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In 1979 women religious in the Calgary Diocese were surveyed to see if there would be any interest in establishing a council in response to Bishop Paul J. O'Byrne’s call for collaboration. At the end of 1979 the data was sent to a steering committee comprising Sisters Joan Wigbers SP, Kathleen Kelly SSS, Salvator Falardeau OP, Lois Anne Bordowitz FCJ and Carla Montante SP. The sisters voted 71 to 3 in favour of forming a group to support a number of functions such as communication, social, sharing, support, ongoing formation and vocation awareness. (There were 6 don’t knows). Groups already existed in Calgary and Lethbridge. The fledgling Council for Religious held its first meeting, with 50 participants, at the FCJ Convent in Calgary in April 19, 1980, when the first executive was installed by Bishop Paul with Sr. Carla Montante as chair. The purpose of the Council for Religious of the Diocese of Calgary was to:

1. Be a vehicle for communication in the Diocese
2. Provide opportunities for religious to share their ministries
3. Foster mutual support and growth by sponsoring workshops, days of prayer, socials, etc.

Bishop Paul saw the ‘Sisters’ Council’ as ‘the voice for Sisters in relationship to the apostolate of our Diocese, both to giving insights into what should be done and insights into what Sisters see as need within the Diocese’. He also felt that in 1985 this had not really been accomplished.

By 1987 the Council of Religious stated that it was ‘an organ of communication and a voice for all the religious of the Diocese'. Its purpose statement explained that ‘religious of different orders and congregations live and work in the various parishes or other structures of a diocese. Religious are part of the diocese and belong within the diocesan structure. If the religious are to have a voice within the diocese, they must group themselves together and from their ranks form a Diocesan Council of Religious.’

A community of Dutch people settled around Akenstadt, north of Strathmore. The parish was canonically erected on February 16, 1911, and called St. Nicholaus, with property donated by the CPR Irrigation Company. This community was named for Fr. Van Aaken who came with the pioneers to this district. However, no church was ever built there and the community was served from Strathmore. Records indicate that Mass was celebrated at the Akenstadt School or at the home of A.J.J. Weyers until 1915. Other pioneer family names include the Bartelens, Cammaerts, Damens, Gaertzs, Vanderswesterns and Voermans.

This community had been a mission of Carstairs and then of the Forest Lawn Church, [Holy Trinity] in Calgary before Holy Trinity was erected as a parish. Then it reverted to being a mission of Carstairs. Its first Sunday Mass was celebrated by Fr. Jim Clancy in the Community Hall in September 1962. Not regularly celebrated until 1969 a Saturday afternoon Mass was celebrated in the Airdrie United Church until St. Paul was erected as a parish on May 7, 1972 with Fr. John Palardy, then Chancellor, attending if from Calgary.
[FBTC, 328]

Bishop Carroll had been Vicar General in Toronto between 1933 and 1935. He had direct experience of Catholic social services in Toronto and once in Calgary recognized the need. Due to the scarcity of clergy he could do nothing until in 1945 he sent Fr. Pat O’Byrne to St. Louis University to study social services. On March 21, 1956 O’Byrne was appointed part-time executive secretary of the newly-established Diocesan Charities. This later became Catholic Charities. In the sixties its duties were to advise and co-ordinate the charitable work of the Catholic Women's League of Canada, Knights of Columbus etc., to relate Diocesan welfare work to that of the civic provincial and federal governments, and to community fund agencies etc., to counsel and advise individuals and families on relationships, refer cases to professionals. It had a board of directors who were lay Catholics. Offices were opened in Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Blairmore, and Claresholm. Thrift Stores were opened, for example, at Sacred Heart Parish, and connections were fostered ecumenically and with branches of government.
In 1961 Fr. John Kirley was sent to the University of Ottawa to train in social work. In 1964 he was appointed assistant executive secretary, and later director of the Catholic Family Services.
Klein renamed Catholic Charities the Diocesan Council of Social Agencies but in was reestablished as Catholic Charities in 1990 following Diocesan conflict with the United Way. Catholic Charities’ new mandate included collecting and distributing funds to agencies and organizations which upheld Catholic values.
“In 1996, Catholic Charities began accepting contributions made through the Donor Choice program of the United Way” (Inter-Office Memo from Fran Oleniuk to Bishop Henry, October 28, 1998, Subject: “United Way, Catholic Family Services & Catholic Charities Partnership). In 1997, Bishop O’Byrne “encouraged” Catholic Charities to “discuss” the possibility of “a joint project” with Catholic Family Services and the United Way (ibid.). After discussions with the United Way concerning the problem of prostitution among adolescents in the city, Catholic Charities and Catholic Family Services chose not to partner with the United Way and instead “decided upon” FAST (Families and Schools Together), an “early intervention program for children” established by Catholic Family Services (ibid.). In 1998, discussions with the United Way resumed “with the support of Bishop Henry” (ibid.).
[Winds of Change]

