My name is Dominick Denney and I am the seminarian assigned to Saint Eugene’s for the summer, with my home parish being Saint Francis Xavier in Enid. I just finished my sixth year of seminary formation, which means I have two and a half years until my ordination to the transitional diaconate, and three years until my ordination to the priesthood.
I was raised in a Catholic, Air Force family. I have one older sister and three younger brothers. Since we moved to another assignment every two to four years, I always say that I’m not really from Oklahoma, but rather, from the Midwest as a whole. However, I am beyond happy that the Lord, in His great love, decided to call me to be a priest here in the heartlnd of Oklahoma! Oklahoma truly is home for me, and this is where my heart belongs.
I first sensed a potential call to the priesthood at the age of six. I was a very active altar server while I was growing up, and the thought entered my mind while watching the priests celebrate the Holy Mass, “I could do that!” The call to the priesthood went to the back of my mind during the coming years, but would come back in full force while I was in high school. I frequently attended the discernment retreats hosted by the Archdiocese during the summers, now called Quo Vadis days. So if you are a young man in high school or college, please consider attending this retreat towards the end of the summer, because it changed my life for the better and helped me to come to know God’s will for my life.
I want to extend my gratitude for the loving welcome you all have given me thus far! I am very excited to see where the Lord shows His face to me over the course of the summer, through you, His beloved children.