Deacon Rich Vehige's 75th birthday is August 13, 2020 and effective Saturday, August 15th he will retire from active ministry after serving as Deacon to the the faithful of St. Clement of Rome Parish for 19 years.  Unfortunately, during these unusual circumstances, we are not allowed to have a retirement/thank you reception honoring his years of service.  Instead, I invite all parishioners to write a short note/card thanking him for his vocation.  If you have a particular memory -- perhaps he Baptized your child, witnessed your marriage, or you have a story about a committee you served on with him - please include it!  Those in the Permanent Diaconate play a vital role in our Archdiocese and Parishes and his retirement is certainly worth commemorating.  We will still see Deacon Rich around as he and his wife Carolyn are active Parishioners.   You may drop off your card in the offertory basket at Mass, through the slot in the front door of the rectory, or mail to him at the Parish office - 1510 Bopp Road / 63131.   Thank you for your time.

Deacon Richand his family have been members of the parish since 1999.He was ordained in 2001 and is the first permanent deacon to serve at St. Clement’s. After retiring from Southwestern Bell (AT&T) in 1998, Deacon Rich worked as the president of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis for five years. He is actively involved in the life of the parish and is a member of the parish Finance Committee; Deacon Rich is currently interim Business Manager for St. Clement. He and his wife Carolyn have been married 50 years. They have seven children and eighteen grandchildren.