CHARLOTTE — The following deacons were recently assigned or transferred by Bishop Michael Martin, OFM Conv., the Diocese of Charlotte Permanent Deacons Office has announced:
Deacon Adhur (Ari) Lekovic to St. Ann Parish in Charlotte. Ordained in 2017 for the Archdiocese of New York, his ministries included presiding at baptisms, funeral services, and working with his wife Elsa in youth ministry and women’s retreats. The Lekovics, who moved to Charlotte in 2024, have been married 25 years and have six children. At St. Ann Parish he assists at Mass and works with OCIA.
Deacon James Strominger to St. Philip the Apostle Parish in Statesville. He was ordained for the Diocese of Cincinnati in 2019, where he worked in counseling with high school students. Deacon Strominger moved to Statesville in 2023 to be closer to family. At St. Philip, his ministries include Bible study, OCIA and visiting the homebound.
Deacon Crescenzo (Chris) Vigliotta from St. Gabriel Parish to St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Charlotte. Ordained in 1983 for the Diocese of Rockville Center, Deacon Vigliotta served at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Center Moriches, New York, for 25 years and in the Diocese of Hartford, Connecticut, where his focus was prison ministry. Deacon Vigliotta and his wife Elizabeth have been married 58 years and they moved to North Carolina in 2018 to be closer to family. At St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Deacon Vigliotta is assisting at Mass and visiting the homebound.
Deacon Jack Yarbrough from Our Lady of Grace Parish in Greensboro to St. Pius X Parish, also in Greensboro. Deacon Yarbrough was ordained for the Diocese of Charlotte in 2018. He and his wife Rachel have been married 38 years. His ministries include visiting the homebound and the incarcerated, ministering at an addiction recovery facility, and teaching deacon formation classes.
— Catholic News Herald
CHARLOTTE — Bishop Michael Martin will commemorate the feast of St. Patrick with Masses at two historic Irish churches in the Diocese of Charlotte.
While the diocese dates from 1972, Catholics have lived in the Carolinas since the United States was founded. In the early 1800s, Irish immigrants put down roots – mostly stonemasons and tradesmen who found work with the railroads, in construction and in mines near Charlotte, where prospectors had struck gold.
Old St. Joseph Church, March 17
On Monday, March 17, Mass will be offered at 9 a.m. at Old St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly, the mother church for Catholics in western North Carolina and one of the oldest Catholic churches still standing in the state.
The Greek Revival style wooden frame church was built in 1843 by Irish immigrants, who had come to search for gold along the Catawba River.
No longer an active parish, today Old St. Joseph Church is used for special occasions such at the feasts of St. Patrick and St. Joseph in March, and tours are available by request through Queen of the Apostles Church in Belmont.
Hosted by the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, the annual Mass pays tribute to the first Catholic families in western North Carolina and their beloved first pastor, the Irish-born Father T.J. Cronin. Prayers at Father Cronin’s graveside will be said prior to Mass (depending on the weather).
All are welcome to attend the Mass at the church, which is located at N.C. 273 and Sandy Ford Road.
St. Patrick Cathedral, March 16
On Sunday, March 16, Bishop Martin will also celebrate the 9 a.m. Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral, located at 1621 Dilworth Road East in Charlotte.
Construction on St. Patrick Church began on March 17, 1938, St. Patrick’s Day, thanks to a donation from John Henry Phelan in honor of his parents. It was built adjacent to the O’Donoghue School (now St. Patrick School), and dedicated by Raleigh Bishop Eugene J. McGuinness on Sept. 4, 1939. In 1972, Bishop-elect Michael J. Begley chose it as the cathedral for the new diocese, and the newly elevated cathedral served as the location for his ordination and installation on Jan. 12, 1972.
Both historic churches are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
— Catholic News Herald
Singing bars behind bars
Inmates lift their voices in praise. (Photos by Giuliana Polinari Riley | Catholic News Herald)FOREST CITY — The quaint white chapel has wooden pews, hymnals, an altar – everything a typical little church would have, except it’s surrounded by a barbed wire fence, has cinderblock walls and its parishioners are inmates of the Rutherford Correctional Institution in Spindale.
