WEST CLARKSVILLE, N.Y. — A secular Franciscan fraternity was formed last fall at the Mt. Irenaeus Franciscan Mountain Retreat. The St. Irenaeus Secular Franciscan Fraternity, a group of 12 professed members, was officially established at a Mass in October.
The Secular Franciscan Order is a recognized order of the Catholic Church composed of married and single people who feel called to profess their faith by committing to follow the Gospel life in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi.
The fraternity’s officers are Don Watkins, minister, a technology director at Franklinville, N.Y., Central School; Agnes Brush, vice minister, a retired nurse and former member of the Mountain’s board of trustees; Connie Horan, secretary, director of graduate admissions at St. Bonaventure University; and Michele Marcellin, treasurer, who is administrative assistant to the Mountain.The fraternity’s formation director is Jan Walker, a managing attorney for a firm providing legal services for low-income residents of Chautauqua County, N.Y., and its spiritual assistant is Louis McCormick.
The St. Irenaeus SFO fraternity meets at the Mountain on the last Sunday of each month.