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Fr. John Kowlaczyk (STOTS Director of Field Education) attended a national board meeting of the Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM) on August 8–10 in Wichita, KS. Travelling with him, as a guest, was Seminarian Gregory Matlak (‘20).
The evening before the meeting, a lovely dinner was held at the home of OCPM Treasurer Eric Namee. A presentation was given on a successful mentoring program designed to help inmates successfully transition back into regular society.
At the board meeting, Fr. John reported on his recent invitation to give a three hour workshop at the upcoming Pennsylvania Forensic Rights and Treatment Conference at Drexel Medical College, to be held on December 4-5. He also resigned as long-time Secretary of the OCPM board, yet renewed his commitment to the organization by reaffirming his role as a member of the executive staff and by accepting a new role as an executive board member.
Gregory was asked to offer a short presentation on his experience with prison ministry, during which he especially highlighted the excellent training he is receiving at St Tikhon’s as a part of field education classes.
It is an exciting time for the OCPM, as they recently approved a ground-breaking and ambitious new strategic plan. Both Fr. John and Gregory are involved in task forces addressing specific goals of this plan. The mission statement of the OCPM is: “To share the love of Christ and His Church with those who are incarcerated and their families so that lives are transformed and God is glorified.”
More information can be found at https://theocpm.org/.
Article written by Gregory Matlak
