Story by Randy Porter
(SNR) - Deacons Dale Allder and Matthew Kovar will be ordained priests in the Diocese of Lincoln by Bishop James Conley at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 29 at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ in Lincoln.
The ordination to the priesthood follows the diaconate ordination, also at the Cathedral, 3500 Sheridan Blvd., at 7 p.m. Friday, May 28.
Four men will be ordained transitional deacons for the Diocese of Lincoln. They are Liam O’Shea-Creal, Tony Schukei, Christian Schwenka and Dominic Winter.
One man, Matthew Hecker, Ph.D, will be ordained the first permanent deacon for the diocese. Hecker is chief administrative officer of the Diocese of Lincoln schools. A permanent deacon is a layman who discerns the call to this vocation indefinitely, and is educated and trained to perform it.
Related item: Deacon: service to the ministry of charity
Deacon Dale Allder
Born and raised in Lincoln, Deacon Allder grew up with St. Peter Church as his home parish.
“It definitely had a positive influence on me,” Allder said. “There was, and still is, a strong Catholic identity that helped me take my own faith seriously.”
His parents are Dave and Nancy Allder, and he has one younger brother, Scott. He attended St. Peter elementary school and graduated from Pius X High School in 2013. The deacon said both schools helped develop his character.
The new priest said he met many people, and made many friends, in the schools which helped him become who he is today. He also studied chemical engineering for a year at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln before entering seminary.
Allder studied at St. Gregory the Great Seminary in Seward for three years, entering in the fall of 2014. Subsequently, he studied four years at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., graduating this semester.
“St. Gregory the Great provided me with the strong foundation needed to study the more complicated topics in theology, while helping me become a better man,” Allder said. “Mount St. Mary’s is like a home away from home, and the formation there is spectacular. I loved my time in both seminaries, but by the end of each, I was ready to move on.”
Throughout his life, various priests invited him to consider the priesthood, he said, directly or indirectly. “Honestly, a priest’s good example is an invitation in itself to consider the priesthood. Excellent priests in the diocese set such examples.
It sounds cliché, but prayer was essential to how he knew he wanted to be a priest, Allder said.
“How would I know that I’m supposed to dedicate myself to Christ and his Church if I don’t speak with him about it,” he asked? “I also had to reflect on what I see and understand in the lives of priests. Does it give me peace and joy when I imagine myself living that way?”
Allder asked himself various questions. In seminary, did he enjoy learning about the truths of the faith? Did his assignments during those years to hospitals, schools and elsewhere bring him joy and peace, too? Do the laity see a vocation in him?
“These are questions I’ve gone through in my discernment,” he said. “One of the best aspects of discernment is that you don’t have to do it on your own. Jesus helps you through it, but you have to let him.”
Ultimately, his vocation, and everyone’s vocation, is chosen by God. The question, rather, is whether to say “yes” to it.
Allder said he wants to help save souls. Celebrating Mass and hearing confessions are two of the most powerful ways to do that. So, he is particularly excited about those two aspects of priesthood.
“Who knows what God has in store for me, though,” he asked?
Allder’s Mass of Thanksgiving is set for 1:30 p.m. Sunday, May 30 at St. Peter Church, 4500 Duxhall Dr., Lincoln.
Deacon Matthew Kovar
It’s difficult to describe the journey of Deacon Kovar without first learning how he got his name.
His parents, Mark and Julie Kovar, heard that Father Matthew Eickhoff had a reputation in the diocese for praying for couples. His prayers were especially for couples who had lost a child, or if the couple had trouble conceiving.
They reached out to Father Eickhoff for his prayers and intercession when they were ready to begin a family.
Father Brian Connor also was a key figure for his parents because he taught his mother’s RCIA classes, witnessed their marriage, blessed their house and kept in touch with them over the years. Thus, when the deacon was born, his parents named him Matthew Connor Kovar in honor of the two priests who truly impacted their marriage.
