The concluding day of the 41st Huether Lasallian Conference in Chicago brought Lasallians together for morning prayer and a final general session that featured an eye-opening, motivational presentation from John Donahue-Grossman November 22.
Prayer, organized by the Regional Vocation Formation Committee, centered on the power of invitation and asking God to open hearts to hope, deep faith, ardent zeal, vocational calls, and to the promise of the future. Various Lasallians offered personal thoughts on what being Lasallian means to them and who invited them to the mission.
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John Donohue-Grossman
Following prayer, John Donahue-Grossman, director of retreats at La Salle Manor Retreat Center in Plano, Illinois, delivered Saturday’s general session entitled “Call to Action,” which was sponsored by Christian Brothers Services. During the interactive closing session, participants focused on the practical nature of their experiences during Huether 2014. Through personal reflection and small and large group sharing, participants generated best practices to take home to their ministries within the context of the conference theme of Lasallian Mission: Word, Witness and Invitation.
“I loved it. He had a great message about evangelization and it makes us want to continue the work that we are doing,” said John Dowdell, principal of San Miguel School in Tulsa. “He wasn’t too sparing with the jokes, which is always great. He had a great sense of humor.”
Donahue-Grossman ended his presentation with suggestions on how attendees can help their students get in touch with God. He told them to reflect, look for God’s revelation, and respond to the revelation.
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Dr. Kevin Gyolai, president of Benilde-St. Margaret School
First-time Huether participant Philippe Blais, who is a counselor at Centre Notre-Dame de la Rouge, Québec, Canada, is leaving Chicago with a lot of ideas to take back to his ministry.
“I really enjoyed it. It was really great to meet people from the Lasallian community. We are a little bit far in Montreal, in Canada, but it is great to see we are not alone,” said Blaise. “To share what we do with people here and to see that it can be useful to what they are living here in the United States, it is great.”
The conference will conclude with Mass and the Distinguished Lasallian Educator Awards Reception and Banquet Saturday evening at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza, the conference site.
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