In late November, a Christmas care package arrived for Father Kamil Kiszka, a missionary priest serving two years in a remote region of southwest Alaska — just in time to warm his heart for the holidays.
Much to Father Kiszka’s delight, the 45-pound parcel felt like a warm hug from the faithful of his home, the Paterson Diocese in New Jersey. The package traveled roughly 3,300 miles to the brutal winter chill of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, where the priest ministers to small, remote Eskimo villages near the coast.
The Christmas care package for Father Kiszka was assembled and mailed by St. Virgil Parish in Morris Plains, N.J., in the Paterson Diocese, in an effort led by Father Lukasz Wnuk, the parish’s administrator. It included a Christmas card and holiday treats, including ones from his native Poland. The package also contained items on Father Kiszka’s Wish List, such as dried fruits and nuts, rosaries, prayer cards, religious medals, and books to help children prepare for First Holy Communion. Fifty St. Virgil’s confirmation students and their families conducted an early November supply drive.
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In a way, it has been Christmas once a month for Father Kiszka, who has been receiving care packages from diocesan parishes, schools, and agencies — mainly involving youth — for him and his flock since July. Salesian Sister Theresa Lee, diocesan chancellor and delegate for religious, launched the mission drive with John Cammarata, director of Youth Ministry for the diocese and St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Parsippany, N.J.
“I appreciate all the items that benefit me, but more importantly, my people,” Father Kiszka, who started his full-time missionary work in Alaska last year and expected to return to Paterson next July. “I thank Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, Sister Theresa, John, and the people of the diocese for supporting my ministry — difficult but fulfilling evangelization work in remote areas of Alaska.”
In addition, the Chancery Office, with Bishop Sweeney and other parishes, schools, and religious communities of the diocese, is offering Masses and prayers at Father Kiszka’s request. He asks for God’s providence, Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and good health, as well as “mental, emotional, and spiritual support.” All Saints Academy in Parsippany, N.J., and the Franciscans at St. Mary’s Parish in Pompton Lakes, N.J., are among these participants.
St. Michael Parish in Netcong, N.J., Our Lady of the Lake Parish in Sparta, N.J., and the Department for Persons with Disabilities, a part of diocesan Catholic Charities, have also participated in the mission drive so far.
For St. Virgil’s, helping Father Kiszka is personal. Father Kiszka stayed at the Morris County parish with Father Wnuk, a friend and fellow member of the 2018 ordination class, when he was back in the diocese for three weeks.
“We wanted to help support him practically with food, snacks, and special treats that are hard for him to find, especially at Christmas time,” Father Wnuk said. “It was also important to us to find small ways to help be part of his mission. It was eye-opening for people to learn what reality is like for Catholics living in Alaska. While we can drive easily to at least five Catholic churches in our area, they can go weeks or even months without seeing a priest. So, we included things that allow the faith to stay with them,” Father Wnuk said.
Father Kiszka’s work takes courage because he ministers in a challenging environment, visiting remote villages of 200 to 750 people, often far apart. He travels by snowmobile, boat, and four-wheel vehicle, sometimes in sub-zero temperatures. He often lacks access to running water, showers, restrooms, phone service, the Internet, transportation, or food supplies.
To reach the remote village of Mertarvik, Father Kiszka takes three planes and sleeps on the floor in the local school to celebrate Mass for parishioners the next day. He said he enjoys hearing confessions in Yugtun, the native language of the Yupik Indigenous or Aboriginal people, and singing the “Our Father” in Yugtun during Mass. Father Kiszka plans to celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Kotlik and then fly to Mertarvik.
“I love it. I am very excited to be here and to practice my missionary vocation,” Father Kiszka said in a Feb. 12 story about him on BeaconNJ.org. “It is a bit of an intense lifestyle. The people here live very simply and in a primitive way. But it is an incredible experience to see a different dimension of the Catholic Church and to learn different ways of pastoral ministry in the priesthood.”
