Church: Willard – Holy Family Ordination (Bayuk/New Priest - 1975)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org 

Surnames: Bayuk, Freking, Cyr, Mertens, Mason, Butko, Jordan, Nauertz

----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 6/19/1975

Willard – Ordination (Bayuk/New Priest - 1975)

On Saturday, June 21, Richard Bayuk, C.PP.S., will be ordained a priest for the Society of the Precious Blood at Holy Family Church in Willard.

The Most Rev. Frederick W. Freking, Bishop of La Crosse, will preside at the 1:30 p.m. Ordination Mass. He will be assisted by Fr. Lawrence Cyr, C.PPs., Provincial of the Society of the Precious Blood, Kansas City province, and Fr. Michael Mertens, the pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church.

A picnic-reception will follow on the church grounds.

On Sunday, June 22, at 12:30 p.m., the newly ordained priest will celebrate a First Mass of Thanksgiving, also at Holy Family Church. Mark Mason, a classmate from the Diocese of Oklahoma City, will be the assisting deacon, and Fr. Robert Butko, Missoula, Mt., will preach the homily. The celebration will continue with a reception and potluck supper in the parish center.

The son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Bayuk of Willard, the ordination candidate was born in Marshfield, August 4, 1947. He is the oldest of 13 children: Mrs. Paul (Colette) Jordan, of Granton; Mrs. Gary (Mary) Nauertz of Neillsville; Christine, an LPN at Marshfield Hospital; Chuck and John, both of Madison; Pat, with the Marines at Camp Pendleton, Ca.; Tim, who will be going into the Army in June; and Tom, Ed, Teresa, Rosemary and Janet, all at home.

He attended Willard grade school and graduated from Holy Cross Seminary High School, La Crosse, in 1965. After two years at Holy Cross Seminary College, he went to St. John’s University, Collegeville, Mn., where he graduated in 1969 with a bachelor of arts in philosophy. In 1970 he began his graduate studies in theology at St. John’s School of Divinity, Collegeville.

After ordination as a deacon in April 1974, he served for eight months at Sacred Heart parish in Miami, Ok. He completed his studies at St. John’s this past May. Following several parish assignments this summer, he will be on the faculty at Precious Blood Seminary, Liberty, Mo., where he will be instructor in theology, music liturgy and speech.