"The family is the school of love."
“Today more than ever,
the Christian family has
a very noble mission…”
Mark and Krista Calvino
Monsignor Dan Deutsch
Regina Doman
Claire and Sarah Halbur
Bill Hammack
Father Francis J. "Rocky" Hoffman
Father Burke Masters
Eric Scheidler
Virginia (Ginny) Seuffert
Father Pablo Straub
Maureen Wittmann
Elizabeth Yank
COLLEEN BILLING, BSCD
Colleen is a homeschooling mother of five children, ranging in age from 2-13. She has
been married to her husband Andrew for 15 years and they reside in Westmont, Illinois.
Colleen graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with a bachelor of
arts in public speaking and a minor in the teaching of English. She has been a
retreat master, a guest speaker at homechooling ‘home management’ meetings, and
a facilitator for mother/daughter organizing workshops at her home. Colleen’s
dream was realized in 2006 when she turned her hobby of helping friends and family
get organized into her own business called, “Peaceful Interiors”. Colleen’s dynamic,
no-nonsense approach to obtaining peace, both in our hearts and in our homes, has
people rescuing flat surfaces all over the state!!! Colleen and her husband Andrew
are members of the Franciscan-based community, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity,
founded by John Michael Talbot.
MARK & KRISTA CALVINO
Mark & Krista Calvino have been married 24 years. They have (only) 10 children ages
2-21 and have been home schooling for 17 years. Their oldest daughter has been a
Consecrated Woman of Regnum Christi for 4 years and their oldest son is finishing his
2nd year of seminary studies with the Legionaries of Christ. Two of their other teenagers
have plans to pursue religious vocations as well.
Nathan Calvino, LC and Sarah Calvino
MONSIGNOR DAN DEUTSCH
Msgr. Deutsch is pastor of the vibrant
Holy Cross Parish
in Batavia, IL. He grew up in St. Charles, IL
with 5 brothers and sisters. Raised and educated in a strong Catholic faith, Monsignor
graduated from Northern Illinios University with a degeee in finance and economics and
worked in Chicago at the Mercantile Exchange trading Eurodollars for several years.
But his heart was experiencing the pull of his vocation.
"All the while, even from my earliest days, I felt a great
attraction to the priesthood," he says. "Finally, I realized that God was not going to stop
pursuing me so I let go of the life of a bond trader and began my
journey to the priesthood." After being accepted by the Diocese of Rockford,
Msgr. Deutsch attended the University of St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, IL for
his formation and was ordained a priest in 1994. He has been pastor of Holy Cross since 2001,
and was just named a Monsignor by Pope Benedict in March 2008!
REGINA DOMAN
Regina Doman was born in 1970 of the happy marriage of a Vietnam vet and a mathematician,
and grew up surrounded by nine younger brothers and sisters. Having a strong interest in
scriptwriting, she attended the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio
and graduated with a BA in Communications, concentrating on Television Production,
with a minor in Theatre Arts. “Growing up,” she says, “There were two things I was always
convinced of: that I was meant to be married, and that I was meant to write stories.” Regina
lived in New York City and worked as assistant editor of Lay Witness magazine from 1992-1994,
and wrote columns and articles for various publications, including a comic strip for YOU!
Magazine. In 1994 she married her husband, Andrew and she published her first novel for
teenagers in 1997.
Snow White and Rose Red: A Modern Fairy Tale (republished in paperback
in 2002 under the title The Shadow of the Bear) quickly enjoyed success among Catholic youth,
especially homeschooled teens. The sequel,
Black as Night, was published in 2004.
In July 2006, Regina's family was grieved by the loss of her son Joshua in a tragic car accident.
They created a memorial website for him
and Regina took a sabbatical from public speaking and writing to be with her family.
In August 2007 she resumed public work with the publication of her third novel,
Waking Rose, and also spoke at the 2007
Midwest Catholic Family Conference on suffering, sharing from her experience of losing a
child. Regina has been a speaker at many conferences, often speaking on Catholic/Christian
fiction writing. She enjoys sharing with adults and teens about the relationship between
faith and creativity. Regina and her husband co-own
Chesterton Productions, and make
their home near Front Royal, Virginia with their six children, whom they homeschool.
Regina's website is www.reginadoman.com.
