On June 3, the Diocese of Saginaw announced Sacred Heart Parishioner Don Hire will receive the 2019 Bishop Murphy Award. The Award, named after the first Bishop of the Diocese of Saginaw, is given each year to a person who, through the example of his/her life as a disciple of Jesus Christ, continually fulfills the mandate of Gospel through word and deed. The award often honors a person whose lifetime commitment to the Gospel has furthered the evangelization mission of the church through service to their community. Don Hire definitely exemplifies the award.
Don and his wife Dorothy joined Sacred Heart Church in 1976 when they moved to Mt. Pleasant from Defiance, OH. They enrolled five children in Sacred Heart Academy, working on committees and in volunteer roles to make the school and church stronger. Their children graduated to assume adult service roles of their own; two of them were recruited by their father to continue helping at Sacred Heart, keeping the Hire legacy of volunteerism robust and vibrant.
Don has given 40+ years of service to Sacred Heart Parish, Sacred Heart Academy, and the mid-Michigan community. He is always willing to help, always willing to take the lead on projects, and never, ever seeks recognition for himself. Don is a faith-filled man who leads by example. He is a long-time assistant coach of girls softball at Sacred Heart Academy, a team leader for the Sacred Heart Fish Fries, a parish festival volunteer, and a men’s work group volunteer.
Adding in community-at-large service, Don is a local Rotarian (working for youth), along with a Christmas Outreach volunteer, a local woodworker who donates toys and time to projects, and he is a board member of the local Pardee Cancer Fund. Through these acts of service alone, he sets an incredible example of service before self. Never seeking praise or attention, he works diligently behind the scenes, always attending to every detail. He recruits others to help, sharing the ministry of Christian outreach. Don sets a fine example for others.
A passage from the Bible which best describes Don is from Luke, Chapter 10: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Don Hire doesn’t know how to be judgmental. He doesn’t know how to be unkind. He is filled with goodness and thoughtfulness and helpfulness. The mid-Michigan community and the greater world has been blessed by his life.
· “Don is like the Energizer Bunny in perpetual motion as he hangs Christmas lights at the Church, serves on one of the funeral luncheon teams and gives freely of his time. . . “
· “Don is passionate about helping others and does it with a smile. Whether he is selling raffle tickets, working a fish fry, or helping to maintain the softball field or equipment, he is there for us. . . It is volunteers like him who get things done.”
· “Don is one of the finest human beings. . . He doesn’t volunteer for the glamorous work, he takes the “dirty” jobs that simply must be done. He extends the hand of help to literally hundreds of individuals in Isabella County to make their lives better.”
· “He is truly a blessing to our parish, our school, and our community. He is always willing to help anyone in need. He has a big heart and uses his God-given abilities to help others in many ways.”
The Diocese will officially bestow the Bishop Murphy honor on Don Hire at an evening program planned for Thursday, August 8 in Saginaw. Tickets ar $20 each and can be purchased by clicking here.
Under the guidance of Father Loren, members of Sacred Heart Parish are gathering in small groups to develop ideas and strategies that will enhance our parish community, and YOU are welcome to join. The groups are focused on four goals:
1) Enhancing and maintaining a strong welcoming sense of community at Sacred Heart Parish (Chair: Brenda Rau – brau@sha.net)
2) Improve media, promotion and communication, both internally within our Church and School community, and externally within our wider community (Chair: Jim Wojcik - jimwoj@gmail.com or Kim Voisin – voisi1kj@gmail.com)
3) Assure a strong and vibrant Youth Ministry (Chair: Mary Lou Schilling - schil1ml@cmich.edu)
4) Assure and nourish a strong and vibrant Adult Faith Formation environment (Chair: Dave Reetz – dreetz61@gmail..com)
These groups will meet one or two times this summer, with all groups coming together on Tuesday, September 10th at 6:30 p.m. Please contact the chair of a goal/group to sign up or simply share ideas for enhancing our parish or contact Cindy Kaliszewski or Brenda Rau at (989) 772-1385.
