Fr. Larry Toschi, OSJ knows a thing or two about dedication. Over the course of three decades, he has served for five different dioceses in a variety of leadership capacities as a member of the Oblates of St. Joseph.
For the past ten years, he has served as the pastor at St. Joachim Parish where he was once a student and where his enthusiasm for learning was nurtured and his commitment to a calling was realized. Now more than 30 years after his ordination, Fr. Larry has found himself back in the classroom. He is eager to learn and excited to open the door to new ideas, skills and tools to revitalize his commitment to shepherding the flock that once guided him.
With the support of Bishop John T. Steinbock, Fr. Larry and 24 of his brother priests from the Diocese of Fresno, CA began their Good Leaders, Good Shepherds (GLGS) journey in May 2008. “I was excited to join Good Leaders, Good Shepherds because I was thinking that after 32 years how pressured I get and how I need to step back and look at what I’m doing, so as to do it more effectively and really with a greater joy and peace,” said Fr. Larry.
Like many of his fellow participants, Fr. Larry faces the leadership challenge of ministering to a diverse and growing Catholic population. He recalls that in1976 the parish had five resident priests, but over the years as the priest population decreased, the number of resident priests dwindled. Today, St. Joachim’s is home to more than 5,000 registered families, (twice that many come regularly but are not registered) yet the number of resident priests has fallen to
just two.
Leadership of Self is the focus of the GLGS curriculum in the first and second sessions of training. During the training participants are encouraged to define key responsibility areas (KRA’s) for themselves and focus on setting smart goals to fulfill their KRA’s.
With a flock of over 5,000 faithful, setting goals and communicating them effectively is both a challenge and priority for Fr. Larry. He is goal driven, but admits that he tends to overwhelm himself by setting “millions of goals” which are not properly communicated and fail to be achieved. It is easy to “get buried” in managing the day-to-day logistics of a large parish. “I consider myself very capable but I end up working and working and doing too much,” said Fr. Larry.
What Fr. Larry discovered was that he was neglecting to take care of himself and that in turn was affecting the way in which he communicated; which ultimately affected his ability to lead.
Amongst several personal goals, GLGS helped him to set a specific goal to walk four days a week for 40 minutes. Six weeks after setting that goal, he has come to better understand how taking good care of himself equates to more effective leadership. He laughs when he notes: “If I don’t exercise and get enough oxygen to my brain then I can get tense and be less sensitive to others. Exercising has helped me to stay focused and calm and communicate better.” From soup kitchens, religious education programs, liturgical ministries, weekend retreats and Spanish evangelization, Fr. Larry is proud to describe St. Joachim’s as a model parish. “I believe I have been a good leader, but where I think I can improve is in communicating and leading in the sense of bringing the community together to clarify common goals. At the completion of GLGS I would like to see myself more relaxed, patient, cheerful and more sensitive to listening to others.”
For 32 years Fr. Larry Toschi has been dedicated to serving the people of God and for the next two years he will dedicate himself to becoming a better leader and better shepherd. He hopes that by his example others will be inspired to dedicate their lives to serving Jesus Christ and the Church.
|