CLAIRE and SARAH HALBUR
The two eldest daughters in a family of four homeschooled children, these sisters
have been active in public speaking, acting, and leadership from a young age.
They have won numerous awards through 4-H at County and Illinois State levels, and
have been active in parish ministry, including teaching Religious Education, for several years.
Growing up counter-culturally (and enjoying it), the girls are often petitioned
by other parents to share about their homeschool experience.
Claire, 20, graduated from a lifetime of homeschooling in 2006 and remains a daughter at home,
serving as the Director of Religious Education at their parish and offering private
lessons as a certified Suzuki music teacher. She is also the foundress and directress
of The Rosa Mystica Modesty Movement,
an outreach encouraging women, especially young women, to discover the beauty and
power of modesty and authentic femininity. She has traveled several times as a speaker,
and her talk CDs and printed materials have circled the country. She also maintains a blog
at www.lily-maiden.blogspot.com.
Sarah, 17, is a graduating homeschool Senior this Spring and is discerning college with
a focus on writing and/or drama, two of her great loves. Both girls are are longtime
members of The Little Flowers
Catholic Dance and Theatre Troupe, and have starred in the troupe's yearly performances
in roles such as Saint Joan of Arc,
Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Saint Gianna Molla, and the Blessed Mother.
They are avid musicians and share many common interests, including literature, graceful
and folk dancing, singing, flower arranging, sewing, homemaking, history, foreign languages,
children and babies.
BILL HAMMACK
Bill Hammack is a husband and the father of three homeschooled children,
recently receiving his M.A. in Theology from Holy Apostles College and Seminary.
He has a deep love for and interest in the liturgy and sacred music,
having directed and participated in church choirs for over 30 years. He will share how
this experience has demonstrated to him the powerful impact music has on moral
formation and worship, and how these are intertwined. Bill resides with his wife,
Leslie, and family in North Aurora, Illinois.
FATHER FRANCIS J. "ROCKY" HOFFMAN
Since 1998 Father Frank "Rocky" Hoffman has been Chaplain of
Northridge Preparatory School
in Niles, Illinois, a college prep school for boys in grades 6-12.
He has worked with youth for over 25 years and served as chaplain of Aquinas Academy
in Pittsburgh before coming back to Chicago as chaplain of Northridge Prep.
Ordained as a priest for Opus Dei in 1992 by John Paul II, he holds a doctorate in
Canon Law from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome), a B.A. from Northwestern
in History and an M.B.A. from Notre Dame.
For the past 12 summers he has been Chaplain for the YSI
(Youth Service International) Mexico Summer Service Projects in isolated and
impoverished areas of Mexico. Fr. Rocky is a nationally known speaker appreciated for his
sense of humor and ability to explain the faith in simple and inspiring ways.
Father is an accomplished jazz musician on the piano and sax,
and a weekly guest on Relevant Radio.
FATHER BURKE MASTERS
Fr. Burke was born December 17, 1966 and raised in Joliet, IL, the youngest of three sons to
Tod and Janet Masters. He was not raised Catholic but attended Providence Catholic High
School in order to move closer to his dream of becoming a Major League baseball player.
It was at Providence that Fr. Burke fell in love with the Eucharist and the Catholic Church.
He became Catholic his senior year in high school and went on to play baseball at Mississippi
State University, where he played in the College World Series. His major league dream did not
materialize, so after working as an actuary, and then ticket manager for the Kane County
Cougars, Fr. Burke felt the call to become a priest. He attended Mundelein Seminary from
1997-2002 and was ordained to the priesthood for the
Diocese of Joliet in June of 2002.
He served for four years as associate pastor at St. Mary’s Parish in West Chicago, IL.
In June of 2006 he became the Vocation Director for the Diocese of Joliet, and
now travels around the diocese to encourage young men and women to lay down their
lives for the sake of Jesus Christ.
ERIC SCHEIDLER
Eric is the oldest of the seven children of longtime pro-life activist Joe Scheidler.
From 1998 to 2002, Eric served as assistant director of The GIFT Foundation, an organization
dedicated to fostering deeper respect for the teachings of the Catholic Church on marriage
and the marital embrace. From 1991 to 1998, Eric taught writing and literature at several
Chicago-area colleges. He currently serves as Communications Director for the
Pro-Life Action League
founded by his father. He coordinates many League events, including their
Face the Truth Tours, and speaks frequently for adults and youth on pro-life activism,
marriage and the family. Eric holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois
and a master's degree in English studies from the University of Georgia.
