Msgr. Steve Knox became the pastor of St. Mary's on July 1, 2004. Ordained a priest for the diocese of Rockford in 1989, Msgr. Knox served for six years as an associate pastor at two large suburban parishes before becoming the pastor of the Newman Catholic Student Center at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb in 1995. After nine years of ministering to college students, he once again returns to suburban ministry. Msgr. says this about his ministry with us: "I've enjoyed all of my assignments and I look forward to many years of ministry and service to the people of St. Mary's. I enjoy ministering to all age groups and I'm thankful for the opportunity to do Christ's work in Huntley and the surrounding area."

Msgr. Knox grew up on a dairy farm just south of McHenry. He’s the second of four children of Mary Ann and the late Howard Knox. After graduating from McHenry High School and Northern Illinois University, he studied for the priesthood at St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. "I'm thankful that God called me to the priesthood and I look forward to serving the people of God to the best of my ability in the years to come. It gives me great joy to have a positive impact on the faith lives of the people. We have been blessed with the Good News of the gospel, which I love to share in my ministry!"

Fr. Scott DuVall, Parochial Vicar, was ordained a priest at St. Peter Cathedral in Rockford on May 16, 2009. Father DuVall studied at Holy Apostles Seminary in Cromwell, Connecticut.

Originally from Southeastern Illinois, Fr. DuVall is from a farm family. Prior to entering the seminary, Fr. DuVall worked in the banking industry. He is a certified Advocate for Victims of Domestic Violence and worked for the Department of Children and Family Services as a Child Advocate and was a licensed Intensive Care Foster Parent for the State of Illinois.

Father DuVall converted to Catholicism at the age of 30 and was a member of a Religious Order. He is trained in many forms of Liturgical Celebrations offered by the Church. He is trained in Sacred Music (specifically Gregorian Chant), the restoration of sacred vestments, and the restoration of sacred objects used in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Fr. Jonathan Bakkelund is from Machesney Park, Illinois. He graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 2006 with a degree in Theology and Philosophy. Upon completion of undergraduate studies, Bishop Doran asked him to study at the Pontifical North American College in Vatican City. He completed an STB in Sacred Theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome in June of 2009. Fr. Bakkelund served as a deacon during a pastoral year at St. Thomas the Apostle, Crystal Lake, from 2009-2010. He returned to Rome for his final year of studies in the fall of 2010 and completed a Mater's of Divinity in Dogmatics from the Pontifical Gregorian University. He was ordained to the Sacred Priesthood on May 21, 2011.

"I am overjoyed that my first assignment is with the people of St. Mary's. I very much look forward to getting to know each other. Please keep me in your prayers and I promise you and your families a remembrance in my daily prayers."

Deacon John (Jack) McPhee and his wife Ellie have lived in the Village of Lake in the Hills since 1968. They have 4 children, 13 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.

Jack was assigned to St. Mary Church in Huntley after his ordination by Bishop Thomas Doran in 1998. He has served as a Truck Stop Chaplain providing a listening ear and caring heart to the many cross-country truckers serving our nation. He is an on-call Chaplain for the Lake in the Hills Police Department. His additional ministries are to the sick and bereaved. In addition to assisting at Mass, preaching and baptizing, he has been involved in the training of Altar Servers, Readers and Lectors.

He attended the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, Marquette University and the University of Michigan at Marquette.

Ordained to the Permanent Diaconate for the Diocese of Rockford by Bishop Thomas G. Doran, D.D. on May 2, 1998, Tom and his wife, Maria, have two adult children. He spent some thirty years as a public school teacher. He enjoys visiting the homebound.