Kovar’s parents also were good about having priests over for dinner and hosting Christmas parties with 15 to 30 priests in their home. Being constantly exposed to priests, especially in a casual setting, helped him grow more comfortable with the idea of priesthood.
Raised near David City, in what local residents call the “Bohemian Alps,” his father bought a barn. He moved it to the country and turned it into a house. Therefore, the deacon “was literally raised in a barn” with his younger brother, Nathan.
Kovar is a member of Appleton’s Assumption Parish, a small country mission to St. Mary Church in David City one mile from his house. Growing up in a small parish community definitely has advantages and blessings. For instance, most of his family attends, such as aunts, uncles and cousins. Due to the small size of Appleton, however, all parishioners become family as well.
“Attending Appleton also gave me the opportunity to serve a lot,” he said.
Kovar is believed to be the first parishioner ordained a priest from Appleton.
He attended St. Mary Elementary School and graduated from Aquinas Middle/High School in 2013.
“The most influential part about attending those schools was the constant exposure to priests,” he said. On a typical day in high school, I’d would see between five to eight priests in a school with 200 students. I was able to know them on a personal level, and they were able to know me and my family.”
Kovar also attended at Wayne State College in Wayne, Neb., for one year, studying secondary education with a focus in science. His dream was to be a science teacher. It also was the first year FOCUS was on campus.
Fellowship of Catholic University Students is a Catholic collegiate outreach whose mission is to share the hope and joy of the gospel with college and university students.
“I was active in my faith as a new student, and it was fascinating to have been a witness to the impact that FOCUS had on the students, even after one year,” Kovar said. “I am so glad I was able to be a part of that. I discerned the call to become a priest when I was at Wayne State.”
He went with friends to Chicago during spring break to work with the Missionaries of Charity. It was there — serving the poor and praying with the Sisters — that he found the courage to answer the call and to give seminary a try.
Kovar entered St. Gregory the Great Seminary in the fall of 2014 and graduated in the spring of 2017. He then attended Mount St. Mary’s from fall 2017 through spring 2021.
“I am really grateful for my time at St. Gregory, especially since it was less than 30 minutes from my house,” he said. “As a child, my parents would bring me to visit seminarians we knew through Totus Tuus (summer catechesis), but I never considered that one day I would be living there and taking classes as a seminarian.”
In seminary, he enjoyed studying various topics and discussions from the great philosophers. The new priest also learned valuable lessons in the kitchen, working with the Franciscan Apostolic Sisters from the Philippines.
“But by far, the best part about St. Gregory was encountering other men who loved the faith and wanted to give their life to God through the priesthood,” Kovar said. “I made friendships that hopefully will endure into eternity, where we will be priests forever.”
His time at Mount St. Mary’s also “was a great adventure,” he said.
It was a big move, leaving the David City area for the mountainous region of the East Coast. He discovered, however, “The Mount,” is located in the country, and resembled the environment in which he came to know God — through nature.
The gifts he received at St. Gregory’s were multiplied at the Mount, including a deep, thorough and orthodox education in theology. He also was blessed to meet so many holy and good men. While relieved to be home, a part of him will always miss learning about God and spending time with our Holy Mother there.
Kovar is most looking forward to learning how to be a good Father. The sacraments also are, and probably should be, the primary excitement for a young priest.
“Once my ordination happens, I will be given the gift of Fatherhood, but I will have to continually unpack and explore for the rest of my priesthood as I learn more every day from those who have been entrusted to me,” he said. “I know little about what it means to be a Father, but as in a typical family, it is the children who teach their parents – through their needs, desires and love.”
Whether it’s through the sacraments, teaching in a classroom or visiting someone in the hospital, everything he has to offer comes directly from the gift of God’s Fatherhood, Kovar said. God has chosen to share that with him, and he cannot wait to meet the many families God has entrusted to his fatherly care, to learn more about himself and about God through them.
His Mass of Thanksgiving is set for 4 p.m. Sunday, May 30 at St. Mary Church, 580 I St., David City.