He is an avid cyclist and Byzantine Catholic and resides in Aurora, IL with his wife
April and their eight children. Eric blogs at
Square Zero and at
Families Against Planned
Parenthood.
VIRGINIA SEUFFERT
A native of New York and homeschool mother of 12, Virginia ("Ginny") currently resides in
Illinois. While in New York, Ginny lectured, debated, and wrote numerous articles for
the Pro-life Movement. After moving to Illinois, she became a founding member of the Network of
Illinois Catholic Home School Educators (NACHE), helped establish the "Round Table,"
(a Catholic home school leaders discussion group), and was a founder and officer of the
Catholic Home School Network of America.
Ginny has been on EWTN, lectured at Catholic conferences throughout the US and Canada,
and authored numerous articles on such topics as homeschooling, teaching virtues, and household
management. She also authored a chapter on Home Management in Dr. Mary Kay Clark's book
Catholic Home Schooling: A Parents Guide.
FATHER PABLO STRAUB, C.SS.R.
Father is a missionary priest of St. Alphonsus’ Redemptorist Order who is celebrating
his priestly Jubilee in 2008!
After his ordination in 1958 in the Hudson Valley, Father spent twenty years evangelizing
towns, cities, and villages all over Puerto Rico.
Father has spent the last twenty years in rural Mexico, where he helped found two new
missionary and contemplative religious orders.
In the United States, Mexico and Guatemala, Father Straub directs missions, retreats,
and Marian Eucharistic Conferences, and is a frequent presence
on on Mother Angelica’s EWTN and on Mexican Catholic television. Known as the "Crucifix
Priest," Father Pablo has a special devotion to Jesus in
the Blessed Sacrament, a great love for the Blessed Virgin Mary, and a deep fidelity to
the Holy Father.
He hears confessions during his missions from before sunrise to beyond midnight, preaches
with a quiet passion borne of love,
and finds time to write an occasional Catholic tract for laity. Father has produced many
audio and video recordings of the Catholic Catechism and
Rosary meditations, including the very popular 32-lesson, "Catholic Family Catechism" DVD
series. He is a strong supporter of homeschooling, and
even says that he "homeschoools the novices of his religious order"!
MAUREEN WITTMANN
Maureen Wittmann is the author of the newly released For the Love of Literature. She is
also coeditor and contributing author to The Catholic Homeschool Companion and
A Catholic Homeschool Treasury. She is the Homeschool Channel editor at
Maureen's articles have appeared in such publications as Our Sunday Visitor, Homeschooling
Today, Heart and Mind, Catholic Home Educator, New Covenant, Latin Mass, Catholic Faith,
Catholic Digest, and more. Mrs. Wittmann and her husband Rob are parents to seven
children, ages 5 to 18, who have always been homeschooled. She brings to her speaking
not only her experience, but an excitement for and love of homeschooling. Maureen's website
can be found at www.maureenwittmann.com
and her blog at
www.maureenwittmann.blogspot.com.
ELIZABETH YANK
Homeschooling since 1987, when her oldest son came home after 6 weeks of parochial school,
2007 marks Elizabeth’s 20th year of homeschooling. Married to Raymond for 26 years, they
have seven beautiful children ages 25 to 7.
Presently residing in Wisconsin, they have also lived in Virginia, Tennessee, and various
cities in Wisconsin. Elizabeth received a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
in English, with an emphasis in creative writing, which means that she attended lots of
poetry classes. Elizabeth has been published in Faith and Family, Heart and Mind,
Lay Witness, The Catholic Faith, and other Catholic and homeschool publications.
She has compiled The Resource Guide for Catholic Home Educators--a booklet that lists
various Catholic and other homeschool materials-- and edited a reading list of children's
books about the American Revolution entitled Whigs and Tories. She is also a contributing
reviewer for www.love2learn.net.
Over the years, she has used a variety of homeschool
materials. Her oldest was enrolled in kindergarten and high school 9th and 10th
grade with Seton. He then finished 11th and 12th grade with
Mother of Divine Grace School.
The children are now enrolled in Mother of Divine Grace school,
where Elizabeth is also a consultant.