Testimonials
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Jon and Rosie Zatkulak,
campaign general chairs
Share a bit about your history at SLDM, relationship to the school and ministries you're involved in. Parishioners since we got married in 1986. All 5 kids went through the school and received their sacraments of initiation at the parish.
Rosie has always been active in our Respect Life Ministry, was a founding PTO board member and participated in parish Bible Study and various Women's Groups, where she met many of her closest friends over the years.
Jon served as SLDM's Confirmation Coordinator for 20 years and spent 4 years as our parish Director of Operations.
We have both been committed weekly adorers since 1995, have participated in several small group studies and launched our Brazil Mission Sister Parish ministry in 2001. We also both enjoyed our CRHP, Rescue, and other retreat/formation experiences.
Why are you supporting this capital campaign?
We understand the existing needs of our current parish community and welcome the chance to be active participants in solving our challenges, while setting our parish on a path for even greater success.
Which project (new church or adoration chapel) are you most excited about and why?
Both, because they will bring us to a heightened level of worship and community which aligns nicely with our parish growth and Master Plan.
How has the growth impacted your experience at SLDM?
The growth has been nothing but positive in our minds. It has brought a greater sense of energy/community and increased our prayer and ministry involvement.
What does leaving a legacy mean to you?
It's an opportunity to "pay it forward". It allows us to celebrate those who have sacrificed so much over the years and provided experiences and faith moments our family has benefited from.
What benefits do you see to unifying the campus?
It will undoubtedly bring our parish closer together in community and more efficient in the way we function.
What does sacred beauty mean to you?
It draws us into a greater awareness, appreciation and desire to be closer to God, which will nurture our spiritual growth. Beauty invokes reverence and awe for God from the moment we enter any sacred space.
What would you say to someone who is on the fence on whether they should support this campaign?
Prayerfully discern (in our Adoration Chapel) if and where God is inviting you to participate in our Mission.
Any other comments you'd like to share?
Being actively involved in this campaign has opened our eyes to what's possible if we truly unite our efforts in seeking and being obedient to God's will.
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Dave & Jane Reitz
Campaign General Chairs
Share a bit about your history at SLDM, relationship to the school and ministries you're involved in.We have been members of SLDM since moving to Fishers in the fall of 1989. Jane was involved with the Elect Lady women's group and taught children's religious education for several years. She currently helps coordinate subs for the adoration chapel.
Dave has been an active member of the Knights of Columbus since 1990. He was a member of CRHP Team 1 and served as a mass lector and high school confirmation teacher for many years.
We both served on parish council. Upon opening of SLDM Catholic School, our youngest daughter was able to attend the school for three years.
We continue to participate in an annual bible study with couples from the parish.
Why are you supporting this capital campaign?
As long time SLDM parishioners, we have seen the parish grow and prosper over the past 35 years. We are grateful to build a church and chapel that will inspire faith and prayer in future generations.
Which project (new church or adoration chapel) are you most excited about and why?
We are very excited about both projects. Building a larger Catholic church with a more traditional sanctuary and sacred art will enhance our worship experience. We believe a larger and more spiritually designed adoration chapel will encourage and accommodate more adorers.
How has the growth impacted your experience at SLDM?
The parish has grown significantly over the years, particularly since the opening of the school in 2000. The church can definitely feel crowded at times with people standing in the back and the narthex. We definitely need a new adoration chapel because there are times when a person does not a have a place to sit or kneel. Our parish hall no longer has the capacity to host many of the large parish events.
What does leaving a legacy mean to you?
Building a new church and adoration chapel will not only serve our parish today but for generations to come.
What benefits do you see to unifying the campus?
Unifying the campus will benefit both parishioners and visitors. Having a parish hall connected to the church will be more convenient for people attending community events after mass. Also, it will enable people with mobility challenges to better access the new church, chapel and parish hall.
What does sacred beauty mean to you?
Sacred beauty means having a church with beautiful sacred art, statues, windows, etc. that inspire us in prayer and help strengthen our faith.
What would you say to someone who is on the fence on whether they should support this campaign?
It's an opportunity to do something few people in this world get to do...build a new Catholic church and adoration chapel! Everything we have is a gift from God. Supporting this campaign will allow us to glorify God through our giving of Time, Talent and Treasure.
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Colin & Catie Raymond
SLDM Parishioners
Our journey to Saint Louis de Montfort Parish has been an adventure, each chapter marked with a new set of moving boxes. After moving from Georgia to Seattle for Colin’s commitment as an Infantry Officer in the Army, new professional and family priorities took us through Ohio and Texas. While we learned and grew with each move, we felt God was calling us to something more stable and secure. As we considered what kind of future God was calling us towards, we realized that the central puzzle piece we had fit all of life around was “the job.” We knew that God was leading us towards something different. He called us to center our life around Him, and build everything else around our Catholic faith.
I was familiar with the Saint Louis de Montfort from growing up in Indianapolis and attending another Catholic school in the area. On visiting the school and the church, it was abundantly clear that the SLDM community was reflecting God’s love! Every encounter we had with school administrators, parents of students at the school, and the pastor, filled us with a sense of welcome and invitation. It felt like the whole community was telling us “knock and the door will be opened to you.” What a beautiful living example of Christ’s invitation to us!
After much prayer and discernment, our children were admitted to SLDM and we sent our intention to move to Indiana from Texas. We have been attending mass at SLDM for about 5 months, and our children went to VBS and have started school there this year. They have learned so much about the saints, especially Saint Carlos Acutis through the awesome week at VBS. They have learned a lot about the sanctity of the mass through the amazing Catechesis of the Good Shepherd program. Having them attend Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is such a great building block for the foundation of their faith. We are also inspired by some of the young seminarians that have been parishioners at SLDM.
I think for me, SLDM will always be an answer to my prayers. After several cross-country moves and years of attending church in one place with school in another place, we were ready to build our lives around Christ in every aspect. With many Catholic schools on a waitlist, we didn’t know if it would be possible to move to Indiana and have our kids go to Catholic school. I prayed countless rosaries when we lived in Texas with the intention of “Please God, help us follow your plan for your family (and please let that plan be Saint Louis!).” Every day we go to mass or that our kids go to school, is a concrete reminder of how God has provided for my family and answered my prayers.
Our confidence that we had discerned God’s will came, in part, when Fr. Haan announced the Master plan, a mere three weeks after we committed to SLDM. We’ve never heard the audible voice of God in our prayer life, but the investment the community was preparing to make served as a concrete invitation from Christ. The idea that this beautiful new campus could be the place where our children and perhaps even grandchildren will worship filled us with joy and hope. We hope and pray that our family and hundreds of others encounter the Truth, Goodness, and Beauty of the Church through the construction of not just new buildings, but a new life in Christ – the central puzzle piece around which all the others fit.