This month, another major step has been completed. Bishop Burbidge has authorized Art Bennett, who served as President and CEO of Catholic Charities for the Diocese of Arlington for a decade, to assume the role of Vice-Postulator for Tom’s Cause. In this capacity, Mr. Bennett will collaborate closely with the Postulator in Rome, Dr. Waldery Hilgeman. Recently, members of the Guild’s Board, together with Mr. Bennett, convened with Msgr. deLadurantaye to delineate our respective roles and responsibilities. Also, this month, another Board Member was added to the Guild. John Paul Vander Woude is now the sixth member of the Guild’s Board. John Paul, one of

Our diocese could have a saint declared from within our midst. Many people in the diocese knew Tom well; respected him; and were good friends with him and his family. Many of those people have wonderful stories of his Christian faith; his virtue; his humility; his mentorship; and his service to his county, church, community, and family. Whether it be a sentence, a paragraph, or several pages, please send these stories or prayer favors to us today! a. The Postulator prepares the official Petition (“Libellus”) to be presented to the Bishop, requesting the beginning of the Cause. b. The Bishop discloses receipt of the official

The summer has been long and hot, but very productive. One of the first actions that took place was that the Guild added another Board Member. For some time, the Board felt that we needed a member of the Vander Woude family on the Board to represent their interests and help with the identification and collection of various documents and details of Tom’s life. On May 16, 2024 Christopher (Chris) Vander Woude became our newest Board Member. Chris is currently the K-12 Dean of Students and Athletic Director at Chelsea Academy, Front Royal, VA. Being Tom’s fifth son, he was raised on the family farm

Bishop Burbidge recently decided that the Diocese of Arlington should select Dr. Waldery Hilgeman to become the Roman Postulator for the cause of Thomas S. Vander Woude. Fr. Oetjen has contacted Dr. Hilgeman and they have begun formalizing the agreements and necessary financial matters. Dr. Hilgeman has already provided templates of the formal documents required for establishing the Diocese as the Petitioner, and for appointing himself as the Postulator. The postulator’s first task is the development of the Supplex Libellus (simple book). This is a written summary of the reason(s) and rationale for which Mr. Vander Woude may be considered for canonization. This is the

It’s Official! A major step was taken by Bishop Burbidge on 4/22/24.  Our bishop signed two documents which officially launches the process of Tom Vander Woulde’s cause for sainthood. The documents:    Bishop Burbidge is very supportive of Mr. Vander Woude’s Cause. Both he and our Vicar General, Fr. Workman, understand the importance of ensuring the process goes well and that the “Norms” established by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (see the “About” menu of the tvwguild.org website) are explicitly followed. This will save both time and money in the long run so that various aspects of the process and/or documentation will not have to

GREAT NEWS!!! Bishop Burbidge has decided that the Diocese will become the Petitioner of the Cause for Tom Vander Woude and take on the full responsibility for the process (with the support and promotional efforts of the Guild). He is looking forward to opening Mr. Vander Woude’s Cause within the diocese. The Guild has reached out to two very experienced and successful Rome-based Postulators. Both have had the opportunity to look over the various stories, pictures, and video relating to Tom’s life on the Guild’s website. Both have provided us with very kind responses and have shown their interest in potentially working on Tom’s Cause.