Local social justice advocate to receive national award

Friday, Jan. 30, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY — Dee Rowland, who served for 26 years in the Diocese of Salt Lake City before retiring in 2011, has been named the recipient of the 2015 Servant of Justice Award, which honors a member or former member of the Roundtable Association of Catholic Diocesan Social Action Directors “who has made unique contributions to the achievement of the Catholic vision of social justice in her/his diocese or region,” according to the nomination form.

“After 26 years, Dee is the face of the social mission of the Church in our diocese, so I couldn’t think of anyone better to receive this award, or anyone who embodies more that Servant of Justice title than Dee,” said Jean Hill, who succeeded Rowland in her diocesan post.

Rowland became involved with the Roundtable in the 1990s, serving as chairperson for four years beginning in 2004.

At that time she had reached retirement age, “but I couldn’t retire because it was such a privilege to be chair of this group and to associate with these great people” like Monsignor Philip J. Murnion, David Brooks and Mark Shields, as well as those who worked in social justice in other dioceses, she said.

During her career with the diocese, Rowland served not only as the director of the Peace and Justice Commission, but also as the diocesan director for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the diocesan contact for Catholic Relief Services and the government liaison. The issues she dealt with were diverse: from capital punishment to poverty, from immigration to worker’s rights.

“The Catholic Church has an obligation, as part of society, to speak on issues that have moral implications, and yet we must not be partisan,” she said.

Rowland is a person who is able to disagree without being disagreeable, said Archbishop George H. Niederauer, who served as her boss while he was Bishop of Salt Lake City from 1995 to 2006. “She’s a warm and loving and kindly and thoughtful and reflective person who is not threatening, but nevertheless very challenging when the issues come before her.”

Like his predecessor, Bishop John C. Wester believes Rowland is well deserving of the award. 

“When I came here to the Diocese of Salt Lake City, I realized right away that this was not just a job for her, it is part of who she is,” Bishop Wester said. “I think that’s borne out by the fact that long after she’s retired, she continues to be a leader … in areas of the Church’s social teaching,” said the bishop, who petitioned Rome to have Rowland named a Dame in the Order of Saint Gregory the Great; Pope Benedict bestowed the recognition in 2011.

Rowland became an advocate in the 1960s in Omaha, when she was pregnant with her first child and determined that she wanted natural childbirth, which her obstetrician opposed. After the family moved to Utah in 1974, she got involved with the League of Women Voters and also participated in peaceful anti-nuclear protests.

When she was asked to join the Diocese of Salt Lake City Peace and Justice Commission in the 1980s, “I remember trying to convince Bishop [William K.] Weigand that I probably shouldn’t be hired because of my three civil disobedience arrests at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site,” she said. “At the same time, I wanted to work for the diocese because of the 1983 Pastoral on War and Peace and because he was one of the authors of the Economic Justice pastoral [letter]being drafted at that time, for ultimate publishing in 1986. Plus, at the time I was working in direct services just as the homelessness and hunger was growing in Utah, and advocacy seemed a necessity.”

After Bishop Weigand was reassigned to Sacramento, Rowland considered resigning so that the incoming Bishop Niederauer could appoint his own diocesan staff. However, after meeting the new bishop, Rowland decided she wanted to work for him, a decision Archbishop Niederauer appreciates.

“She was a really shining light in my being a bishop there,” he said.

For her part, Rowland said it was a privilege “to work for three incredible bishops. They were all so respectful of my opinions and ideas. Their trust in my decisions was scary, and they have all been kind enough, so far, not to admit they regretted that!”  

In retirement, Rowland continues to serve as chairperson of the Gun Violence Prevention Center of Utah; sits on the boards of several organizations, such as Holy Cross Ministries; and volunteers weekly at a school for refugees.

“The great thing about the Catholic faith is hope,” said Rowland, who recalls the 1960s, with the Vietnam War and the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy. “Things were so bad in the world, but we survived that, and we can survive this,” she said. “If we keep our hope, we can survive this and not get mired in doom and gloom. It’s not being a Pollyanna; it’s just remembering that God is good and people are good, we just have to figure out a way to pull out the best in everybody.”

Rowland will receive the Roundtable Servant of Justice Award during the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 9.