Skip to content Skip to footer

Volunteer Now

Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Michael and Julie Ducatte

When you go to Mass at St. Francis and appreciate the service’s beauty and the message’s impact, know there are many ‘behind the scenes’ people ensuring that special experience goes off without a hitch. Michael and Julie Ducatte are two of those who coordinate and make sure the Masses have the decorum and elegance befitting the weekly celebration of the Eucharist. “First and foremost, we want to make masses as beautiful as possible,” says Julie. “The liturgical ministries help everything flow smoothly. We want to serve because of our faith and enjoy being part of the Mass”. Michael adds, “As Mass Coordinators (MCs), we also have a teaching role, assisting the other ministers in training to serve at Mass.”

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Jacob House

Coming from a “spiritual but not religious” family and choosing to be baptized Methodist as a teen, Jacob House has always been religious. However, his “high school crush’s invitation” to attend Catholic Mass with her family led him to Catholicism. Whatever the influence to join the Church, St. Francis has been the beneficiary of his decision to become an active member.

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Tim Burns

Tim Burns loves basketball. As a former college basketball player, his passion for the game is unsurprising, but that passion has led to more. “When I moved to Raleigh shortly after college,” says Tim, “I immediately started volunteering at the YMCA as a referee. When I started dating my wife, we attended a few services at St Francis, and I noticed the basketball ministry contacts listed in the Church Bulletin.” The rest, as they say, is history.

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Jim Sutton

Jim Sutton says he was fortunate to have the opportunity to explore his faith deeply as a teenager. “We were blessed to have a priest in my small hometown who started a youth center and was also responsible for developing the altar server ministry,” he recalls. “I was involved in the youth center, first as a member, then as a leader, and as a server at daily and Sunday masses, weddings, and funerals, and especially the feasts of Christmas and Easter, where I was a Master of Ceremonies.” 

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Mary Cockrill

You can find Mary Cockril on Wednesdays during the school year “MC’ing” (Master of Ceremony) at the school Mass with her ‘partner in crime’ Joanie Madormo. As usual, the Mass goes off without a hitch, even when Father Jim is saying the Mass. However, that’s only a tiny glimpse into all Mary does at St. Francis.

Read More »
Church
Jenny Hammond

Rich Wessel

Rich Wessel loves basketball as a sometimes, possibly former, recreational player, a referee, a former coach, and the coordinator of the youth recreation basketball league at St. Francis for the past 19 years. Little did he know that when he volunteered 20 years ago, his “fate” would be to impact so many.

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Rosemary and Joe Czejkowski

Rosemary’s and Joe’s faith drives their service. “I encountered Christ in a way that changed me, and I want to be that for someone else,” says Rosemary. “I want to be part of their journey and their change. I want them to know who loves them the most in the world.”

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Liliana Palermo

Liliana Palermo has been volunteering at Cross Step for about three years because, as she says, “It is better to give than to receive,” adding, “Given the love and support we all receive from God and the Church, giving that love back is just as important as what we get from it.” That’s a profound understanding of what we are all called to do in service to others and in adherence to our faith by this Leesville Road High School Junior.

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

David Payne

Dave Payne, a leader in the St. Francis Knights of Columbus, doesn’t mince words: “It is my faith that drives all aspects of my life. From my family, my marriage, my work in the community, and my relationships with those I meet, my faith kicks me in the britches to do what I can for those I am privileged to serve.” 

Read More »
Volunteer Spotlight
Jenny Hammond

Jeremy Roca

Jeremy Roca is a presence at Mass; gregarious and full of life, Jeremy has a smile and warm welcome for everyone at Mass. He models that behavior because that’s the advice he would give our new parishioners as they come into our parish.

Read More »