Mary Grace Crowley-Koch

At age five, I began saying Mass when I attended nursery school. My nursery school friends shared with their parents what was happening and my mother was called in for a conference, which put a temporary stop to my call to priesthood. After attending elementary, high school, and college taught by the Adrian Dominicans, I went to St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota and received my MA in Theology from a Benedictine institution. These educational experiences, as well as my CPE certification, provided wonderful spiritual growth opportunities as I moved forward in ministry as a teacher, pastoral associate, and hospice chaplain. My hospice patients validated my call to priesthood and I was ordained in July 2011.

We have home church, currently by Zoom, every second Sunday. Our Spirit of the Living God community welcomes all and offers opportunities for participation via our dialogue homilies and liturgy planning. My priest husband and I have officiated at many weddings together. It was a delight to hear a child refer to me as a lady priest when she attended the wedding of a mutual friend, and when she had witnessed Nadia receiving the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and first communion from me at a home mass.

Email: agraced12@gmail.com