mountain biking and riding. I got an opportunity later in high school to work as a mechanic, which in of itself was a lot of fun and then working downtown Asheville, was its own little adventure because the characters that frequented our shop were a lot of fun to hang out with.”

Deacon Kolbe Raymond Murrey

Home parish: St. John the Baptist, Tryon
Birthplace: Durham
Raised in: Mills River, NC
Age: 25

What's something people would be surprised to learn about you?

“Something people would be surprised to learn about me is that when I was in high school, I started keeping bees. I had a good friend who had kind of started doing that. I was like, ‘Oh, that's interesting. I guess I'll do that as well.’” The bees are still at his family’s house, he said, and his mom takes care of them while he’s been at seminary. Murrey said he doesn’t plan to bring the bees to his parish assignment, but he wouldn’t mind helping with the bees at St. Matthew. (Read that story here.)

Deacon Andrew Jeffery Templeton

Home parish: St. Michael the Archangel, Gastonia
Birthplace and raised in: Gastonia, NC
Age: 26

What's something people would be surprised to learn about you?

“Something that people would be surprised to learn about me is that I'm afraid of heights and I don't like roller coasters, but I want to learn how to fly a plane. It’s a bit of an ironic thing.”

Deacon Joseph Gerard Yellico

Home parish: St. Mark, Huntersville
Birthplace: Long Island, New York, moved to North Carolina in 2006
Age: 30

What role does music play in your vocation?

“Music always has been a source of consolation and comfort for me. It’s also helped me look at how faith and reason are not two separate things, but they're complementary to each other.

“You have the theory of music, which is more mathematical and abstract, and then you have the artistry of music. Both of those things work together. So, in the same way, in theological training, you have the abstract; the philosophical principles that you follow within that. But at the same time, there's just so much beauty that's just around that and a part of it.

“So music has really been a source of reflection of kind of a bunch of different aspects of reality.