Working with Archbishop Weisenburger

Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger celebrated his final Mass with Chancery staff in late February. Weisenburger is leaving the Diocese of Tucson after being appointed the sixth archbishop of Detroit. He’ll be installed on March 18, 2025. The Archdiocese of Detroit is one of the largest and fastest growing dioceses in the nation.  

Weisenburger has served the diocese for more than seven years. Many of the administrative staff have worked alongside Weisenburger the entire time. Chancery staff directly support the bishop’s office in areas ranging from human resources to fiscal and schools. There are nearly 80 people who work at diocesan headquarters in downtown Tucson. 

In his homily Weisenburger told the staff, “I’m able to see, from my perspective, how you build the Kingdom of God.” He thanked them for planting seeds and allowing others to reap the harvest and encouraged the staff to continue planting seeds in good times and bad.  

The readings were from the Book of Sirach. Weisenburger told staff he appreciated their service to the Church, “People of deep wisdom are those who seek and understand correctly, and that vision they have allows them to live their lives with depth and purpose and meaning.”   

Weisenburger thanked them for their prayers during his transition, “Something that would please me is that if after I’m gone, that you would remember that each one of you is doing the Lord’s work and doing it in a wonderful, generous, and unique way. And I think you’ve been blessed with wisdom, and I think you’ve been blessed with that ability to see correctly, and that God by his gentle finger is leading you right where he wants you to be.”  

At a reception hosted by the bishop, staff shared how he had impacted their lives. Sue Lucero, a Human Resources Administrator, has worked for the diocese for 1.5 years and  quickly connected with Weisenburger one day while chatting in the elevator, “We were discussing dinner, specifically, Hamburger Helper with salad.” Lucero says the bishop told her that as a young boy he remembered his Nana making his favorite box of lasagna, “Unfortunately, you can’t find it anymore. I didn’t know what she would add to it, but it was always the best,” Weisenburger told her. Lucero said she enjoyed the story and appreciated how ordinary the bishop was, “Shortly after, I bought Bishop a box of Lasagna Hamburger Helper and sent it to his office in a large office envelope.” A couple of weeks later Lucero’s desk phone rang and the bishop’s name appeared. Not knowing what to expect she answered, “It was him on the line. He said, ‘Guess what I had for dinner last night!?’ We laughed and laughed!  So now, Hamburger Helper will always make me smile as I remember this story.”  

Alicia Corti, the longtime Human Resources Director for the diocese, said that she’ll always be grateful to the bishop for visiting her daughter following a car accident, “She was badly hurt. I told her that she would recover, and it would eventually be OK. She had a hard time believing me but when the bishop showed up the message carried a whole different meaning.” Corti also shared that her young son Jaiden wanted the newly appointed archbishop to sign his glove for good luck in baseball, “The bishop was so gracious and signed Jaiden’s ‘glory glove’ so his prayers would always be with him. It meant everything to my son. And I’m so grateful.”  

Though a bishop’s schedule can be complex, Weisenburger often made time to show care and compassion to his staff and their families. There are countless stories of the archbishop anointing sick loved ones, administering last rites, or making a home visit reminding that person that they matter. Weisenburger also has a reputation for sending thank you cards after receiving gifts. 

Archbishop Weisenburger, the Chancery staff thanks you for your leadership and support. We wish you all the best in the Archdiocese of Detroit, our loss is surely their gain.   

The installation Mass for Archbishop Weisenburger is scheduled for Tuesday, March 18, you can access information here https://www.aod.org/events/installation-mass