the Very rev. Donio selected to lead his Pallottine Province
Wednesday, May 27, 2015 • The Hammonton Gazette • Page 3
DONIO, from Page 1
Pallottine Seminary at Green Hill
in West Hyattsville, Maryland.
for the last nine years, he has
also served as first consultor or
vice provincial for his order of the
Pallottines. Despite being more
than three hours from his hometown of Hammonton, Donio never
forgot his roots and where it all
began for him. a 1984 graduate of
Hammonton High School, he
spent all of his pre-college years
attending Hammonton public
schools. He recalled his involvement with the St. Joseph Church in
town and high school.
“i was very involved in the
parish as an altar server and helping out the religious education
program. When the youth group
started i was also very involved in
that. During the feasts in the summer, i helped out with the processions and worked in the stands.
throughout high school, i worked
in the rectory. that was something
i became invited to do by the pastor at the time, partially because i
had an interest in the Pallottines. it
gave me an opportunity to learn a
little bit more about them. i got a
sense during that time what went
on in the rectory. it was kind of
behind the scenes of a Pallottine
working in a parish,” Donio said.
Donio entered the Pallottines a
month after graduating high
school in 1984. in 1986, he made
his first consecration as a Pallottine and his ordination to the
priesthood was in 1994, both taking place at St. Joseph Church in
Hammonton.
“When i was in my senior year
of high school, i applied early decision to the Catholic University
of america. i only applied to one
school, partially because i really
loved that the university was in
Washington D.C., but especially
because it was the Catholic University of america and also because the Pallottine house of
formation, Pallottine Seminary at
Green Hill, was nearby. i was offered an application, filled it out,
and i was accepted. in July, it will
be 31 years since i entered,”
Donio said.
DiMeglio Septic,
Est. 1975 ~ DEP 03261 ~ Paul DiMeglio
today, Donio is currently serving as national president of the
alumni association of the
Catholic University of america.
at a young age, Donio had a
profound interest in the Pallottines. His confirmation name is
Vincent for St. Vincent Pallotti.
“i was pretty clear at that point,
even in myself. i hadn’t really told
a lot of people. in eighth grade, i
mentioned something to a friend,
and then that kind of spread. in
fact, in my high school yearbook
one of my nicknames is fr. frank.
that is what i go by today, and not
fr. Donio. Before senior year was
done, everyone knew i was going
into the Pallottines. i have always
just been taken with St. Vincent
Pallotti and his understanding that
everybody is called to be an apostle,” Donio said.
for Donio, the Pallottines were
beyond Hammonton and southern
New Jersey. He felt there was an
opportunity to be engaged in the
larger work of the church in terms
of its mission.
“it is about helping people become much more engaged in the
life of the faith. it is not just simply in your church building, but in
everyday life and where people
find themselves,” Donio said.
Donio’s educational background is extensive, going beyond
a traditional four-year bachelor’s
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degree. He holds three degrees
from the Catholic University of
america, including a bachelor of
arts in history, a master of arts in
church history, and a doctor of
ministry in adult spiritual formation. He also obtained a master of
divinity from Washington theological Union and a master of science in church management from
Villanova School of Business. He
has put those degrees to use over
the years through giving presentations nationally and internationally
and teaching at Catholic University, fordham University and St.
Joseph’s College of Maine.
in 1994, Donio was ordained a
priest and was stationed as chaplain of Bishop eustace Preparatory
School in Pennsauken. from 1997
to 2006 he was pastoral director of
St. Jude Shrine in Baltimore.
though his journey in life has
taken him to a different area away
from his hometown of Hammonton, he looked back at how some
of the most important religious
events in his life took place in
Hammonton, plus how the Pallottines have been a part of his family’s life for generations.
“the Pallottines were in Hammonton from 1901 to 2003. My
parents’ marriage was presided
over by a Pallottine as well as my
grandparent. Let’s put it this way:
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