MADISON — July 13, 2022, may go down as an historic day in the Diocese of Madison.
For some, it might have looked like a normal afternoon ball game played by the Madison Mallards and their opponents, the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders.
For more than 700 guests, it was a chance to enjoy summer to its fullest.
On that day, the Apostolate for Persons with Disabilities-Diocese of Madison held its first Day at the Duck Pond at the Mallards’ stadium at Warner Park on Madison’s east side.
It was a day of prayer, food, and fun and reminiscent of past Apostolate events such as the Day at the Dells held for many years at the Tommy Bartlett Water Show in Wisconsin Dells, now closed for good.
Through the generosity and hospitality of the Mallards, guests were greeted at the gate and then guided to a covered tent area for a pre-game prayer service.
Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison led the prayer service along with Msgr. Larry Bakke, director of the Apostolate.
Music was provided by Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, where Monsignor Bakke is pastor.
“It’s wonderful to be back together” in a new place, said Bishop Hying. Adding that we know “that the one important truth in our life never changes and that is God and God’s love for us.”
Following the prayer service, gameday foods of brats, hot dogs, hamburgers, cole slaw, potato salad, and more were served to the guests who took happy advantage of “all-you-can-eat”.
A fun experience
Margie, Denise, and Rick, a group of friends from Janesville, were among the 700-plus attendees at the Duck Pond.
This was their first ever Mallards game and they looked forward to the first pitch. All of them were thankful for the amazing weather and a chance to be together with others who have disabilities.
Denise commented on how “it’s nice because there are not a lot of things we can do together; you can do them with your family but it’s nice to do something with friends. Plus I love baseball.”
Margie shared a similar feeling of gratitude knowing that they would be able to attend the event and knowing that they wouldn’t have to worry about mobility. “It’s just an amazing opportunity for people with disabilities to come together because normally it would be harder to do so.”
Not only were attendees looking forward to the game and prayer service, but they were also looking forward to all the food.
While there were many attendees native to the Diocese of Madison, there was a large group from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Diocese of Green Bay who traveled to join the event.
Most of them came with the Deaf Apostolate through the archdiocese.
Serving a community
Among those was Fr. Christopher Klusman, Director of the Deaf Apostolate.
Father Klusman, along with many American Sign Language translators such as Shiloh who attended the game, help serve the deaf population in the Milwaukee archdiocese.
Shiloh, who has a gift for translating, helps to serve as a translator for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. She helped translate for the prayer service and Father Klusman.
He is one of about 10 priests in the world who is deaf.
He studied education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and frequently attended Mass at St. Dennis Parish in Madison.
It was while he was at St. Dennis that a friend recommended he visit a priest in Rockford who helped to teach those who are deaf.
It was this priest who asked Father Klusman if he had ever thought about becoming a priest.
At the time, Father Klusman was shocked and wondered how he could ever become a priest since he is deaf. But the priest assured him, “If God wants it, He will make it happen.”
He just recently celebrated his 11th year as a priest and has been serving the Deaf Apostolate for many years.
He commented on some of the reasoning behind why there are so few deaf priests and few deaf persons attending Mass.
“It’s challenging to provide access to their culture and language, and sadly only one percent of the deaf population go to any church. Ninety-seven percent of people who are deaf are born to hearing parents, and out of those parents, 97 percent don’t sign well enough to communicate. How can they explain faith to them? So many deaf wonder ‘What is Church for?’”.
He also commented on the challenge to find interpreters who can interpret the teaching of the faith well and accurately and the difficulty of providing events for the faithful deaf community that can accommodate these needs well.
This is one of many reasons why Father Klusman, as well as many other deaf persons who attended the Mallards game, were grateful for the Apostolate for Persons with Disabilities for inviting them to join the event.
The event provided an opportunity for those with disabilities to come to enjoy time together with other persons with disabilities without having to worry about the “how”.
It also was a beautiful experience to pray together as a community and watch a ball game.
At the old ball game
As much as the day was close to perfect, so was the ball game.
Mallards’ pitching combined for a one-hitter as Madison won 4-0.
Guests in the stands enjoyed the warm, sunny day.
Some watched the game and followed as die-hard sports fans. Others enjoyed each other’s company.
Keeping cool was a must, whether it was water, soda, or ice cubes “fresh” from someone’s freezer.
Mascot Maynard G. Mallard was out to greet everyone and get his picture taken with them.
Happy with the success of the event, the Apostolate is already looking into — and having high hopes for — a similar event next year.
To learn more about the Apostolate, go to apdmadisondiocese.com
Molly Schoepp is an intern with the Catholic Herald. Kevin Wondrash is the editor of the Catholic Herald.