Speakers

Our 2016 Speakers

Father Ladis J. Cizik served as the National Executive Director and Vice President of the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima, USA (World Apostolate of Fatima) from January 1, 2000 to mid-2003. During that time, he was also the Editor of SOUL magazine, the official publication of the Blue Army USA. Father Cizik now writes for the Remnant and for Catholic Family News.

Father Cizik has led numerous pilgrimages to Fatima, as well as to other Marian Shrines around the world. He has given numerous talks and retreats about Our Lady of Fatima throughout the country. Devotion to the Fatima Message, and to Saint Padre Pio, led Father Cizik, ordained in 1987, to begin saying the Traditional Latin Mass in 2013.

Currently assigned as Chaplain to various nursing homes, rehab and elderly facilities, Father Cizik also leads a First Saturday Prayer Group and the Divine Child Jesus Saint Padre Pio Prayer Group, all in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. He also serves as the chaplain for the Knights of Columbus Woodlawn Council 2161 Traditional Latin Mass Guild.

Father Shannon Michael Collins was born in 1964 and is a native of Cohasset, MA. After undergraduate and graduate work in history and education, he taught in Catholic schools for a number of years. Having completed his seminary training at St. Philip Neri Seminary in Toronto, Ontario, he was ordained to the priesthood on June 10, 2000.

Father has been a very strong proponent of Catholic homeschooling and, over the years, a very popular speaker at numerous Catholic homeschooling conferences across the United States. He has appeared on EWTN and had previously served as chaplain for the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Hanceville, Alabama. Father also preaches parish missions and retreats throughout North America. Father is currently serving under Bishop Roger Foys of Covington, Kentucky.

Father Sean Kopczynski was born and raised in Montana. As a young man he pursued a career in engineering by attending undergraduate and graduate studies at Montana State and Oregon State Universities. God, however, had other plans for Fr. Sean. On August 15, 1991, while attending Mass he perceived a call to leave his worldly pursuits and sacrifice his life for Christ and His Church. After a period of study, prayer and struggling with God, he obeyed the call to abandon his engineering career and enter religious life with the Fathers of Mercy, eventually professing perpetual vows of poverty, chastity and obedience on August 15, 1996. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 10, 2000.

Fr. Sean has served five years in two Kentucky parishes, two years as a missionary on the Fathers of Mercy mission band and nearly five years as a chaplain to Discalced Carmelite Nuns. Since the beginning of 2011 Fr. Sean has been working on a project of restoration in the religious life as well as the Sacred Liturgy under the direction of Bishop Roger J. Foys of Covington, KY. During this time been active in an active apostolate of preaching traditional retreats, parish missions and conferences.

Mr.Hugh Owen, is the convert son of Sir David Owen, a former Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations and Secretary General of International Planned Parenthood Federation. Hugh attended Princeton University where he joined the Church Hugh received a B.A. in history from New York University, and a M.S. in education from Bank Street College of Education in New York City. Between 1977 and 1991, Hugh worked as a teacher and administrator of several independent schools and served as a school evaluator for the Middle States Association and as a member of the executive committee of the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools.

For the past 15 years, Hugh has dedicated his life to the service of the Church as a writer, editor, teacher, and lecturer. Hugh has written numerous books and articles on Catholic and secular topics. His books and articles have been published by the Catholic Distance University, Human Life International, Seton Home School, The Apostolate for Family Consecration, Latin Mass Magazine, and many other publications. For thirteen years, Hugh served as the director of religious education for St. John Bosco Parish in the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia. He is currently the director of the John Paul II Institute of Christian Spirituality.