I am Deacon Gene Schubert. I have been married to my wife Syl for 59 years. We were both born and raised in Chicago. We moved to Villa Park in 1954 where we raised our five children - four sons and one daughter. We are the proud grandparents of eight grandchildren. We were both active in our old parish St. Alexander's in Villa Park for 41 years, serving in hospitals and nursing homes. After studying for the Diaconate program, I was ordained in the Joliet Diocese in 1979. In 1997, we moved to Northern Wisconsin and lived there for four years. I was accepted into the Superior Diocese and ministered in St. Ann's Parish in Cable, Wisconsin, where I also ministered in the nursing homes and hospitals. Inasmuch as the 8-l/2 hour drive prevented our family from visiting as often as we would have liked, we made a decision to come back to Illinois.

Gene says, "Our family has always been important to us so we decided to move back into the area we call home. We moved to Huntley and are very happy here. We are also pleased to be a part of St. Mary's parish family."

Liturgical - Assist and preach as Deacon at Sunday, weekday and funeral Masses, preside at Vigil services, Communion services, baptisms, weddings, burials and other liturgical services.

Ministry to the Poor - Provide regular pastoral visits to St. Mary parishioners in local hospitals and nursing homes, visitation/Communion calls to the homebound and co-spiritual advisor of St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Other Ministries - I have facilitated a small faith sharing group, participate in several different ministries for the charismatic prayer group, conduct the Baptismal Preparation class for young parents preparing for their child’s Baptism in rotation with the other deacons, and have assisted in Adult Faith formation by offering Bible Study opportunities for interested parishioners.

Deacon Lou Farinella was assigned to St. Mary’s on June 24, 2007. He was ordained a Permanent Deacon in the Archdiocese of Chicago on April 19, 1997. Deacon Lou has served as a deacon for 10 years in the parish of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Streamwood. Deacon Lou and his wife Karen reside in Huntley in Del Webb. They have four daughters and nine grandchildren.

Some of the ministries that Deacon Lou has been involved with include: Adult Education, Youth Ministry, RCIA, Scripture Studies, Right to Life talks with Confirmation Candidates and Spiritual Director for Kingdom Weekend Retreats. Deacon Lou and Karen worked together in the Marriage Prep program, Catholics Returning Home, Retreat Masters on Marriage and are mentors for the candidates and their wives in the Diaconate Formation program.

Deacon Lou says, "Karen and I have found St. Mary’s to be a very warm and friendly parish. As I minister to each of you, I pray that I will always see Christ in others and be Christ for others, for this is the essence of His love."

Ordained in the Archdiocese of Chicago on May 28, 2005, George and his wife, Linda, have two children and three grandchildren. They moved to Del Webb in 2007. George graduated from UIC with a B.A. in Finance and Accounting and designed financial systems until he retired in 2002.

George says, "I was ordained a deacon to be like Christ, to serve and not to be served. I am blessed to be assigned to serve the parishioners of St. Mary."

Hi, my name is Maria Maddox. I have been employed in various positions at St. Mary Parish since 1994. My husband Daryl and I were married in 1974 and have seven children. The oldest was born in 1976 and the youngest in 1990. We also have seven grandsons and five granddaughters and one grandson on the way.

I was certified as an Ecclesial Lay Minister for the Diocese of Rockford in 1999. I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Studies with an emphasis in Christian Tradition from St. Joseph’s College in Standish, Maine in 2003.

I have always considered working for the parish and serving in this ministry as a great blessing and privilege. I thank God for this opportunity and look forward to many more years of continued service - God willing!

Hi, my name is Roberta Christian. I am the Director of Religious Education. In the years I have been involved in this ministry, I have watched the RE program grow because of a faith community eager to share their time and talents in handing on our faith to many of our young parishioners.

My husband, Joe, and I have been parishioners here at St. Mary for over ten years. For more than 20 years we have lived in Algonquin.

Through the Rockford Diocese, Joe and I completed the Ministry Formation Program several years ago and are both certified lay ministers. We continue our education through the Diocesan Theological Institute. In addition, I have been certified as a Director of Religious Education through the Rockford Diocese.

I have had the pleasure of meeting many people in our parish over the last few years and look forward to meeting many more, especially as your children take part in our Religious Education Program.

