Priests mark jubilees

 

He served as associate pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in
Alexandria (1965-67), St. Mark Church in Vienna (1967-70), Good Shepherd Church
in Alexandria (1970-72), St. Michael Church in Annandale (1972-75) and St. Mary
Church in Alexandria (1975-76).

 

Father Majka helped establish St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in
Lake Ridge in 1976. Starting in 1984, he served as pastor of St. John the
Evangelist Church in Warrenton, where he established the parish school. In
1996, he was named pastor of St. Patrick Church in Fredericksburg. 

 

In 1999, the Polish American Priest Association honored Father
Majka with a national award at its 10th annual convention. That same year, he
received the Cavaliers Cross of Merit from the Polish Government in recognition
of his service to the Polish-American community.

 

Starting in 2005, he served as parochial vicar of St. James
Church in Falls Church until his retirement in 2012.

 

Father Majka now resides at St. Rose of Lima Priests’ Retirement
Villa in Annandale and serves as the Catholic chaplain at Dulles International
Airport.

 

50 Years

 

Msgr. Stanley J. Krempa, retired, was
born April 21, 1945, in Buffalo, N.Y., the only child of Stanley and Charlotte
Krempa. He attended Corpus Christi grammar school and Canisius High School,
both in Buffalo. He studied for the priesthood at St. John Vianney Seminary in
East Aurora, N.Y.

 

He was ordained Dec. 18, 1970, by Buffalo Bishop James A.
McNulty. He served in parish ministry, as a high school chaplain, as an adjunct
professor at St. John Vianney Seminary and on the diocesan personnel board for
the Buffalo diocese.

 

He came to the Washington area in the mid-1970s to attend George
Washington University Law School and began helping out at parishes in Northern
Virginia. He was incardinated in the Arlington diocese in 1985.

 

He served as parochial vicar of St. John the Baptist Church in
Front Royal (1985-86), St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ridge (1986-88)
and St. Louis Church in Alexandria (1988-91). He was pastor of St. Mary Church
in Alexandria (1991-99) and Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Winchester (1999-2017).
In 2017, he was appointed the founding pastor of the mission of St. Bridget of
Ireland Church in Berryville.

 

He was named monsignor by Pope Francis in 2018 and served as a
vicar forane from 2012 to 2018. He served as a member of the college of
consultors, presbyteral council, land assessment committee and diocesan review
board. He was a Gospel commentator for the Catholic
Herald. He retired in 2018.

Father Thomas J. Lehning, pastor of
St. Clare of Assisi Church in Clifton, was born Nov. 3, 1945, in Washington, to
Thomas and Eileen Lehning. He attended St. James School in Falls Church, Bishop
O’Connell High School in Arlington and St. John Vianney Seminary in Richmond.
He graduated from St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore in 1967. He resided at the Pontifical
North American College in Rome while attending classes at the Pontifical
Gregorian University. He earned his licentiate in sacred theology in 1971.
Later, he earned a doctorate in theology from The Catholic University of
America in Washington.

 

Father Lehning’s diaconate assignment was with the U.S. Army and
the U.S. Air Force in Germany.

 

He was ordained Dec. 18, 1970, by Bishop James Hickey, rector of
the NAC, at St. Peter’s Basilica. He served as associate pastor of St. John the
Beloved Church in McLean (1971), Star of the Sea Church in Virginia Beach
(1971-73), Holy Family Church in Dale City (1973-75), St. Michael Church in
Annandale (1975-79), St. Agnes Church in Arlington (1979-80). He was pastor of
St. Thomas a Becket Church in Reston (1980-87), St. Francis de Sales Church in
Kilmarnock (1987-95) and Sacred Heart Church in Manassas (1995-2004). 

 

From 1974 to the present, he has served on the diocesan tribunal,
and has been involved in Worldwide Marriage Encounter for many years.

25 Years

 

Father Vincent P. Bork, parochial
vicar of St. Rita Church in Alexandria, was born in Evansville, Ind., to Eloise
and Ralph Bork. He graduated from Notre Dame University and then earned a
doctorate in physics from Washington University in St. Louis. He taught at Christendom
College in Front Royal before entering Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg,
Md.

