Queen’s House
director named
By Kiply Lukan Yaworski
SASKATOON — Brendan
Bitz is the new director of Queen’s House Retreat and
Renewal Centre as of August 1.
Queen’s House board
chair Michel Thibault and development officer Gerry Weinkauf introduced
Bitz at a June 3 gathering of staff and representatives of the Oblates
of Mary Immaculate, the order that founded Queen’s House 50 years
ago on the banks of the Saskatchewan River in southeast Saskatoon. Weinkauf
has been serving as interim director since Giselle Bauche left the position
Dec. 31.
Bitz will leave his position
as superintendent with Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools to take on
the new challenge.
“It was a difficult
decision to leave the school division,” said Bitz, but he felt
it was “significant that those around me, those who know and love
me, believe that this is not just a good thing, this is a God thing.”
Born and raised on a farm
near Allan, Sask., Bitz acknowledged the impact that the Oblates have
had on his life, including his time attending high school at St. Thomas
College in North Battleford. The Oblates “had a profound impact
on me, calling forth something deep within that I didn’t know
I had — those divine gifts that are in all of us.”
Bitz’s connection with
the Oblates is one of the factors that led to the decision to select
him as the new director, said Thibault. “He has a deep appreciation
for what is going on at Queen’s House. We are grateful that the
Spirit motivated him to respond to this call.”
To ensure continued growth,
vitality, sustainability and security, resources must be found to do
the work and continue the legacy of the Oblates, Thibault added, describing
how Bitz has grasped the concept of “no margin, no mission.”
“There has never been
a time that the world has needed what Queen’s House has to offer
more than it does right now,” said Bitz, acknowledging the impact
and contributions of the retreat centre. “Every time I come to
Queen’s House I am renewed, I am invigorated. I am encouraged.
It has something to do with the sanctity of this place, and with the
Spirit that resides here.”
Bitz began teaching with
the Catholic school division in Saskatoon in 1980, working as a teacher
and principal at a number of elementary schools in the city before being
appointed superintendent in 2003.
He and his wife Louise have
four children and are members of Holy Spirit Parish in Saskatoon. The
couple has been involved in liturgical ministry, music ministry support,
Marriage Encounter, the Knights of Columbus, as well as sacramental
and marriage preparation presentations.
Bitz said he is looking forward to this new stage in his life. “It is almost a circle coming back into the Oblate world that I feel that I’ve never left.”
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