The Calgary Inter-Faith Community Action Committee was co-founded in 1969 by Fr. Patrick O’Byrne who became its executive director. This association of clergy and laity played a key role in such ecumenical initiatives as the Calgary Drop-In Centre, the Calgary Inter-Faith Food Bank, and the Interfaith Thrift Stores. It was a high profile organization in Alberta which also founded the Pastoral Institute, Carter Place, and the expanded religious studies programs and library holdings at the University of Calgary.
In 1977 the officers of the CIFCAC were: Rev. Leslie Files (President) – Presbyterian, Fr. Pat O’Byrne (Executive Director) – Catholic, Ms. Kay Chute (Secretary).
In 1978 CIFCAC started the Southern Alberta World Development Animation Project (SAWDAP).
In 1980 CIFCAC became an Association. It opened the Calgary Inter-Faith Food Bank in 1983. The idea had originated in Phoenix, Arizona and had already taken root in Edmonton. Fr. Jack Bastigal was instrumental in initiating the Food Bank in Calgary.

In May of 1977, the Cuernavaca Center for Intercultural Dialogue on Development welcomed its first group: students from the Divinity School at Duke University in North Carolina. Thereafter CCIDD received more than 500 religious, social justice, academic and professional groups from Canadian and U.S. colleges, universities, high schools, churches and non-governmental organizations. From direct encounters with Mexicans and other Latinos in their communities, homes and places of work and worship, some 10,000 people from the United States and Canada have learned about the roots of poverty and oppression in Latin America and Christian commitment to social transformation. CCIDD was founded by Ray Plankey, a lay missioner from the United States who had previously worked in Chile. He and others created CCIDD to “promote experiential understanding of rural and urban poverty in Latin America and the Christian struggle to transform society.” With encouragement and support from Cuernavaca’s progressive and ecumenically-minded Catholic Bishop Sergio Mendez Arceo, and leaders from other churches, CCIDD embarked upon its mission. From humble beginnings in rented hotel rooms, CCIDD moved to its present location in 1981 and expanded the site in 1985.

While CCIDD closed in August 2013, its basic mission is being continued by Augsburg College's Center for Global Education (CGE) (http://www.augsburg.edu/global), which began through dialogue with the CCIDD founder Raymond Plankey back in the late 1970s and early 80s. CGE´s mission is to provide cross-cultural educational opportunities in order to foster critical analysis of local and global conditions so that personal and systemic change takes place, leading to a more just and sustainable world.

CGE is nationally recognized for its work in experiential, intercultural, and educational travel opportunities. More than 10,000 people have participated in our international travel seminars, which are well-known and respected for exposing travelers to a variety of points of view, especially the perspectives of those working for justice and human dignity. CGE also operates undergraduate summer and semester abroad programs in Mexico, Central America, and Southern Africa, which have served over 1,600 students from more than 300 institutions of higher education.

[Information from the Internet Archive Wayback Machine; https://web.archive.org/web/20140331182302/http://www.ccidd.org/aboutus.htm]

Manly N. Cutter was born in Massachusetts in 1851 and trained as an architect. He worked in New York, New Jersey, Spokane and Alberta. He designed the picturesque Gothic St. Patrick's Church, Medicine Hat, which was completed in 1932.