 

After his ordination to the priesthood in 1995, he served as
parochial vicar of St. Michael Church in Annandale (1995-96), St. Agnes Church
in Arlington (1996-97), St. John the Beloved Church in McLean (1997-2000), St.
Elizabeth of Hungary Church in Colonial Beach and St. Anthony Mission in King
George (2000-03), Sacred Heart Church in Manassas (2003), St. John the Baptist
Church in Front Royal (2003-05), St. Raymond of Peñafort Church in Springfield
(2005-07) and the St. Mary Church in Alexandria (2007). He then took time to
discern entering a religious order before serving as parochial vicar of St.
Elizabeth of Hungary Church and St. Anthony Mission in King George (2010-13).
He has served as parochial vicar of St. Rita since 2013. 

Oblates
of St. Francis de Sales Father John J. Dolan, parochial vicar of Our Lady of Good
Counsel Church in Vienna, was born Nov. 18, 1966, in Philadelphia to Rosemary
and John Jr. Dolan. He grew up the oldest of five children in Philadelphia.

 

He graduated high
school and entered the Oblates in 1984. He professed his first vows Aug. 8,
1987, and was ordained a deacon Sept. 10, 1994, by Bishop Robert E. Mulvee of
the Diocese of Wilmington.

 

He was ordained to
the priesthood June 3, 1995, by Bishop John Glynn, an auxiliary bishop of the
U.S. Archdiocese for Military Services. He received a bachelor’s in theology
from Allentown College of St. Francis de Sales in Center Valley, Pa., and a
master’s of divinity from DeSales School of Theology in Washington. 

 

Within the diocese,
he served at Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria and as parochial vicar of
Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Vienna (2006-08, 2014-present). Outside the
diocese, he has served at an Oblate community in Bangalore, India; St. Ann
Church in Naples, Fla.; and Father Judge High School in Philadelphia.

 

Father Dolan will
serve at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church in Cape May, N.J., beginning July 1.

Father Paul M. Eversole, pastor of
St. Matthew Church in Spotsylvania, was born Nov. 14, 1964, in Hampton, one of
three children of Clark and Kim Eversole.

 

Father Eversole attended Kecoughtan High School in Hampton and
graduated from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg in 1987. He
worked as a technical writer before entering seminary, first at St. Charles
Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., in 1990, and then at the Pontifical North
American College in Rome from 1991 to 1995. He was ordained by Arlington Bishop
John R. Keating May 20, 1995.

 

Father Eversole served as parochial vicar of Our Lady of Angels
Church in Woodbridge (1995-99) and All Saints Catholic Church in Manassas
(1999-2000). He served as associate rector of the Basilica of the National
Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington (2000-01) and parochial vicar
of St. William of York Church in Stafford (2001-05). He was named administrator
of Our Lady of Angels in 2005, and in 2007 he became pastor. He was named
pastor of St. Matthew in 2010.

Father Daniel N. Gee, pastor of St.
Rita Church in Alexandria, was born Dec. 19, 1967, in Portsmouth, Va., one of
four children of Rear Admiral and Mrs. George Nicholas Gee. Raised in a
military family, Father Gee attended W.T. Woodson High School in Fairfax before
graduating from Coronado High School in Coronado, Calif., in 1986. Father Gee
studied at the University of Oregon, where he majored in Spanish, then entered
the collegiate level of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., in
1989. He was ordained to the priesthood May 20, 1995.

 

Father Gee served as parochial vicar of All Saints Catholic
Church in Manassas (1995-99) and Our Lady of Angels Parish in Woodbridge
(1999-2003).

 

In 2003, Father Gee was assigned to serve at the diocesan mission
in Bánica, Dominican Republic. After five years, he returned to Virginia to
serve as chaplain of Christendom College in Front Royal. He has served as
pastor of St. Rita since 2010. 

