Fr. Martin Coolidge is one of the newest priests in the Archdiocese of Dubuque. He was ordained a priest on May 29, 2021 at the Cathedral of Raphael in Dubuque. Fr. Martin was a beneficiary of the seminary education fund, and thanks to your generous support the fund will continue to provide for future seminarians for years to come. Below is an interview with Fr. Martin about responding to the call and his current ministry. He is now the Associate Pastor at the Cathedral of St. Raphael and St. Patrick's Church in Dubuque, and is Co-Chaplain of Holy Family Catholic Schools Central Campus.
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Fr. Martin gew up in Ft. Wayne, IN, before his family moved to Elyria, OH, near Cleveland. He has two brothers, and is the middle child. Fr. Martin attended Catholic Schools growing up, before attending Iowa State University. After a serious illness during his early college years, he experienced a spiritual renewal that ignited a desire to serve God further. When he was attending graduate school at Iowa State a few years later, he heard the call to be a priest interiorly after receiving Holy Communion at Sunday Mass, accompanied by a sense of peace which made it clear to him that this was the work of God.
Fr. Martin applied for seminary in Iowa, and after two years of seminary at Loras College, followed by four more years at Mundelein Seminary, he was ordained a priest of Jesus Christ on May 29, 2021 at the Cathedral of St. Raphael.