'Overwhelming and humbling'

By Rob Herbst
The Catholic Week
MOBILE — Deacon Joseph Schultz is feeling a mix of excitement and appreciation-with a natural dose of nervousness.
The Archdiocese of Mobile will celebrate the ordination of Deacon Schultz to the priesthood as well as the ordination of Richard Perkins to the transitional diaconate at 10 a.m. June 1 at the Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. All are invited to attend and the Mass will be livestreamed at Facebook.com/mobilearchdiocese. A reception will follow at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School.
“I’ve been floored by how much support I’ve received from the people of the archdiocese and it’s exciting to be at the point where I get to come back to Alabama and serve as a priest,” Deacon Schultz said. “And honestly, there’s also some fear and trembling mixed in there too. The prospect of serving as a representative—a vicar—of Jesus Christ and His Church on Earth is overwhelming and humbling.
Deacon Schultz will be ordained at the age of 28. He is the son of Matt and Michelle Schultz and is one of six children in the family. He was raised in St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Auburn, graduated from Auburn University in 2017  and then served as a FOCUS Missionary at Georgia Tech before entering seminary. 
Since entering seminary, Deacon Schultz has served summer assignments at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Enterprise, St. Bede the Venerable Parish in Montgomery and St. Patrick Parish in Robertsdale. He will return to St. Bede this summer for his first assignment as a parochial vicar.
“Seminary has been a place of learning who I am and what it means to try, fail, and try again! The parish will be no different in that regard. But above all I'm thankful. I never would have imagined being here,” Deacon Schultz said. 
Deacon Schultz has asked Fr. Victor Ingalls to vest him on June 1. Fr. Ingalls was the archdiocese’s vocations director for the majority of Deacon Schultz’ tenure as a seminarian. He now serves as the archdiocese’s executive director of Multicultural Ministry as well as pastor of five parishes in the Mobile area.
Fr. Ingalls’ first assignment was at St. Michael the Archangel Parish when Schultz was a teenager.
“His priesthood was really impactful for me, especially in seeing that priests don't just ‘appear out of thin air,’ ‘grow on trees, or ‘descend from the heavens’ but are called out of even a little place like Alabama,” Deacon Schultz said. “Fr. Victor has been a friend and mentor to me over the years, often challenging me and calling me higher. I'm not sure what those years of my life would have been like without his role in it and for that I'm deeply thankful.”
This year’s Ordination Mass will have a heavy Auburn flavor. Like Deacon Schultz, Perkins is an Auburn product, having lived there for more than 30 years. Unlike Schultz, Perkins will be ordained a transitional deacon at the age of 55.
He was raised Protestant, graduated from Auburn in 1998, served in the U.S. Navy, worked in various sales job and had a 20-year career as a radio broadcaster.
However, Perkins entered the Church in 2004 at St. Michael. He eventually entered seminary in 2019.
“When I was in my mid to late 40s, I came to a crossroads in my life, finding myself single with many options for the rest of my life. Having grown up Protestant, I did not have a real understanding of ‘discernment,’ but I knew that my plan for my life had not worked out. So I asked my pastor at the time, Msgr. (William) Skoneki, to help me discern God's will for my life, instead of just acting and hoping God would fix everything,” Perkins explained.
“I never expected that God would ask me to become a priest! But as I began forming a consistent prayer life and meeting and talking with priests in the archdiocese, it became clear that God was leading me down this path.”
Perkins has served summer assignments within the archdiocese at St. Margaret of Scotland Parish in Foley, St. Columba Parish in Dothan and will serve at the City of St. Jude in Montgomery.
He has asked Fr. Frank Sofie, his first pastor, to vest him. 
“The outpouring of God's mercy has been overwhelming,” Perkins said. “Throughout this entire journey, I have been blessed to have the love and support from family, friends, and the wonderful people in the Archdiocese of Mobile.”
Please pray for Deacon Schultz and Rich Perkins and for continuing vocations to the priesthood and religious life.