Introducing the New Franciscan Director at the National Shrine of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha

Friar Mark Steed

Friar Mark Steed recently moved from the Franciscan Church of St. Bonaventure in Toronto, Ontario to the National Shrine of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha in Fonda, New York.  In Fonda Friar Mark coordinates the Shrine’s various activities.

A Canadian by birth, Mark has been following his Franciscan vocation since he was 18 years old. After completing his education, which included time in a Franciscan seminary, Friar Mark spent the next quarter of a century in various educational and formative ministries in the United States. These included - amongst others - positions as religion instructor and formation director in the Schoharie Valley region of New York and lecturer in psychology at the seminary in Granby, Massachusetts.

Formation within one’s vocation is ongoing. After years of life as a Franciscan friar, Mark Steed found that God was calling him to the priesthood. To deepen his understanding of what was required of a priest, Friar Mark moved to Canterbury, England. There he studied in preparation for his priestly ordination. The actual ordination took place at the Franciscan Church of St. Bonaventure in Toronto, Ontario. Friar Mark served at this parish for seven years before his move to Fonda, New York.

Friar Mark travelled throughout the Canadian Far North

Before his seven-year ministry in Toronto, it should be pointed out that Friar Mark worked with the Dene People of Canada’s far north. His ministry saw him travel to various aboriginal communities in Canada’s vast northern regions where he assisted in the development of spiritual leaders.

(Source of all related images on homepage and webpage: www.katerishrine.com and www.wikipedia.org.)