How We Became Members of St. Katharine Drexel Parish

Hello! We are Ted and Dana Brandner. We have three children, Emily, age 15, Tony, age 13 and Adam, age 10. We have lived in Sioux Falls for eight years, moving here from Philadelphia in 1999. We were both raised Catholic and have found wonderful parishes everywhere we have lived.

Last summer, we felt the need to find a Catholic faith-based community that would welcome our entire family in active participation. We did not want to rush into a decision and spent the summer and fall—when we were not at soccer or band tournaments—visiting the Catholic churches in Sioux Falls. One of our visits took us to O’Gorman Junior High and the 8:30 a.m. Mass. As we listened to Fr. Joe’s homily, it reminded both of us that we had heard Fr. Joe years earlier. We had the good fortune of hearing Fr. Joe speak during a session at Journey to Holiness when we had first moved to Sioux Falls. While listening to his homily, we were reminded how pertinent Fr. Joe’s homilies are to our everyday lives and how his message stays with us during the week.

While trying to make a Saturday evening Mass in November at Good News Reformed Church, we noticed a sign saying St. Katharine Drexel Parish was meeting at All Occasions in Tea. Now I am hoping we are not perceived as having just fallen off the turnip truck, but we interpreted this to mean all St. Katharine Drexel Parish events from that point on would be held at the Catholic church in Tea (not even knowing if there was a Catholic church in Tea). Well, since we were running on time (for a change) we headed for Tea. As we exited the highway and headed west, Dana pointed out the obvious: All Occasions was a place that catered events, not a series of events. We just happened to intrude upon the Mass and presentation of the new church design and building campaign.  We felt bad and thought we should leave, but Fr. Joe and Suzie made us feel very comfortable and welcome, as did other parishioners sitting around our table.

To make this long story not so long, it seemed like this was a wonderful invitation to join the community of St. Katharine Drexel Parish. Since that time, we have found this parish to be a warm and inviting place of worship. Our children are in the Religious Education program. One son is an usher, another is an altar server, our daughter is a lector and Dana and I are Eucharistic Ministers. We truly feel like we are all actively participating in our faith.  

Thanks to all of you for building such a warm and welcoming faith community for all to worship!

The Brandner Family