At 87, Deacon Andy Cilone is the last active deacon from the first class of deacons ordained for the Diocese of Charlotte in 1983. Although he retired over 10 years ago, he stays busy assisting Father Herbert Burke at Immaculate Conception Parish on weekends, bringing Holy Communion to the sick, singing at local nursing homes, and bringing his voice and hope to prisoners like those here.
Deacon Cilone knows the Rutherford facility well. He has been in and out of the prison that houses 236 for the past 30 years. Deacon John Gallen, another 1983 deacon graduate, initially invited him to come to prison. He has yet to stay out.
“Jesus said, ‘When I was in prison, you visited me,’ ” he explains. “That’s why I do this – to visit Jesus.”
John the Baptist, St. John, St. Peter, St. Silas, St. Paul and, of course, Jesus – all were prisoners. They were, in a way, present in the pews alongside the 10 or so inmates in the chapel for Deacon Cilone’s concert. Watch him sing here.
Deacon Andy Cilone, 87, has been bringing his voice to inmates of the Rutherford Correctional Institution in Spindale and two other jails.
Raising voices in praise
These men are part of the prison choir, geared up with keyboard, guitar and voices fully prepared to praise the Lord along with Deacon Cilone. Some of the inmates had sung in a choir since high school or can remember singing in church as children, but most came to it recently. Like the keyboardist who has been steadily learning since his incarceration date.
Deacon Cilone brought his set list of Catholic hymns, oldies but goodies, and some classic Italian songs. The inmates had their own set of contemporary spiritual songs planned.
He weaved songs with spiritual teaching, constantly referring to the Bible. Each time he mentioned a verse, pages quickly flipped – Psalm 96 for “Sing to the Lord a New Song” and then to
Psalm 91 for “On Eagle’s Wings.” As he shared words of inspiration and hope, he received a resounding “Amen” or an echoing “Alleluia.”
The incarcerated men raised their tattooed arms and joined Deacon Cilone in harmony singing a jailhouse version of “Amazing Grace.” After he sang “Ave Maria” in Latin, he saw the faces stare back at him. “That song always brings people to tears,” he smiles.
But that day the surprise was on Deacon Cilone as the inmates paired up and sang their own song with the repeated chorus, “I’m never going back.”
Side by side, they sang their promise to God and to one another, while Deacon Cilone rested his lungs and enjoyed the raw spirituality of the moment.
Inspired to assist
Deacon Cilone didn’t always bring his vocals to prison with him. He was inspired after watching an EWTN program about a musician who sang in prisons. Performing at a prison altar was not something he was used to, but he was a singer, a deacon and in the prison ministry, so it made sense, he says. “I thought, well, I can try something like that.”
Today, he serves more than one prison. He brings rosaries and sings hymns mixed with Scripture on an on-call basis at the Rutherford County Jail and twice a month at the Marion Correctional Institute. Nowadays, he gets tired more easily and is seeking helpers for the ministry.
Joining the prison ministry is a bit of an involved process. Volunteers fill out an application, pass a background check, then go through training and a probationary period before getting issued a “blue card” permitting them to serve. Each prison issues its own blue card.
“Two men are in the process of getting their blue card at Rutherford and one is getting theirs for the Marion facility,” Deacon Cilone says excitedly, as he is now the only Catholic serving those two prisons.
Rutherford Correctional Institution is a minimum-security prison, with prisoners set for release soon. To acclimate them to “life on the outside,” prison volunteers sometimes apply for a “salmon card” (allowing them to take prisoners outside the walls). Deacon Cilone uses his to help prisoners receive the sacraments and get in the habit of going to Mass before their eventual release.
“I pick them up at 4 o’clock, take them to confession and Mass at 5 o’clock. Then we go out to eat,” Deacon Cilone says.
The inmates open up to him about their life, their future, their goals and aspirations – the new person they hope to become when they get out. It is not uncommon for ex-convicts to regularly call or write to him and report their triumphs.
“There are some success stories, some are doing great, but some inevitably go back into the system,” he says.
The good stories may not outweigh the bad, but hearing them still moves Deacon Cilone in his later years to continue to act.
“There are a lot of things you can do to help people, and the prison ministry is one of the ones I was fortunate to get involved in,” he says. “We are always looking for more volunteers.”
— Lisa Geraci
Learn more
Find out about the diocese’s Prison Ministry at www.charlottediocese.org/offices/prison-ministry.
Interested in getting involved? Email Interim Prison Ministry Coordinator David Coe at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..