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The Road Less Traveled BY BISHOP JOSEPH L. COFFEY
One of my duties as Vicar for Veterans Affairs for the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA is to make pastoral visits to the Catholic priest-chaplains at the 153 Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMC) all over the U.S.A. Each of these fine Catholic priests, like the priests serving as Military Chaplains in the Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard and Air Force, have been endorsed by the Archbishop for the Military Services, The Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio.
My assignment involves a lot of travel by planes, trains, and automobiles. Like Archbishop Broglio and the three other Auxiliary Bishops for the AMS, Bishops Spencer, Buckon, and Muhm, we are very conscious of the generous donations of the benefactors of the AMS so we are frugal when we are traveling. There have been many changes brought on by the pandemic: you get used to wearing the masks, more driving (I do like to drive. It is a great way to see this beautiful country.) One benefit of the pandemic is the cost of flights have decreased. Recently, I flew to San Diego and drove from San Diego to San Francisco and back to visit the priest-chaplains and the veterans at the VAMCs in La Jolla, Loma Linda, Long Beach, Palo Alto, and San Francisco. You can be very proud of our priest-chaplains who care for the veterans, their families, and the staff members working at the VAMCs. They are ready, willing, and able to continue providing the sacraments. The pandemic has brought new challenges, but the priest-chaplains have fearlessly put on all the required personal protective equipment (PPE) – especially face masks, gloves, gowns, booties, hairnets, etc. – to give Viaticum (Latin for Food for the
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