Celebrating 30 years

Let me take this opportunity to congratulate you on the 30th anniversary of our founding. As you know, on May 7 we celebrate this special anniversary. As I look back over the past 30 years of Legatus, I am grateful for many things. I am grateful to Christ for his guidance and protection over these three decades and for all the ways He has blessed us. I am also grateful for the many people who have helped Legatus get to where we are today.

Tom Monaghan

There have been key leaders in the hierarchy whose support and encouragement assisted us at critical times. There have been countless members who have served on the national board and in leadership roles at the chapter level who have made Legatus the organization it is today. I also want to recognize our staff, both past and present, who have seen Legatus not as a job, but as their vocation.

As I reflect on our current society and the challenges we face (in the Church, in our families, in politics, in business), I am more convinced than ever of the importance of Legatus. Through Legatus, each of us can be supported and strengthened in our faith, and then in turn we can spread the Gospel to those we interact with on a daily basis. I am continually inspired by stories I hear of Legates who are doing this in a host of ways… be it supporting Catholic education, pro-life efforts, working with the poor, evangelistic efforts, taking leadership roles in their parishes / diocese… the list goes on and on. And as I look to the future, I am both enthusiastic and hopeful about the future of Legatus. As I travel the country visiting chapters, members routinely thank me for starting Legatus. I hear from new members who have made many great friends whose faith is on fire as a result, and from those who have been members for decades and point to Legatus as a great source of strength and support for them over the years.

Finally, I am struck by the need for us to pray for Legatus as an organization and for our fellow members. The work that we are doing is important and because it is important, I believe we will experience opposition both spiritually and otherwise. Please join me in praying daily for Legatus as a whole and for all of our members. By now all of you should have received the book, Legatus @ 30, which we published on the occasion of this anniversary. Let me encourage you to read it and share it with others. It is not just a nice book we published to chronicle our history, but an opportunity for each of us to be reinvigorated by our mission. May each of us continue to study, spread and live our faith!

TOM MONAGHAN is Legatus’ founder and chairman.