Seminarians: A Summer in the Parishes

This summer, several of our seminarians spent time serving in parishes throughout the Diocese of Calgary through the Summer Seminarian Placement Initiative. The placements gave them the opportunity to experience parish life in communities beyond their home parishes, while learning from priests, and getting to know parishioners along the way.

Now in its third year, the initiative continues to be an important part of their formation, giving seminarians a chance to experience the day-to-day life of a parish and the ministry of a priest before beginning their pastoral internship.
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Here are their reflections on their time in the parishes this summer.

Mikhel Sari with the community of St. Gerard's Parish, Calgary

The goal of the Summer Pastoral Placement is to provide an extended pastoral formation for the seminarian during the summer months outside of the seminary. This summer, I was assigned to St. Gerard's Parish in Calgary. With Fr. Ignatius Tran as parish priest, St. Gerard's Parish is a vibrant community that is living out the Catholic faith in the spirit of the Diocesan Renewal. I learned much from Fr. Ignatius and the parishioners, but my main takeaway is that Jesus Christ is present in everyone. The people of St. Gerard's Parish showed me the face of Jesus Christ through their generous support, prayers, and even in the Sunday coffee conversations. I am eternally grateful to Fr. Ignatius and the faithful of St. Gerard's Parish for welcoming me and supporting me in my formation. May God bless them richly. 
​-Mikhel Sari

During the summer months, I was blessed with the opportunity to spend my weekend pastoral assignment at the twin parishes of St. Ambrose in Coaldale and St. Catherine in Picture Butte. During my time there, I experienced the joy and beauty of smaller rural parishes, where the faithful come together with a strong sense of community and belonging. This experience helped me grow in my formation and deepened my understanding of the importance of community in fostering a vibrant and thriving parish.

​I was particularly inspired by the way the people of these parishes supported one another and shared in the life of the Church. I am deeply grateful to the parishioners and to the pastor for welcoming me so warmly and for allowing me to share in the life of their communities. My time in these parishes provided me with many insightful and meaningful experiences that have contributed to my growth in formation as I continue to discern my vocation to the priesthood.
- Matthew Gensorek

This summer, I was assigned to St. Albert the Great Parish in McKenzie Towne. It is a large, vibrant parish with five weekend Masses and many weekday activities. I was warmly welcomed in May by Fr. Andrew and Fr. Krys, Deacon John, Deacon Joseph, and all the volunteers and parishioners. The parish community quickly became like family to me. I was greatly edified by the community’s living out of the Lord’s command to love God and neighbour, shown especially in their generous spirit of Christian hospitality. Their commitment to their faith, to each other, and to the Diocesan renewal uplifted me in my discernment, and continues to inspire me as I begin a new year of studies at the seminary. I am immensely grateful to the clergy and community of St. Albert for welcoming me, and I look forward to visiting over my holidays!
- Jeffrell Painaga

During Summer 2026, I was placed at St. Bonaventure Parish in South-East Calgary. I was particularly excited about this placement as I attended St. Bonaventure Junior High School many years ago, and visited the Church during those years. It was a moving experience to be able to return to the Parish as a Seminarian and to serve in that capacity. At the Parish itself, Fr. Colin, and Fr. Lawrence welcomed me kindly and put me to work altar serving, and reading at various weekend Masses. I was grateful to serve and inspired by their Priesthood. I also had the opportunity to serve alongside Deacon Rey, and many enthusiastic altar servers. Finally, during my weekend visits, I was moved by the many kind words of support I would receive from Parishioners after Mass. Thank you all for welcoming me into the St. Bonaventure Parish community!
​​- Adam Kucharski

My weekend parish placement at Corpus Christi Parish in Calgary was a deeply meaningful part of my formation and a beautiful reminder of why I am discerning the priesthood. Because the parish community is small, I had the opportunity to get to know many of the parishioners personally, and I was genuinely touched by the love, warmth, and hospitality with which they welcomed me into their community. Their generosity and faith allowed me to experience something of the joy of belonging to a parish family, and spending time with them helped me to see more clearly the people whom I hope one day to serve as a priest in the Diocese of Calgary. In the midst of classes, assignments, and the many demands of seminary formation, it can sometimes be easy to lose sight of the purpose behind it all.

​My time at Corpus Christi brought that purpose back into focus. Being with the faithful, praying with them, listening to their stories, and simply sharing in the life of the parish reminded me that I am not preparing for a career, but for a life given in service to Christ and His people. I came away from the placement grateful not only for the warm welcome I received, but also for the renewed sense of joy and purpose it gave me in discerning the call to the priesthood.
- Benjamin Taylor

Reflecting on my summer placement at St. Luke's, I considerably enjoyed the lovely community that welcomed me with warmth, the volunteers who make St. Luke’s a remarkable parish, and, of course, the hardworking priests, Fr. Paul and Fr. William, who work zealously every day to sustain the demands of such a large and diverse parish.

​Key highlights included the Stampede Breakfast, where I helped fundraise for the Calgary seminarians with Sister Diane and briefly introduced myself to many wonderful parishioners (and I enjoyed a tasty Pancake Breakfast thanks to the Knights of Columbus!). Another key highlight was the opportunity to give a short speech after each Holy Mass to promote vocations; I received much positive feedback from the community and even had a few people approach me saying they are interested in the Priesthood or Religious life. Praise God! 

Evin Kurian at St. Luke's Parish, Calgary

My final highlight was the opportunity to altar serve at various Masses over the weekend, which allowed me to get to know the altar servers and the volunteers who worked so diligently and joyfully to prepare for Holy Mass. In summary, it is clear that lay Catholics play a substantial and vibrant role in the growth of the parish alongside the priests, which I am blessed to experience powerfully in the community of St. Luke’s.
- Evin Kurian

My summer placement was very joy-filled, inspiring, and above all, very fun! Seeing families, young and old, come to Holy Mass each week and getting to know names and faces was a great experience. I really enjoyed meeting the various volunteers engaging in ministries, from altar servers to sacristans to those charged with distributing Holy Communion to the sick. It's inspiring to see the many different ways the local People of God serve our brothers and sisters. 
- Jake Klassen

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We are grateful to the parishes who welcomed our seminarians this summer and to our seminarians for sharing their experiences. Please continue to keep them in your prayers as they discern God’s call and prepare for a life of service to Christ and His Church.