Sometimes a simple thank you isn’t quite enough. If you’d like to do more for those hundreds of Southeast Texas Catholics who have given of their time, talent and treasure, you now have that opportunity.

Diocesan Stewardship Council is asking for nominations for its annual Stewardship award. The Msgr. Richard DeStefano Faithful Steward award will be presented this April to the person who has best exemplified a life of total Stewardship in the past year. The award is named in honor of Msgr. DeStefano, former director of the Office of Stewardship and Development.

Faithful Stewards are those in each of the parishes and missions who give of their time, talent and treasure to their parish, the diocese and their community. The nominee can be the man who is an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist and spends time volunteering at nursing homes, the woman who assists with parish hospitality and helps feed the hungry at Some Other Place or the teen who leads a class at Vacation Bible School and quietly volunteers at all the parish events.

“Our Council makes the selection each year, and they tell me it’s a tough job. They have to judge by what is submitted on the nomination form since they can’t know everyone in the diocese,” said Letty Lanza, director of Stewardship and Communications.

“Last year we had almost 90 nominations. The people on Council are asking folks to be specific about their nominee’s involvement. Fill out the form, but also attach a letter if you’d like,” she said.

Nomination forms are available on the diocesan website at www.dioceseofbmt.org and also in this issue of the East Texas Catholic.

The deadline to submit nominations is April 2. Those nominated for the award will be honored at a reception April 13 at St. Anthony Cathedral Basilica Center.

Last year four individuals were the recipients of the award: Emily Gilman, St. Jude Parish, Beaumont; Kiera Matthews Linney, Our Lady of the Pines; Dr. Pam St. Amand, St. Anne Parish, Beaumont; and the late Lucas Petkovsek Jr., also of St. Anne.

“Even if someone has been nominated before, if they have acted as faithful stewards in 2007, we hope people will nominate them again,” said Lanza.