Over the next little bit we want to introduce you to the various people who make Maison Shalom House the welcoming and well run facility it is. First up is our director Lorne Stang.
Lorne, who is only a year into the job, follows in the footsteps of Sr. Jeannine Bissonnette, s.s.c.j., Sr. Alice Laurin, s.a.s.v. and Sr. Sue Burns, c.s.c., as director of Shalom.
Lorne, who hails from tiny Macklin, Saskatchewan, spent 14 years with Catholic Christian Outreach before joining the team at Shalom. He is married to Ron and Sue Lajoie's daughter Carolline. (No doubt many of you know Ron and Sue!) He is also the father of 6 with number 7 due at the end of November. (Interesting note: Lorne is number 15 of 16 children!!)
The fundraising skills he learned at CCO and the management skills he's learned in his large family make him the perfect person to lead Shalom during this next decade.
What is a typical day like for you?
I start every day off with prayer and exercise....except no exercising on Sunday. Our kids attend three different schools so I make two trips to town in the morning to get them off to school. I suppose I could send them on the bus but the short drive is a great time to pray together and speak truth into their lives. After the morning school routine I head to Shalom to 'do my day's work.'
At work I wear two hats, Director of Shalom House and Director of Evangelization and Parish Growth at St. Finnan's Parish. Much of my work time is spent communicating with retreat groups and advancing various ministries at the Parish.
After work I greatly enjoy time with my family. Sometimes the kids have to get off to music or dance lessons. Otherwise I aim to invest in my children through some outside time: Trampoline, pickleball, badminton, basketball, soccer, skating, biking, forest walks, gardening, yard work. I do my best to be available to the family in the evenings but some evenings are taken up by Youth Group, Friday frisbee and other work meetings. After the kids are in bed, my wife and I will always sit down together and have a little prayer time and watch a show together. Saturdays are used for catching up on the house and yard and Sundays are dedicated to Church, family and friends.
Who is someone you admire, and why?
I really admire my wife Carolline. She goes through life with such incredible grace. If you meet her you will be wowed by her beautiful joy and vibrancy. Amazingly enough, she is always like that! Even in the day to day life at home with 6 kids (soon to be 7). She laughs more than anyone I know. Anyone who knows Carolline, would agree that every occasion is better off when she is there.
Do you have any skills or talents that most people don’t know about?
The word is starting to get out there but I can ride a unicycle and juggle fire - tho not at the same time, yet!
Flashback to when you were 10 years old. What do you want to be when you grow up?
A cattle farmer.
What do you think are the best skills that you bring to your job?
I enjoy dealing with people and all the joys and challenges that come with that.
Name three words that you describe you.
Prankster
Disciplined
Calm
What’s a goal you have for yourself that you want to accomplish in the next year?
Do a standing back flip.
What are you happiest doing, when you’re not working?
No doubt being around my family.
Who are your favourite saints?
What is your favourite prayer?
Reflecting on the daily mass readings.
We are very happy to have Lorne working, organizing and evangelizing for us. Lorne is onsite at Shalom most days - drop by and say hi!
One final note, while writing this blog post I came across this interesting video of a much younger Lorne giving a speech. Enjoy!
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