welcome!
Welcome to the page for the Catholic Ministry to the Deaf and the Blind for the state of Florida. We are located in St. Augustine, Florida. We work primarily with Catholic students at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. We offer our students many opportunities to grow in their Catholic faith by providing sacramental classes, discussion groups, retreats, good behavior dinners and field trips. Our staff is out in the community participating in Knights of Columbus Charities, Hospital Ministries and being involved as Eucharistic Ministers. We all try to live our faith to the best of our abilities.
where we are located
Our office is located at 30 Ocean Avenue, St. Augustine, FL 32084. We are directly across from the Catholic mission grounds, the site of the first Catholic Mass in the New World.
who we are
Deborah Bowman, Program Administrator
"I have been working with this wonderful program for almost eleven years. One of my main tasks is to oversee the budget for the program. I have learned how important the support of our families and friends are to the success of the C.R.E. program. It is also my pleasure to have contact with the families of our deaf and blind students. Student records and sacramental information always needs to be updated, and I keep those files current. Often, too, I am called upon to assist the program teachers during class times. My favorite work, though, is working in the capacity of sacristan for our Wednesday evening signed Masses."
Diane Clark, Pastoral Worker for the Blind
ÒI joined the program in March on 2004 and I am happy to say my classes are growing in numbers. My husband and I moved to St Augustine tow years ago because we liked the small beautiful town and immediately became parishioners of the Cathedral of St. Augustine. It was there that I became aware of the position to work for the ministry and I feel blessed to be part of this program. My students are an inspiration to me and I love sharing my faith with themÓ.
Sue Longo, Pastoral Worker for the Deaf
"I have been involved as a parent with this program since 1997. My family moved to St. Augustine so that my son could attend FSDB. Father Rene Robert and his staff made us very welcome in this community. In August 2003 I joined the staff with goal of continuing the program Father Rene worked so hard to build up. Being a member of this staff has been a great learning experience. My favorite aspect of this job is preparing students for their sacraments."
Raul Maldonado, Teacher for the Deaf
Raul Maldonado has been with the program since 2003. He has done an outstanding job assisting Sue Longo teaching all the Deaf classes. He has been a wonderful role model for our students and is very involved in our local Deaf community.