CT Deacon and His Wife Rescued From Rubble in Haiti

Southbury, Conn., Jan 21, 2010 / 06:22 am (CNA).- A permanent deacon in the Archdiocese of Hartford has spoken about his rescue from the ruins of his destroyed mission house in earthquake-struck Haiti. Though death “filled the night,” he said he believes God still has plans for him and he intends to return to help the country.

Deacon Chuck Dietsch, 66, has served at Sacred Heart Church in Southbury, Conn. for fourteen years. For the past two years he has worked with Haitian Ministries for the Diocese of Norwich.

Last week he was working at Norwich Mission House in a suburb of the capital city Port-au-Prince. There, he helped provide food, shelter, and education while supporting orphanages, parish communities, and medical missions.

The deacon, a stocky man with graying hair, bore several gashes on the left side of his forehead in his appearance at press conference on Monday. He said that he had been in the mission house with its acting director Jillian Thorp when the earthquake struck... (Continued here)