WHO ARE OUR DEACONS?

Among the twenty men who were ordained a deacon by Bishop Walter Sullivan at the Cathedral on February 22, 2003 were "our own Chris Colville and Chris Malone. Priestly rumor has it that our two guys were the "cream of the crop", but we already knew that! Indeed, they are two very special men, alike in some ways and very different in others

We've already seen these guys "at work", we've heard them preach and we watched them lead services when the priest was away. We look forward to seeing them take on an ever-expanding role in the life of the Redeemer parish.

Chris Malone

Chris Malone, is also a product of a Catholic education. He grew up in Northern Virginia and graduated from Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria and the College of William and Mary. He received his law degree from the University of Virginia, and practices with the law firm of Thompson & McMullan PC in Shockhoe Slip.

Chris and his wife Nancy, a schoolteacher, are parents to five children, and they became grandparents six years ago with the birth of a daughter to their oldest son, Zy. Matthew is currently on "sabbatical" from the University of Virginia and is working for Circuit City. Daughter Cecilia attends the Hanover Development Center and Ryan who graduated from high school last June, works as an airline mechanic. Their youngest son Brandon, is a high school freshman.

In addition to a host of civic activities a pro bono legal work - his work for Redeemer on the baptismal font alone has earned him a number of stars in his heavenly crown - Chris juggles a myriad of volunteer positions at Redeemer. He serves as Prayer Leader and lector, teachers Confirmation and religious education classes, is on the Social Ministry Committee, distributes communion on a regular basis at Memorial Regional Medical Center, and has worked with the Refugee Resettlement Program. And his long-standing work with the Scouts is legendary.

It seems it took an invitation - a nudge perhaps? - from Fr. Jim four years ago for Chris Malone to take a good look at himself and discover gifts he may not have known he possessed but which were obvious to many others, and decide to become a deacon. It appears to be a good fit.

For Nancy Malone, the deaconate gave her a chance to meet people throughout the diocese, provided some excellent adult education (especially classes taught by some of the Benedictine monks), and was a chance for her and Chris to spend time together and to give them food for thought.

Chris Colville

Chris Colville and his wife Terry, Redeemer's Minister of Religious Education, have been married for 33 years and have three daughters. Mary Beth Warner, a 2003 Graduate of James Madison University lives in Harrisonburg VA with her husband Kevin Warner and their three children.  Christina is a 2004 graduate of Virginia Tech (dad's alma mater) and lives in the Richmond area and attends Redeemer.  Molly is in her first year at UVA. Terry is a graduate of James Madison and has a Master's from Loyola.  Chris holds undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees from Tech.

Chris Colville spends his "for hire" hours as the Assistant Superintendent for Adult Operations, supervising the educational programs in the adult correctional centers throughout the State of Virginia.  His "unpaid" jobs, here at Redeemer, include assisting at Mass with the Prayer Leaders, working with RCIA, Small Communities of Faith, the Community Life and Christian Care Committees, and Bible Study at Hanover Juvenile Correctional Center.  Chris and Terry also are part of two of the TEAMS groups for couples here at Redeemer.  In his spare time Chris enjoys spending time with Terry including hiking and exploring new places, attending and watching Tech sports activities, playing tennis, running, music and watching movies.  He is also a member of Redeemer's Knights of Columbus Council.

It appears that Chris may have always had a slight leaning toward the ministry. He is from a very LARGE Catholic family, and he attended Catholic elementary and Catholic high school for two years. Following graduation from high school, he attended two different seminaries for a short time before going into the field of education. Obviously the diaconate training was right up his alley; and according to Terry, he enjoys his ministry as a deacon.

For Terry, the best part of the training was being mutually involved with Chris in something they both revere - the study of their Catholic faith, and having an opportunity to be with him on a regular basis, even if it was in a classroom setting. It was "time spent together" to which she looked forward.