News Briefs: Annual drive to benefit needy MADISON -- The annual move-out drive sponsored by the St. Vincent de Paul Society will be held Saturday, Aug. 10, through Thursday, Aug. 15. Non-perishable food items, usable furniture, clothing, and household items may be dropped off at Holy Redeemer Parish, 120 W. Johnson St., and Lot 51, on Mills St. near the corner of Regent St. and Mills St. Staffing the drop-off points from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. will be volunteers from the Holy Redeemer and St. Paul's University Catholic Center chapters of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Donated items will go to the St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores and directly to people in need, said Ralph Middlecamp, executive director of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. "It's a big help." Support groups for divorced, separated MADISON -- New Directions is a peer support group for those hurting from separation, divorce, or loss of a significant relationship. The next meeting will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 8, at St. Dennis Parish Center, 505 Dempsey Rd., top floor. Open to all ages and faith. For more information, call Ron at 608-835-2907. Friends on a Journey is a peer support group for those hurting from separation, divorce, or loss of a significant relationship. The next meeting will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, at Our Lady Queen of Peace nursery, 401 S. Owen Drive. Open to all ages and faith. For more information, call Paul at 608-862-3613. Concert by Michael O'Brien in Hazel Green HAZEL GREEN -- The St. Patrick's Prayer Group of Benton is sponsoring a new concert by Michael O'Brien. It will be held at St. Francis de Sales Hall, Hazel Green, on Friday, Aug. 16, at 7 p.m. Tickets at $7 each are available by calling 608-759-5855.

Retired Chief Justice Day named committee chair

By Bill Brophy
OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS

MADISON -- Retired Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court Roland B. Day has been named chairman of the Diocese of Madison Review Board on Sexual Abuse, Bishop William H. Bullock announced.

In responding to the U.S. Bishops' "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People,'' Bullock established a five-member board which includes Joseph Tisserand, vice-president of American Family Life Insurance; Colleen O'Brien, the program director and consultant for the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Program in Madison; Dr. Peter Lake, medical director of Child and Adolescent Services at Rogers Memorial Hospital in Oconomowoc; and Msgr. James Gunn, pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish in Waunakee. Their terms are for five years.

Board's purpose

"The purpose of the board is threefold," said Bullock. "First, to review at least every two years the diocesan sexual abuse policy and recommend to the Bishop of Madison appropriate modifications. Second, to assess allegations of sexual abuse of children or minors by any priest or other Church personnel and to advise the Bishop of Madison as to whether the allegations appear to be credible.

"Third, the board will develop an appropriate methodology for implementing the charter and norms (established by the bishops in Dallas last month) for the Diocese of Madison.''

Bullock said he asked the board to advise him regarding listening sessions for victims of sexual abuse. He said it was his desire that work of the board be "thorough and handled as quickly as possible to assure justice and assistance to victims of sexual abuse and any priest accused of sexual abuse of minors."

Chief Justice Roland Day

Chief Justice Roland Day was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court by Gov. Patrick J. Lucey on Aug. 1, 1974, elected to a 10-year term in April, 1976, re-elected in April, 1986, and named chief justice Aug. 1, 1995.

Day, who was raised in Eau Claire and received his undergraduate and law degree at the University of Wisconsin, is also a former member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. He was in private practice of law for 27 years before going to bench and served as legal counsel to U.S. Senator William Proxmire in Washington in 1957-58.

While on the court, Day has served on the Judicial Council and the Council on Criminal Justice. He was chairman of the Wisconsin Bicentennial on the Constitution from 1986-1991. Day retired from the State Supreme Court on July 31, 1996.

Colleen O'Brien

Colleen O'Brien helped develop the SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) Program in Madison. The former head nurse of emergency services of Madison General Hospital from 1978-85, O'Brien became the clinical director of the SANE program from 1988 to 1996 and began teaching in the program from 1999 until now.

O'Brien, a resident of Ridgeway, teaches forensic nursing and assists communities in developing SANE programs throughout the country.

Dr. Peter Lake

Dr. Peter Lake has served in his current position as medical director of child and adolescent services at Rogers Memorial since 1999. He served in the Department of Psychiatry at Physicians Plus in Madison from 1993 to 1998 and also was assistant medical director of Mental Health Management and Consultant System.

Lake, a Madison resident, also was the clinic director for the Children's Unit at Parkway Hospital from 1991 to 1993.

Joe Tisserand

Joe Tisserand is a former police officer who has served in several management positions with American Family Insurance and is currently the vice president of the Life Company and Health Division.

He is a Madison resident who is a former president of Catholic Charities.

Msgr. Jim Gunn

Msgr. Jim Gunn has been the pastor at St. John the Baptist Parish in Waunakee for the past three years. He was ordained in 1977 and has served as the Diocese of Madison's Director of Vocations as well as pastor at Holy Ghost Parish in Dickeyville and St. Joseph Parish in Edgerton.

He is currently a Consultor of the diocese and was named Monsignor in August, 2000.

Delegation visits Ghana:
Global Solidarity Partnership links dioceses

By Mary C. Uhler
CATHOLIC HERALD STAFF

(See also front page photo.)

MADISON -- On Sunday, July 28, a seven-person delegation from the Diocese of Madison left for a visit to Ghana as part of the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Global Solidarity Partnership Program.

The program seeks to build relationships between groups of parishes and people in the United States with parishes and people outside of U.S. borders.

Building solidarity

"In these relationships opportunities are created to work for justice, build solidarity, and provide mutual understanding as well as faith sharing and learning," said J. Mark Brinkmoeller, director of the Diocese of Madison's Office for Justice and Peace, which spearheaded the program here along with the Justice and Peace Committee of the diocesan Presbyteral Council.

"The mechanism or bridge for the link is the CRS program in place in specific countries," he explained.

Malone Miller from CRS will accompany the Madison delegation. She returned recently from a two-week visit to the Diocese of Navrongo-Bolgatanga in Ghana to lay the groundwork for the trip.

"Both dioceses are starting with the same information," she said, pointing out that the relationship will develop with input from both Ghana and Madison people. "This partnership will grow and evolve as each diocese learns more about each other," said Miller.

CRS in Ghana

CRS has been working in Ghana since 1958. Since the mid 1970s, CRS shifted its focus from urban to rural communities. In 1995, the main CRS office moved from the capital city of Accra to the northern city of Tamale. CRS currently has over 100 staff working in Ghana.

With 92,100 square miles, Ghana is about the size of Oregon. English is the official language. Ghana's population of over 17.6 million people includes over 50 different ethnic groups. Muslim and Christian religions are practiced.

Ghana's government is a multi-party Democracy. "The president is freely elected and they're making efforts to establish a true democracy," observed Miller. "Education is important in that effort."

Prepared to listen

She encouraged the Madison delegation to immerse themselves in the Ghana culture. "Be prepared to listen. Don't be quick to make judgements. Be open."

Brinkmoeller said the local delegation will listen and learn in Ghana and share their stories with the people in the Diocese of Madison after they return Aug. 9. It is hoped that diocesan parishes and schools will become involved in the future.

One of the delegates, Fr. Steve Steele, pastor of St. Mary Parish, Bloomington, said, "I look forward to starting this partnership. I'm excited about seeing faith from their perspective and who is Jesus Christ for them."

Fr. Stephen Umhoefer, pastor of Nativity of Mary Parish, Janesville, agreed. "I'm eager to see what we can learn from them and what we can both gain from our new partnership."

For more information on the Global Solidarity Partnership, contact the Office for Justice and Peace, phone 608-821-3086 or e-mail: justiceandpeace@straphael.org