For Whitney Point deacon, stepping outside comfort zone brought 'greatest rewards'

Newly ordained Deacon John Mihalko enjoys preaching on Sundays inside the same Whitney Point church where he got married three decades ago.

“I’ve always enjoyed helping other people and serving other people,” he said. “That’s what the deacon is called to do is to serve.

Mihalko, 53, was one of eight men from all over the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse ordained to the permanent diaconate last month. He is the only one from the Southern Tier. He serves at the Catholic Community of St. Stephen’s-St. Patrick’s which includes his home church of St. Patrick’s in Whitney Point and St. Stephen’s in Marathon, Cortland County.

Deacons in the Roman Catholic tradition can perform some of the same functions a priest can including baptizing and officiating at wedding and funeral services. Mihalko plans to officiate at his youngest daughter Megan’s wedding in August, he said.

Deacons can also preach, proclaim the Gospel, and assist the priest during Mass. However, deacons cannot consecrate the bread and wine during the Eucharist, hear confessions or anoint the sick. Those duties can only be done by priests, he said.  

For Mihalko, it was a long road to becoming a deacon. He first considered it about 15 years ago but the timing wasn’t right, he said.

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“I heard God’s call in my life,” he said. “God quickly took it off my heart.”

But something changed when he and other members of his men’s group attended a retreat in Syracuse in 2013.

“God spoke to me very differently at that retreat,” he said. “Something changed in my heart. I realized God was calling me.”

He took two years of prerequisite studies, served one year of pastoral care and then four years of study in the deacon formation program through the Syracuse Diocese. Classes were held the second Saturday of each month from September through June.

“There’s a lot of reflection, a lot of reading,” he said.

Mihalko and the other seven deacons became close during all those Saturdays in the classroom, he said.

“We’ve become like brothers from different mothers,” he said. “I can’t imagine life without them.”

Mihalko said he’s gotten a warm welcome from his fellow parishioners.

“It’s a very, very supportive community,” he said.

He continues to juggle his full-time job as a software engineering manager at Lockheed Martin with his duties as a deacon.

“I need more hours in the day,” he said.

The deacon’s primary role is service to others, a role that’s not new to Mihalko. He’s a lifelong volunteer and continues to help at a local food pantry and deliver Meals on Wheels.

“I like serving the community,” he said.

While there’s a lot of study and work involved in becoming a deacon, the rewards are worth it, he said. He encouraged any Catholic men who have thought about becoming a deacon to take the next step and apply to the diaconate program.

“Just open yourself to the Holy Spirit to see what God has in store for you,” he said. “A lot of times that’s where the greatest rewards are when you step out of that comfort zone.”

More about John Mihalko

Hometown: Nanticoke

Home: Lisle

Career: Software engineer manager for Lockheed Martin in Owego

Family: Wife, Cathy. The couple will celebrate their 31st anniversary in August. Two daughters: Rachel, 27; and Megan, 23

For more information: Visit syracusediocese.org

This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Lisle man named deacon at Whitney Point church where he was married