Fr. Ian Wintering our new Chaplain has begun his tenure here at Notre Dame Prep and he is very excited to get to work! He arrived on campus on July 18. 

For the past two years, he has worked with young students in theology classes at San Francisco de Asis School in Flagstaff. As the parochial vicar there, he discovered that he LOVES teaching and establishing relationships as the spiritual father to students.

"From the moment I arrived in Flagstaff, I knew that one day I wanted to work as a Chaplain at the high school level," he said. "I didn’t realize that day would come so quickly! I am excited to continue the work started by my predecessors, Fr. Kurt Perera and Fr. Clement Attah."

Bishop Dolan assigned Fr. Ian to Notre Dame Prep and to his alma mater Seton Prep. Between the two schools, he will serve as Chaplain to nearly 2,000 students, faculty and staff this school year. "I am grateful for this opportunity. I do have ties to Notre Dame Prep as a visiting member of the first Kairos team when NDP was just starting its Kairos program," he added.

When he was a student at Seton, he attended a Kairos retreat as a candidate and then again as the rector. Their school Chaplain at the time was Fr. Will Schmid (who ended up being his boss for the past two years in Flagstaff). It was Fr. Will's influence and his Kairos experiences that were instrumental in Fr. Ian becoming a priest. "Now my life seems to have come full circle and I am excited for the chance to give back to the ministry that set the stage for my life," he said.

He believes that teaching reverence, respect and responsibility are wonderful virtues to gauge growth and gratitude. Pondering his goals for his ministry at NDP, he commented that "If I can help guide students in those three pillars, and see the divine beauty in the world around us, then my time at NDP will be well spent and more exciting than I could ever imagine."