Bishop’s Dinner Silver Jubilee sets record

The Bishop’s Dinner turned 25 on May 23 in record-breaking fashion. The annual fundraiser was a customary witness of elegance, festivity and generosity with nearly 1,000 faithful supporters of the diocese and its Seminarian Program joining Bishop Alberto Rojas at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort in Palm Desert for the Silver Jubilee of the event. The Bishop’s Dinner raised more than $500,000, an all-time high, according to Julio Chavez, Event Planner Coordinator for the diocese. “There are so many benefactors who are willing to do anything for our Seminarian Program,” Chavez said in response to the record level of support. “Everybody understands the importance of building the Church through seminarian formation.”  The dinner was also the occasion for Bishop Rojas to bestow the Amar Es Entregarse Award, named after Bishop Emeritus Gerald Barnes’ episcopal motto, “Love is the total giving of oneself.” This year’s recipients were Edgardo Juarez, Diocesan Office of Catholic Schools Associate Director of Mission and St. Junipero Serra House of Formation. Attendees were also treated to a keynote address from Father Larry Curtis, one of two newly-ordained diocesan priests.