Mass honors servant leaders in legal, public safety professions

 

On Tuesday, October 1 at 5:30pm, Bishop Edward Weisenburger will celebrate the annual Mass of the Holy Spirit at St. Augustine Cathedral, honoring Catholic members of the judicial and public safety communities.  

 

“During the Mass of the Holy Spirit, we pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit for all who seek justice,” explained Sr. Lois Paha, diocesan Director of Pastoral Services, “and we focus on the God-given power and responsibility of all those working in the legal and public safety professions.” 

 

Sr. Lois says that, in the Diocese of Tucson, “we celebrate the Mass of the Holy Spirit for both of these communities together. In this way, we honor the coordination of these two public ministries of law enforcement and judicial observance, and pray for all involved in these areas of civil service.” 

 

Traditionally, Red and Blue Masses are opportunities for the community to show gratitude to those who hold these unique positions of public service. The Red Mass traditionally recognizes legal professionals and is so named for two reasons: firstly, priests wear red vestments in the liturgical color of the Holy Spirit; and secondly, judges of centuries past wore scarlet robes. The Blue Mass honors public safety officials. Typically celebrated on the feast of St. Michael the Archangel, the Blue Mass is named for the blue-colored uniforms predominantly used by first responders. 

 

The local Mass of the Holy Spirit was initiated more than 20 years ago by the St. Thomas More Society whose mission is to provide a structure for lawyers, judicial officers, and law students to foster fellowship and continued ethical formation in the spirit of St. Thomas More. 

 

In 2011, the St. Thomas More Society established the Honorable John Roll Scholarship Endowment with the Catholic Foundation for the Diocese of Tucson. This endowment is used to grant scholarships to University of Arizona Law students who have demonstrated the virtues lived by Chief U.S. District Court Judge John Roll, who died tragically on January 8, 2011. He embodied the virtues of commitment to the Catholic Church, scholarship, integrity, and courage during his life. This year’s two recipients of the Judge John Roll Scholarship were Joseph Siml and Blessing Enyojo Jumai Adejo. 

 
Each year, the St. Thomas More Society also recognizes servant leaders who exemplify the virtues possessed by St. Thomas More: integrity, courage, scholarship, commitment to the Church, prayerfulness, and wit. The recipient should have participated actively in legal or governmental pursuits, seeking justice and endeavoring to improve society, despite any personal consequences. He or she must be known for acting ethically and for seeking justice and the truth. 
 
The 2024 recipients of the St. Thomas More Award are Honorable Thaddeus Jude Semon and Officer Ysela Welding. Join us in recognizing these two servant leaders at the Mass of the Holy Spirit.  

 

Thaddeus Jude Semon came to the practice of law following many life experiences that prepared him well for this profession. Before pursuing law, Semon explored several avenues on his faith journey, seeking God’s will for him. He spent some time in different seminaries on this journey, but that was not in God’s plan.  

  

He has been married to his high school sweetheart, Lisa, for more than three decades. They have a beautiful family of eight children and four grandchildren. It was Lisa’s counsel that encouraged Semon to study law. He took her advice and graduated from the University of Arizona College of Law, Cum Laude in 1998.  

  

From 1999 to 2003, he served as a Captain in the United States Air Force Judge Advocate General Corps. From 2004 to 2010, he was Assistant Arizona Attorney General serving as a trial attorney handling child abuse and neglect cases. Following that time, from 2011 to 2016, he was the General Counsel for an international mining software company. Since 2016 to the present, he has served as a Judge of the Tucson City Court and, in 2020, accepted the position as the Judge and Program Director for Veterans Court. This program provides treatment, counseling, and support to veterans and active-duty military members facing criminal charges. For Thaddeus, this is a place where he and his coworkers see God changing lives in the most powerful ways! 

  

Semon has always been active in the Catholic Church, though he experienced challenges in his faith. As a child when his father left his family, Semon turned to God and asked him to be his father. This measure of faith encouraged him to work in youth ministry at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Tucson. With his enthusiasm for the faith, Semon has also served in ministry as an RCIA instructor, Confirmation teacher, Bible study leader, and more. The parish leaders also saw his gifts and invited him to serve on the first Board of Directors for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish. There, he was also a member of the Catholic School Board and is presently serving on the parish Finance Council.  

  

Thaddeus humbly shares that his faith and his loving family are closest to his heart. He says that he is very blessed and thankful for family, faith, and our Catholic Church.  

 

Officer Ysela Welding is a native Tucsonan with a proud Hispanic heritage. She was inspired by her parents who were both in civil service. After attending Sahuaro High School, she earned a  

Bachelor’s degree in social and behavioral sciences from the University of Arizona. She has two adult children and two grandchildren. As a practicing Catholic, she has attended several parishes throughout the years but found a home at Our Mother of Sorrows Church in Tucson when Monsignor Tom Cahalane called Officer Welding and welcomed her to the parish. 

  

Officer Welding's 17-year career at Tucson Police began as a volunteer victim advocate with the Pima County Attorney's Office. She assisted with helping citizens of Tucson who were in crisis from incidents that involved law enforcement. In 2006, Officer Welding decided that wearing TPD blue was for her. She continued using the training from victim witness and used de-escalation techniques in the field to help people in crisis. 

  

At the beginning of her career and for 13 years, Officer Welding was the point person for Tucson Police Officers Association's Kids and Cops Event where hundreds of deserving children went Christmas shopping with officers. They received a monetary gift card to Christmas shop for themselves and their families. This earned her the TPD Unsung Hero Award for her efforts.  

  

Officer Welding has been with the hostage negotiator unit with Tucson Police for 14 years, assisting with calls for those in crisis. As a primary negotiator, she has been successful in talking those in crisis out of their situations. Her communication capabilities led to her being selected as an instructor for mental health first aid where she helped teach members of the department how to recognize mental health needs. 

  

For the last five years, she served with the Tucson Police Mental Health Support Team. While on this team, Officer Welding interacted with thousands of vulnerable people in crisis, suffering from mental health and addiction issues. With zero use of force, she transported those in need to treatment facilities. In the last two years, she became a liaison with the TFD's Tucson Community Collaborative Care and City of Tucson City Manager's office community safety health and wellness unit. Here Officer Welding combined the efforts of the agencies to further fit the needs of the citizens of Tucson who were suffering from mental health. In these situations, she engaged with the necessary social services or mental health agencies. The success of these efforts allowed countless people to receive the help they needed to put them on a clear and better path.  

  

Officer Welding is proud to carry her Catholic faith with her in every aspect of her life.