My week in New York wrapped up with me saying two Sunday Masses at my home parish, and getting to spend some time with Scott Cullen (who was kind enough to visit from Philadelphia) and with my aunt and uncle (including our trip to view the new Harry Potter movie!). As always it was wonderful to be home in New York, and with my parents and family.
As I flew out of Newark my adventures were really just beginning. I flew not to South Bend, but to Rapid City, South Dakota for my first ever visit to the Black Hills and the home of my dear friend Josh Noem.
Josh, Stacey and the kids were visiting Josh's parents after attending a family reunion in the area. They invited me to join them for an exploration of this beautiful part of the country and to spend time in the spots that meant so much to Josh in his formative years.
I should say from the start that throughout my stay I enjoyed the warm hospitality of Josh's parents Peg and Rollie. I was grateful to be welcomed as a member of the family and hope I can return the favor some day at ND or in NY.
While I was in Hill City, South Dakota, where the Noems now live, I stayed at St. Rose of Lima Parish and presided daily at morning Mass. The parish does not have a resident priest, so they only have Eucharist on Sundays. I was very happy to begin each day celebrating Mass with faithful who so longed for the Eucharist.
On my first night in town, the Noems invited their retired pastor and their local bishop Most Rev. Blase Cupich to join us for dinner, so I even got an introduction to the clergy in this mission territory.
My first full day in South Dakota was spent in Custer State Park, where Josh grew up as his father served as the director of the park. It is a most beautiful setting in the Black Hills, and we enjoyed a few little hikes during the course of the day.
I got to see the park lodge that served as a Western White House for Dwight Eisenhower, and to see the slightly smaller homes that Josh and his family lived in during their time in the park. But perhaps the most famous part of Custer State Park is their heard of buffalo, or to be more exact, bison.
I have seen these impressive animals before, but never such a large group of them, with such large bulls in the herd, and I've never gotten closer than we got. It made me wish to have been alive when hundreds of thousands of these animals roamed the western plains - it must have been an amazing sight!
Later in the day we also climbed a bit of the Needles, an impressive rock formation . . .
and walked around Sylvan Lake:
This was only the beginning of an amazing week in South Dakota, so there's much more to come in the next few posts.
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