By Michael F. Flach
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 6/24/04)

In the diocesan fiscal world, July 1 marks the start of a new year — a time to complete end-of-year audits and finalize budgets for the next 12 months.

This year it is also a time of transition for Father Daniel J. Maher as he "slowly" steps away from his demanding role as Diocesan Episcopal Vicar for Finance and turns over fiscal control of the diocese to the new Chief Financial Officer, William Kirst. Susan D. Handlon remains on board as Fiscal Manager.

It was announced last week that Father Maher will become parochial vicar at St. Mark Parish in Vienna on Sept. 1 after taking a Spanish language and culture immersion course this summer.

A native of Hampton, Va., Father Maher earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the College of William & Mary in 1986 and a master’s of divinity from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Overbrook, Pa., in 1990. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 18, 1991. He spent four years as parochial vicar at St. Leo the Great Parish in Fairfax before serving for five years as associate rector of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde appointed him Episcopal Vicar for Finance in August 2000. During this period he helped initiate several changes in diocesan fiscal policy and was heavily involved in the historic diocesan capital campaign "Rooted in Faith — Forward in Hope."

Bishop Loverde realized early in his tenure in Arlington that the diocese was on the brink of rapid expansion and that a pastoral component was needed to supervise the temporal affairs and infrastructure of the diocese, Father Maher said.

"Father Maher has provided an outstanding service to the diocese over the past four years as Episcopal Vicar for Finance," Bishop Loverde said. "His expertise was invaluable, among other undertakings, in re-organization of the Diocesan Finance Council and in the success of the diocese’s ‘Rooted in Faith – Forward in Hope’ capital campaign. I am grateful for his hard work, humor, and ongoing service to the diocese. His new assignment will bring him back to where his heart is – the parish. While I will truly miss him, I am happy that the diocese will continue to benefit from his counsel as Episcopal Consultant for Financial Affairs and his ongoing participation on the Finance Council."

"The diocese had to put a structure in place that could support this expansion," Father Maher said. Also, a broader view was needed in the areas of risk management, information technology and internal auditing.

Father Maher worked closely with Bishop Loverde and other diocesan officials to identify the capital needs of the diocese and find ways to fund those goals.

The Capital Campaign has generated $115 million in pledges (its goal was $75 million) for special diocesan projects, including two new high schools, a retirement home for priests and a spirituality center. The campaign is approaching the midway point in pledge redemption.

"It made my job easier to know the people of the diocese were responsive," Father Maher said.

The role of the Diocesan Finance Council expanded under his guidance. "New membership was brought in from the corporate world to provide a broader array of experiences," Father Maher said. "A support structure of standing committees was established that could allow the Finance Council to look at the overall needs of the diocese." The new committees include budget, investment, technology and human resources.

Another important objective was restructuring the investment portfolio of the diocese to provide a long-term vision for diocesan resources, he said.

After nearly four years in his current position, Father Maher said he has a better appreciation for the importance of temporal goods for the health of the diocese. "Temporal goods are a critical part of the Church’s mission," he said.

Father Maher regrets not being able to accomplish everything that was on his original agenda, but he realizes the Church must take incremental steps to accomplish its mission.

"The people of the diocese can be extraordinarily generous," he said. "That generosity has to be channeled through the structures the Church has in place to allow it to achieve its goals."

He is most appreciative of the volunteerism from the parishes that supports the Chancery staff. "I’ve been blessed with a very dedicated, hard-working staff in all the areas I’ve had to supervise. I’ve been happy to supplement that with the new staff we’ve added," he said. "The bishop and Finance Council have been blessed with many volunteers who have helped in this area."

Part of Father Maher’s transition process involves assisting Kirst in his new role as Chief Financial Officer. Kirst, who joined the Chancery staff in a full-time capacity on April 1, is a Navy veteran who has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Loyola University of Los Angeles and a master’s degree from the University of Southern California.

A member of Annunciation Parish in Washington, D.C., Kirst lived in Rome as a student and also worked there for five years in the 1970s. He retired as a partner from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in the summer of 2003. He spent 20 of his 23 years with PwC overseas in six countries, including Italy, Iran, Poland, Russia, Germany and Switzerland.

He accepted the CFO position in Arlington because of his love for the Church and his commitment to its mission.

"I feel a strong obligation and responsibility to the parishioners and donors," Kirst said. "They have entrusted us with the custody of their contributions and expect such funds will be managed well and spent wisely and efficiently. When we manage well we relieve the priests of many burdensome administrative tasks – which then let’s them spend more time on pastoral duties.

"The diocese has both an important pastoral mission and a business need to manage well in an increasingly complex and rapidly growing environment," he said. "I have managed several fast growing businesses, and while the task is exciting, it does bring new risks which must be managed well. It also requires from the workforce greater discipline, planning, teamwork and openness to change."

Kirst and his team are now reviewing the strategies of all diocesan departments to streamline their processes, achieve cost savings and deliver better service to the parishes. "This will require some revision of the employees’ roles, responsibilities and skill levels," he said.

"In business, it is the shareholders, through the corporation, that pay the salaries of the employees. In our diocese, it is the ‘people in the pews,’ through their generous offerings, which pay the salaries of diocesan employees. Therefore, we at the center must regularly deliver value to them."

Some areas where Kirst hopes to "add value" for the parishes include:

• Help the pastors and their parish councils manage construction projects which are increasingly complex and costly.
• Leverage, on behalf of the parishes, the collective buying power of the diocese to achieve savings in such areas as school textbooks and supplies, software and hardware, insurance coverage and building maintenance contracts.
• Assist the parish employees with training in information technology, payroll and other financial management aspects to help them manage well and relieve the pastor of some of his administrative burden.