Born in London on August 9, 1879, he was the first secular priest in the Diocese after its formation. He was Vicar General in the Diocese of Calgary for 50 years under 4 bishops. He was pastor at Sacred Heart Church, Calgary for 48 years. He received his Baccalaureate of Arts from the University of London in 1899 and studied Theology and Philosophy at Oscott College, Birmingham. He was ordained on July 22, 1906 in Westminster Cathedral by Cardinal Francis Bourne. He was appointed Master of Ceremonies at the new Cathedral and he supervised the consecration ceremonies in 1910. Because of his duties at the Cathedral for the next 7 years Hetherington became an expert in liturgical matters. He also wrote and compiled liturgical guides, for example, the Ritus Servandi and Ordo Administrandi a well as ‘Notes on the New Rubrics’ [in the Library’s Special Collection] and contributed to the Catholic Encyclopedia, the Encyclopedia Britannica, and Fortescue’s Ceremonial.
He had considered transferring abroad to improve his health, and when Bishop McNally visited Westminster he was able to persuade Hetherington to come to Calgary. He arrived in Calgary on June 30, 1913, and arranged McNally’s installation ceremonies. Hetherington continued to work closely with McNally as secretary, Chancellor, Vicar General, and Diocesan Consultor. Hetherington was Vicar Capitular in 1924-1925, 1931-1932, and 1935-1936 (elected on the death or departure of a bishop by the Diocesan Consultors. In 1924 McNally requested that he be appointed Domestic Prelate and in 1937 he was appointed Protonotary Apostolic. His was a hidden but crucial role in the development of the diocese. For many years Hetherington was the only English priest in the diocese. He declined to be considered as a potential bishop for Victoria, possibly for reasons of health. He was a dedicated pastor, with time for his parishioners, and was a good manager. He was military chaplain in 1914 and again in 1941 when he became Senior Military Chaplain in Military District no. 13 until the end of the war. Throughout the war he was the Diocesan Director of War Work. He was a driving force behind the establishment of a Catholic Soldiers’ Club, the ’first of its kind in the Dominion, and the finest in Western Canada.’ [The Western Catholic, ‘Official Organ of the Diocese of Calgary, vol. XVII, no. 13 ‘History of Popular Spot Recalled as K. of C. Army Hut Closed Here.’ He was urbane and pious. After a year or more of failing health, Monsignor Hetherington died in Calgary on May 30, 1963 and was buried in St. Mary’s Cathedral cemetery.

John T. Kidd was born in Athlone, Ontario in 1868. After his studies at St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto he became the manager of a large lumber business. He then went to Rome to study for a doctorate in Theology, after which he was ordained on February 16, 1902 for the Diocese of Toronto. His first appointment was assistant and then pastor of St. Ann’s, Penetanguishene. On the death of Archbishop McEvay he was named Vicar Capitular of the Diocese of Toronto for a year. In 1911-1912 as the new seminary was being developed in Toronto Kidd was involved due to his administrative experience, and deep spirituality. In 1914 he was made a Domestic Prelate and on February 6, 1925 was appointed Bishop of Calgary. He was consecrated on May 6, 1925 in St. Michael’s Cathedral, Toronto by Apostolic Delegate Pietro di Maria and he took possession of his See on May 13, 1925.

On July 3, 1931 Kidd was appointed Bishop of London on the death of Bishop Fallon and he took possession of his See on September 23. Kidd died as Bishop of London on June 2, 1950.

This volunteer organization was the first one established by the three bishops of the Calgary Covenant, although it later included members from other churches. The earliest minutes extant are from a June 1995 meeting at the Catholic Pastoral Centre when Catholics Marie Cameron, Oswald MacLeod and Karine Rietjens met with Lutherans Sid Haughen and Janet Wagar and Anglicans Terrie Teare and Caitlin Odlozinski. The meeting focused on the publication of the Fire in the Rose program by the Church Council on Justice and Correction. In 1996 the three churches formed the inter-Church Task Force of Family Violence, with Marie Cameron as Chair, and launched the Fire in the Rose program in September 1996. The program aimed at counteracting and preventing physical, emotional, sexual, and spiritual abuse in the family and the community. Social worker Cynthia Wild was hired as the program’s coordinator. In 2005 it was determined, and approved by the three founding bishops, that the Taskforce should become part of Faithlink.

