Southern Nebraska Register
The annual Ash Wednesday “Day of Recollection” will be held Feb. 14 at Our Lady of Good Counsel Retreat House in Waverly.
This reflection day is open to both men and women. This year’s event will be presented by Deacon Matthew Hecker, PhD.
Deacon Hecker, a permanent deacon of the Diocese of Lincoln, invites everyone to come and “be with Jesus in the desert as we enter into the liturgical season of Lent.”
“How do we find a desert in the circumstances of our life?” he asked. “The desert is right here and is accessible to anyone. I want people to attend this retreat to be able to ‘find their desert’ and in it, a deep encounter with our Lord.”
Deacon Hecker spent nearly 30 years working in higher education after earning his Ph.D in education administration. He was ordained the first permanent deacon for the Lincoln Diocese in 2021. He currently serves as the director of permanent deacons for the diocese. He and his wife Dani have three daughters and two grandchildren.
The Day of Recollection will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. It includes conferences, chaplet, rosary, stations of the cross, confessions, and Mass with ashes.
To attend the Ash Wednesday Recollection in Waverly in person, advance registration at goodcounselretreat.org is encouraged but not required. Participants should arrive between 9 and 9:30 a.m. for registration. The cost for the day is $10, and retreatants are to bring a meatless sack lunch. Drinks are provided.
To participate online, register at goodcounselretreat.org to be mailed the link to participate, or subscribe to the Good Counsel Retreat House YouTube channel to be notified when the livestream begins. Free-will donations are appreciated.
Other upcoming retreats are “Unbound: Freedom in Christ” with Father William Holoubek Feb. 2-4; the LDCCW winter symposium for women Feb. 16-17; and four- or eight-day Ignatian retreats with Father Christopher Barak, Father Gary Coulter or Sarina Stokes Feb. 17-20, Feb. 21-25, or Feb. 17-25.