Father Mark E. Moretti, parochial
vicar of Christ the Redeemer Church in Sterling, was born in Washington March
28, 1958, and grew up in Alexandria, where he attended St. Rita School and
Bishop Ireton High School. He earned a bachelor’s in political science from
Allentown College of St. Francis de Sales in 1980. After a 10-year career as a
special agent for the Diplomatic Security Service of the U.S. State Department,
he discerned a priestly vocation and entered Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in
Emmitsburg, Md. After a diaconate year at St. Elizabeth Church in Colonial
Beach, he was ordained by Arlington Bishop John R. Keating May 20,1995.

 

Father Moretti served as parochial vicar of St. Mark Church in
Vienna (1995-98), St. Rita Church in Alexandria (1998-2003) and St. Elizabeth
Ann Seton Church (2003-06). He was administrator of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
(2006-08). He was pastor of St. Thomas à Becket Church in Reston (2008-11) and
parochial vicar of St. John the Evangelist Church in Warrenton (2011-16). He
was parochial vicar of Precious Blood Church in Culpeper (2016-18) and in 2018
was named parochial vicar of Christ the Redeemer.

 

Father Moretti has been spiritual director for several
organizations in the diocese, including the Catholic Business Network,
Magnificat and Prime Time Single Catholics. 

Father Richard A. Mullins, pastor of
St. Thomas Apostle Church in Washington, was born May 16, 1966, to Samuel
Arthur Mullins and Carmen Hernandez Mullins. He attended Our Lady of Good
Counsel School in Vienna before graduating from Bishop O’Connell High School in
1984. He earned a degree in political science and history from High Point
University in High Point, N.C., in 1988. He then entered Mount St. Mary’s
Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md.

 

After being ordained to the priesthood, he served as parochial
vicar of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Winchester (1995-96), St. Michael
Church in Annandale (1996-2000), St. Teresa Church in Ashburn (2000-03) and St.
Rita Church in Alexandria (2003-04). While at St. Rita, he also served as
associate director of the Spanish Apostolate. He was the director of the Office
of Multicultural Ministries while in residence at St. Charles Borromeo Church
in Arlington (2004-09). He served as parish administrator of St. Louis Church
in Alexandria (2009-12). He then served as parochial vicar of St. Francis de
Sales Church in Kilmarnock with special care of St. Paul Mission in Hague
(2012-13). He currently serves in the Archdiocese of Washington and as a member
of the Community of St. Philip Neri, a community-in-formation for the
Congregation of the Oratory. 

Father J. Kevin O’Keefe, pastor of
St. Jude Church in Fredericksburg, was born Aug. 11, 1962, in East Orange,
N.J., one of three children. He attended Butler High School in Butler, N.J.,
and graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, N.Y., in 1984,
with a bachelor’s degree in marine engineering.

 

Prior to entering the seminary, he served as a reservist in the U.S.
Naval Reserve and worked as a Defense Department contractor and a mechanical
engineer for the U.S. Navy.

 

He entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., in
1990, and was ordained to the diaconate May 28, 1994. He served his diaconate
year at Holy Spirit Church in Annandale and was ordained to the priesthood May
20, 1995, by Arlington Bishop John R. Keating.

 

He served as parochial vicar of Queen of Apostles Church in
Alexandria (1995-97), St. James Church in Falls Church (1997-2001) and Church
of the Nativity in Burke (2001-10). He was named parochial administrator at Our
Lady of Angels Church in Woodbridge in 2010 and was named pastor in 2012. He
was appointed pastor of St. Jude in 2020.

Father Terrence R. Staples, pastor of
St. Isidore the Farmer Church in Orange, was born June 21, 1962, in Arlington.
He attended Falls Church High School and Virginia Tech University in
Blacksburg, where he graduated in 1980 and 1986, respectively.

 

Father Staples served his diaconate year at St. Mary Church in
Alexandria from 1994 to 1995 before being ordained May 20, 1995, by Arlington
Bishop John R. Keating.

 

He served as parochial vicar of St. Mary of Sorrows Church in
Fairfax (1995-99), St. Louis Church in Alexandria (1999-2001) and St. Lawrence
Church in Alexandria (2001). He served as temporary administrator of St.
Lawrence from 2001until 2002, when he became parochial vicar of St. Luke Church
in McLean. In 2004, he returned to St. Louis and served as parochial
administrator and then pastor until 2009, when he was assigned to St. Isidore.