The Diocesan Pastoral Council was instituted in 1969 to involve lay persons in determining the priorities of the Diocese and its future direction. The first chair was Dr. Ray Whiteman, Director of Religious Education for Calgary Catholic Schools. It included laypersons from each parish and representatives from the clergy and women religious. Its purpose was to assist the Bishop in making decisions concerning the needs and development of the Church in southern Alberta, facilitate communication between Bishop and people of the diocese and to coordinate the activities of all the diocesan organizations. It became an important part of Diocesan decision-making although few parishioners understood or knew about the Council.
The Diocesan Synod recommended that the Council review its structure, role and effectiveness.
The ideal and the reality were necessarily at odds. Direct representation from all parish councils would have resulted in an impractically large meeting. Multi-parish councils were formed to elect a representative to Pastoral Council. This worked especially well in rural areas leading to a preponderance of rural representation on the Diocesan Pastoral Council. This problem of representation was ongoing.
Bishop Henry discontinued the Diocesan Pastoral Council in 1998.

Sixth Bishop of Calgary, 1968-1998. Born in 1922, the youngest of five children, Paul grew up in Calgary, where his father, Dan was a small retail business owner who died in 1927. Paul’s mother Beebeanna had a strong faith which she passed on to her children. Nicknamed Pee Wee, Paul attended Sacred Heart and St. Mary’s Boys Schools, Calgary. He entered St. Joseph’s Seminary in Edmonton in 1942. He was ordained a priest on February 22, 1948, months after his mother died. Fr. O’Byrne served first as assistant at St. John’s, Calgary and then at St. Patrick’s, Medicine Hat. His first appointment as pastor was at St. Edmund’s, Medicine Hat in 1954. He moved to Banff in 1961 until 1967 when he was transferred to St. Joseph’s, Calgary. Shortly thereafter he became regional dean for North West Calgary. He was one of the first to be appointed after election by the priests of the deanery. Elected chair of the Priests’ Senate, O’Byrne was chosen as administrator of the Diocese on Klein’s death by the Diocesan Consultors. After a consultation meeting on February 15, 1968, O’Byrne was named Bishop of Calgary on June 21, 1968 and consecrated at St. Mary’s Cathedral on August 22, 1968. He submitted his resignation to the Vatican on his 75th birthday in December 1997. He officially retired on March 9, 1998. Bishop Paul O'Byrne died in Calgary in 2004.

Francis Joseph Klein was born on a farm near Sedley, Saskatchewan, the eldest of 13 children. He was educated at Friedenthal Rural School, Sedley by the Loretto Nuns, St. Anthony’s College, Edmonton, and then Campion College. He entered St. Joseph’s Seminary, Edmonton and completed his theology at Regina Coeli Seminary. In 1934 after entering Laval University he was ordained at Sedley by Archbishop McGuigan of Regina. After completing a year of study at Laval he worked as a parish priest for 18 years, mainly in Mutrie and Quintin. He was appointed Bishop of Saskatoon in 1952 and on February 28, 1967 it was announced that he had been appointed Bishop of Calgary. He was installed by Archbishop Jordan of Edmonton but died February 3, 1968, only nine months later. A man of energy and enthusiasm, determined to implement the reforms of Vatican II, he had shown a strong commitment to education and social service and he encouraged extensive lay participation.

Born on November 19, 1909 in Walkerton, Ontario. Having attended school in Walkerton, and St. Augustine's Seminary, Toronto, Wilhelm was ordained for the Diocese of Hamilton on June 9, 1934. He was assistant pastor at St. Mary's, Hamilton from 1934 to 1936, and at Christ the King Cathedral from 1936 until 1939, where he was also the Bishop's secretary. From 1939 to 1945 Wilhelm was Chaplain in the Canadian Army where he attained the rank of Major and won a Military Cross. After the war he studied for his Licentiate in Canon Law at the University of Ottawa and then served as pastor of Sts. Peter and Paul from 1947 until 1963. He was appointed vicar general and auxiliary to Bishop Carroll on June 28, 1963 and was ordained to the episcopate on August 22, 1963 in Hamilton by Cardinal McGuigan. When Bishop Carroll returned to Calgary after the first session of the Second Vatican Council, Bishop Wilhelm participated in the subsequent sessions of the Council in Bishop Carroll’s stead. During his time in Calgary, Bishop Wilhelm celebrated almost all the episcopal ceremonies and pontifical Masses. He also conferred almost all the ordinations and most of the confirmations. He became the Archbishop of Kingston in 1967.

