Message from the Pastor

May the peace of Christ be with you! I hope you all have or had a very blessed Independence Day. My name is Fr. Daniel Sedlacek and thank you for welcoming me as your new pastor of St. Charles and St. Peter. This past week, a number of priests in our diocese moved to new parish assignments. Let us keep all of the priests, parishes, and schools affected by new assignments in our prayers in the days ahead.

Fr. Daniel Sedlacek

Although some of you know me already, I thought for the first pastor's column I would introduce myself to you all. I grew up on my parents' dairy farm just outside of Cornell, Wisconsin, with my three brothers and five sisters. My K-12 education was all at home. The Catholic faith and working together on the family farm were the primary facets of my family's life. One of my favorite things to do while growing up was to serve Mass at my home parish of Holy Cross in Cornell.

I first experienced God's call to the priesthood when I was in fifth grade, when I read a book about the life of St. Francis Xavier, one of the greatest missionaries in the entire history of Christianity. There were many other small "signs" and "hints" that God was calling me to the priesthood, although it took me some time to recognize those signs and even more time to accept His summons. With God's grace and the encouragement of a youth minister, Deacon Tom Kinnick, I decided to enter seminary right after graduation from high school.

I attended St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota for my first four years of philosophy studies and then was sent to study theology for four years in Rome, Italy. I was ordained a priest at the Cathedral in La Crosse on June 25, 2016. My first assignment as priest was for two years as associate in Marshfield, Spencer, and chaplain of Columbus Catholic High School and Middle School. Then I served two years at St. Mary and St. Raymond in Altoona and South Eau Claire County and chaplain of Regis High School and Middle School. In 2020, I was assigned pastor at (the other) St. Charles Borromeo parish of the Diocese in Genoa, and chaplain at Aquinas High School in La Crosse. I served there for five years until I was assigned to Notre Dame, Holy Ghost, and St. Bridget parishes last July. It has been a blessing to return to Chippewa County after 17 years away.

I look forward to getting to know all of you in the weeks ahead. I believe that the Lord has good things in store for us as we begin a new chapter of the Catholic community in the Chippewa area.