by Moira Cullings
moira.cullings@theleaven.org
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Father Timothy Skoch proudly walks the halls of Bishop Ward High School here, sharing stories about the school and its rich history.
If he had to describe his role as chaplain at the high school, he’d put it simply.
“I’m a stay-at-home dad at Bishop Ward,” said Father Skoch.
“I’m here three-and-a-half days a week,” he continued. “Students will come here [to my office]. I meet them in their needs, in their wants. I’m here for the staff, too.”
When he’s not at Bishop Ward, he’s serving as associate pastor at St. Patrick Parish, also in Kansas City, Kansas.
He and Father Colm Larkin, chaplain at St. Thomas Aquinas High School and associate pastor at Church of the Ascension — both in Overland Park — both received their assignments at ordination in 2023.
Two years later, both now describe their high school ministry as one of spiritual fatherhood.
“This is the place where I really feel like a father,” said Father Larkin of Aquinas. “Here, it’s like these are my kids, and I’m the one who takes care of them.
“[It’s] that fatherly role — both in being with them in their triumphs and in their sorrows and watching them do [silly] things but still encouraging them, being with them through the whole gamut of experiences.”
‘A second chance at high school’
Father Larkin had no interest in becoming a high school chaplain.
“I didn’t particularly enjoy my high school experience,” he said. “I became a priest to be in a parish and was very excited about parish ministry. I didn’t think I had the skill set to work with high schoolers.
“It turns out I do.”
According to faculty and students, Father Larkin is a powerful presence at Aquinas.
“And I have loved being here,” he said.
“It’s another example of how the bishop and the Holy Spirit know what they’re doing when they give out assignments,” he added.
And the experience has been healing.
“It’s funny,” said Father Larkin. “God’s given me a second chance at high school to be a part of a beautiful, loving community.
“I get excited to come here in the morning.”
Becoming a chaplain wasn’t at the forefront of Father Skoch’s mind, either.
“I wanted what the church wanted,” he said. “I knew it was an option to be a chaplain since we have so many [schools].”
When Archbishop Emeritus Joseph F. Naumann assigned him to both Ward and St. Patrick, Father Skoch was open to what was in store.
“I was really happy,” he said, “and I immediately started praying for both the parishioners and then the students of the community that I would be coming to.”
‘No method to the madness’
As August rolled around, both chaplains were beginning to prepare for another school year.
Father Larkin’s first major event was the Sunrise Mass at Aquinas on Aug. 13 — a tradition he started last year. The Mass is optional, held on the football field and for seniors only. Around 130 of them attended.
“What high schooler wakes up to go to a 6:30 Mass unless the faith is clearly important to them?” asked Father Larkin. “It’s very edifying to me to see.”
After Mass, Father Larkin participated in the annual freshmen red carpet welcome, where the students were greeted by faculty and seniors as they arrived for orientation.
As the year unfolds, he’ll work with his ministry team and continue to help with retreats like Kairos, and — like Father Skoch — celebrate all-school Masses, lead eucharistic adoration, offer the sacrament of reconciliation and visit classrooms.
At Bishop Ward, Father Skoch will also celebrate one class Mass a week, and on Fridays before school, he’ll lead “Jesus and Java” — optional time in eucharistic adoration followed by doughnuts and coffee.
For both chaplains, the most important part of their work is one they can’t prepare for: meeting students where they are.
“There’s no method to the madness when students are walking in [to my office],” said Father Skoch.
“Walking down the halls, you can pass four kids, and they’ll all be in a different mind space,” said Father Larkin. “One just nailed a test, one’s parents are getting divorced, one is just tired and doesn’t want to talk to anyone.
“You have to really think on your feet. What does this kid need at this moment? Which is usually just a word of encouragement or a smile.”
‘A spiritual father’
Father Skoch thought he would be the one teaching the students when he first became a chaplain.
“And they teach me so much,” he said. “I actually learned how to be a priest from them. I learned how to be a spiritual father from being at the high school.”
Although technology has changed, said Father Larkin, “by and large, high schoolers don’t change.”
“They have the same mentality, the same kind of worldview, as when I was in high school,” he continued. “The fashions changed and the hobbies change. But they’re all going through adolescence.”
The chaplains said students often raise thought-provoking questions.
“They’re searching for truth,” said Father Larkin, who welcomed 10 Aquinas students and two alums into the Catholic Church this past Easter. “That’s what [some] statistics show, particularly about Gen Z, is that they’re more religious than millennials are.
“I think they found such emptiness in their life that they are now turning to look for something more meaningful, something more profound.
“That’s really the beginning of the Christian journey, to just start searching.”
When a student approaches Father Skoch with a challenging question, “I try to say, ‘You answer that,’” he said. “Because if they’ll wrestle with it, then they’ll come to grips with it, [and then] they’ll actually understand [what they believe].”
The chaplains have won over the hearts of their communities by simply being themselves.
“They told us in [the] seminary, ‘Just be a normal guy,’” said Father Larkin. “By any means, be human.
“So, that’s the number one compliment I’ve received from students is something to the effect of, ‘You’re so approachable. You’re so easy to talk to.’”
And the chaplains aren’t alone in their mission.
Father Skoch called to mind something campus minister Deacon John Williams tells the faculty members at Bishop Ward: that they all have a part to play in the faith formation of students.
“We’re always on the front lines,” said Father Skoch. “If the students want to talk to us about things in their life, then we have to have that backbone of faith, hope and love.”
He looks forward to another school year at the place he calls “home.”
“Day in and day out, [the students] expect me to show up and for me to be there,” he said, “and that’s good.
“I want them to feel that because that’s my life — that’s a spiritual father.”
