This year you may have noticed someone helping serve at Mass on Sundays and wondered who he is. Walt Otey is a deacon candidate for the Diocese of Knoxville. He has also been instrumental in organizing our outreach to divorced and separated Catholics. We are very excited to announce that Bishop Stika has called Walt to ordination this June 11th at Sacred Heart Cathedral. God willing, Walt will be assigned to Sacred Heart Cathedral as a Permanent Deacon. Walt and his wife Angela, are active members of Sacred Heart Cathedral and I invite you to join me in congratulating Walt on his upcoming ordination.

Join us for the Ordination of Permanent Deacons on Saturday, June 11th from 11:00am-1:00pm at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Walt has been married to Angela for 28 years and has a son, Greg who is 33 and lives in Washington DC with his wife and two daughters. Angela and Walt have a daughter, Laura who is 21 and is completing her senior year at MTSU with a degree in communications disorders. Walt received his bachelor of music education degree from Illinois Wesleyan University and taught fifth grade through high school band before moving into the business world. Walt is currently a percussionist with the Tennessee Wind Symphony. Walt spent 27 years in retail management before joining Thermo Fisher Scientific, where he has been for 14 years, in a sales and customer experience management role. Walt converted to Catholicism in 1989 in Greeneville, TN. Walt began formation to the permanent diaconate for the Diocese of Knoxville in August of 2010 and has just received his call to ordination from Bishop Stika.

Welcome, Walt!