Hi, my name is Rick Yurs. I am the Director of Worship here at St. Mary's, overseeing everything involved with music and liturgy. My wife Donna and I were married in 1979 and have lived in Huntley ever since. We have two children, Amy and Tim, and have been blessed with twin granddaugters, Kendall and Kianna. I have served as organist and cantor at various parishes in the Rockford Diocese since 1970. I was music director at "old" St. Mary's from 1980-1984, returning in 1995 as part-time organist until 1998 when I gladly accepted my current full-time position.

The Lord has given me many gifts in my life and one of them is music. I am grateful to be able to serve God, and the wonderful people of St Mary’s, in this ministry.

Chris and her husband, David, have been married for 32 years and have three children and one grandchild. Sons Ben and Tommy live in Dallas, Texas; Jennifer and her husband Andrew and son Drew live in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Chris enjoys getting together with her 10 siblings and goes back south to Bossier City, Louisiana for family reunions every 4th of July.

"The ideal workplace...the House of the Lord." That is what Janet says about working at St. Mary’s. Moving here from England, Janet and her husband, Joe, have been members of St. Mary’s for 5 years. They have one son, one daughter, six grandchildren and one great-grandson. "I look forward to working for the Lord and for our parish for many years to come."

Hello, my name is Shirley Allen. I have been a resident of Lake in the Hills for more than 15 years. My husband, Mike, and I got married in 1992 and we have two girls, Stephanie and Michelle. We have been parishioners of St. Mary’s since 2001. I have held many part-time positions here at St. Mary's--always involving the youth. I was pleased to accept the full-time position as the Director of Confirmation Ministry in July of 2009. My goal has been to help our young people develop a lifelong relationship with Christ through the scriptures, the catechism, and personal experiences. I am still very involved with the Youth Ministry Program and I love to accompany the youth on mission trips and to the Steubenville Youth Conference. I feel very blessed to be able to have a job that I love so much and help the youth of our parish grow in their faith.

Annette and her husband, Jim, have been married for 18 years and have one son, Alex. Annette says, "We have belonged to the parish since we moved to Huntley in 2003. I admire the dedication of the volunteers who share their faith with the children through the RE program. I look forward to meeting many more of the families in the parish."

Mary Gleason and her husband, Chris, have been married for 17 years. They have one daughter, Abby. The whole family is involved in the parish. Mary says, "I enjoy my job and the fact that it is helping our children learn about their faith, which in turn helps me grow in my faith."

Patti and her husband, Steve, have been married since 1982 and have two children, Josh and Ashley. Patti and her family live in Algonquin. They have been members of St. Margaret Mary Church since 1986 and are very active in the parish. Patti worked in the Youth Ministry Office at St. Margaret Mary Church a few years ago and enjoys being back in Youth Ministry here at St. Mary's.

Tom and his wife, Christine, have been married since 1998 and have three great daughters. They have been members of St. Mary's since 2006. Tom says, "I'm happy to be a part of such a great group."

Ron and his wife, Mary Ellen, have been married for 46 years. They have 2 sons and 2 granddaughters. Ron is retired from United Airlines after 40 years. Ron and Mary Ellen moved to Huntley in July, 2002, from Schaumburg. Ron became a Catholic in 1979 through the RCIA process. Ron says, "I really enjoy being a part of the St. Mary community."

Gordie, also known as "Mr. Clean," has been married to Jackie for 46 years. They have 2 children and a set of identical twin granddaughters. Gordie says, "I enjoy working here with such wonderful people and my wife and I are glad to be members of St. Mary’s Parish."

Dan Mangan and his wife Barb have been married for 36 years. They have 3 sons and 1 daughter and 3 grandchildren. Dan retired in 1999 from the Chicago Public Schools after 35 years. Dan says, "St. Mary is a very welcoming, vibrant, spiritual parish and my wife and I feel very fortunate to be members of such a positive faith community."