Fr. Charles Irvin, Diocese of Lansing at 402-A E. Madison Street, DeWitt, MI 48820 US - About Fr. Charlie

"Fr. Charlie," as he is known, was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on January 6, 1933. He was raised and educated there, graduating from the University of Michigan's Law School. After a brief career as an attorney he entered the seminary and was ordained a priest in 1967. Shortly thereafter he began an eleven-year ministry at St. Mary's Student Chapel in Ann Arbor. A rich variety of ministries followed including appointments to many advisory positions in the Church and three other pastorates. In the early 1970s he began writing columns for several Catholic newspapers in Michigan. In 1999 he was appointed founding editor of Faith magazine, published by the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan. Today the magazine serves seven dioceses (circulation 325,000). Fr. Charlie lives in "active retirement" in DeWitt, Michigan, on the grounds of St. Francis Retreat Center and has traveled extensively, including five pilgrimages in Europe and the Holy Land.

Background information for Rev. Fr. Charles E. Irvin:

Birth:      6 January 1933, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Home:    Ann Arbor, Michigan
Parents:  Professor Charles E. Irvin & Virginia Gray Hendrickson

Education:
1951: Graduate of University of Michigan High School
1955: Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Michigan
1959: Master of Business Administration, University of Michigan
1959: Juris Doctor, University of Michigan Law School
1963: Bachelor of Arts, Sacred Heart Seminary, Detroit, Michigan
1982: Master of Divinity, St. John Seminary, Plymouth, Michigan

Ordained to the Priesthood by John Cardinal Dearden, 3 June 1967 at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral, Detroit, Michigan 

Non-Ecclesial Experience:
First Lieutenant, United States Army
Admitted to State Bar Michigan Bar and State Bar of Illinois Bar
Attorney, Trust Counsel's Office, Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago     Attorney, DeVine & DeVine, Attorneys at Law, Ann Arbor, Michigan 

Ecclesial Experience:
     Parochial Assignments:
          1967-1968 Associate Pastor, St. Joseph Parish, Port Huron, Michigan
          1968-1979 Chaplain, St. Mary Student Chapel, University of Michigan
          1979-1987 Founding Pastor, Holy Spirit Parish, Hamburg, Michigan
          1987-1997 Pastor, St. Francis of Assisi Parish, Ann Arbor, Michigan
          1997-2002 Pastor, St. Mary Parish, Manchester, Michigan 
          2002  Senior Priest Status (Retired from active ministry)
     Extra-Parochial Assignments:
           President, Senate of Priests, Archdiocese of Detroit
           President, Alumni Association, St. John Provincial Seminary        
           President, Michigan Federation of Priests Councils
           President, Senate of Priests, Diocese of Lansing
           Board Member, National Federation of Priests Councils
          Member of Establishing Committee and Founding Member of Pastoral Council for the Diocese of Lansing
          Member, National Council of Catholic Bishops Advisory Council      
          Member, Priestly Life and Ministry Committee, Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Finance Council, Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Priests Pension Board Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Formation Board, Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Conciliation Panel, Diocese of Lansing
          Regional Vicar, Washtenaw Region, Diocese of Lansing 
          Member, College of Consultors, Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Coordinating Commission, Diocese of Lansing
          Member, Diocesan Review Board (Protecting God’s Children)
          Appointed, Promoter of Justice on the Tribunal of the Diocese of Lansing
          Appointed, Chaplain to the Catholic Lawyers Guild, Diocese of Lansing
         Appointed, Moderator of Council of Catholic Women, Diocese of Lansing

Other:
     Founding Editor of FAITH Magazine, Diocese of Lansing
     Author of ENTERING THE HEART OF GOD: “Praying the Lord’s Prayer In Our Time”
     Columnist in Michigan diocesan newspapers for twenty years
     Recipient of Bishop Donnelly Award for Outstanding Alumnus of Sacred Heart Seminary, Detroit, MI
     St. Thomas More Award, Catholic Lawyers Guild, Diocese of Lansing
     ALLELUIA! Award, Worship Commission, Diocese of Lansing
     Narrator and Presenter in four TV series on: The Lord’s Prayer, The Year of the Priest, The                         Sacraments, and What's Inside a Catholic Church? President, Catholic Lawyers Guild for the Diocese     of  Lansing
     Fourth Degree, Knights of Columbus