From the Bishop

Dear Friends in Christ,

Greetings in the Lord for this New Year of grace, 2024!

I can’t tell you how many people mention a story they read in Graceful Living as I travel throughout our 19 counties. Thank you for your continued support of the magazine, and I hope you enjoy our latest Winter/Spring 2024 issue!

In this edition of the magazine, we feature Dr. Melany Raedy Novack as our cover story subject. She makes the Church, particularly St. Joseph in Galion, the center of her life while also enjoying some time on the ski slopes in Mansfield. It's my pleasure to introduce you to Fr. George Wenzinger, who was named The Diocese of Toledo’s Minister to Priests, a position that came out of our strategic plan to help care for our active and retired priests.

In a can you believe this! story, we feature a small house in Tiffin that has been home to three different priests from three different families! Truly remarkable.

I am also excited to share the amazing work of Window Creations and how they use both traditional techniques and new technology to create or restore stained glass windows in our churches, parishes and beyond. We are also featuring a story on intentional planning, a process in which parishes realistically look at both parish and diocesan data, resources and personnel to plan for the future in order to secure vibrant Catholic communities for decades to come.

Please enjoy these stories and the many other fun tidbits that are in this issue. With every good wish and prayer for you and yours, I am

Sincerely yours in Christ Jesus,

Most Reverend Daniel E. Thomas, Bishop of Toledo