The Office of the Bishop aids the Bishop of Calgary in the administration of the Diocese. Initially informally organized, prior to the Second Vatican Council the staff consisted of clergy. As the administrative needs of the Diocese grew due to the growing population and complexities of modern life, the Office of the Bishop required more staff with specific skills. The Office aids the Bishop in organizing meetings, correspondence, schedules, logistics, relationships, and records.

The Administration of Ecclesiastical Temporalities is currently delegated by the Bishop to the Executive Director. This office looks after the secular functions of the Diocese, including administration, finance, staffing, etc. In 1972 the Alberta Catholic Directory first lists a business accountant in the Bishop’s Office, Mr. E. Howard Smith. In 1979 Temporalities were overseen by a Business Manager, Mr. Joseph Comessotti and the two worked together until 1981 when Smith retired. In 1986 the ACD lists Comessotti as Business Manager and in charge of Revenue/Project Forward. In 1987 Financial Administrator, Rev. Robert Devine was appointed to replace Comessotti in looking after temporal affairs and Stewardship. In 1990 Rev. Devine began administering the Hospice of St. Jude as well as heading the Stewardship Program and Mr. Denis Doucet was hired as Business Manager. In 1991 Fr Pat Cramer became Vicar of Temporalities and Chairman of the Diocese Finance Council. In 1992 Dr. Marilyn Smelski headed the Stewardship Program and in the following year Colin MacIsaac became Finance Officer, working with Doucet and Smelski. In 1995 the Annual Bishop’s Appeal took over some of the role of the Stewardship Program. It was headed by Richard Garnett.
By 1997 there had been an overhaul of the Business Office with the arrival of Michael Chan who became the Chief Operating Officer, and Lydia Ducharme, who became Financial Administrator. They were joined by Colin MacIsaac in a new role as chief Administrative Officer. The Annual Bishop’s Appeal was being run by Dr. Robert Gall.

Approved by Bishop Paul J. O’Byrne and launched on Jun 15, 1992 by Catholic Charities, which was a separate charitable organization at the time, to raise funds for charitable works. The first campaign kicked off on Feb 21, 1993. The ‘ShareLife’ Committee had been preparing, planning and negotiating for months to get the Appeal going. The name was chosen after consultation with the Council of Priests. They wanted a name that originated with the Diocese and that ‘signi[ied] the Body of Christ active in a work of charity’. The first director was Richard Garnett. By Oct 19, 1992 the Annual Bishop’s Appeal had a name, logo, and a board of directors, including Fr. Burke Hoschka, Patrick Doherty (Chair), Richard Garnett and Fr. Ed Flanagan.
Its purpose was:
It was registered as a charity on Jul 24, 1992. The first theme of the ABA was ‘Love one another as I have loved you’.

Ronald Beaton was born in Broad Cove, Inverness County, Nova Scotia on Dec 3, 1874. He studied at St. Francis Xavier University and in Roman and he was ordained for the Diocese of Antigonish on Aug 15, 1902, [or May 24] at St. John Lateran. Fr. Beaton came to Calgary in May 1914, encouraged by his Archbishop Neil McNeil, to whom Bishop McNally had appealed for priests. Beaton was sent straight to Coleman as the population of the mining communities of the Crow’s Nest Pass was growing and had only one priest. Beaton took charge of Blairmore, Frank, Bellevue, Hillcrest and other smaller missions, living in a hotel in Frank and later at the Belevue Hotel. A church was built in Bellevue with the help of parishioners and the first Mass was celebrated privately on May 1, 1915. Beaton lived in rooms over the sacristy and did his own housekeeping. He blessed the church on May 9 and dedicated it to St. Cyril after a church near Lochaber in Scotland, the home of his ancestors, and in recognition of the many Slavic peoples of the Pass. After three years in the Diocese, alone and labouring hard, his health was compromised. He was given permission to move to the Diocese of Victoria in 1916/1917. For his services there he was made Domestic Prelate in 1938 by Pope Pius XI. Monsigner Beaton died Mar 4, 1948.