Fr. Dennis Woerter, OP

Fr. Dennis has long been rooted in the Dominican tradition, growing up at St. Vincent Ferrer parish in River Forest, Illinois, and attending Fenwick High School before studying speech communication and journalism at Loras College. He entered the Dominican Order in 1990, earned graduate degrees in theology from Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, and was ordained in 1997.

His ministry has included parish work in Madison, Denver, Chicago, and River Forest, as well as serving as chaplain and director of campus ministry at Fenwick High School, where he also coached soccer. In 2009, he completed a Doctor of Ministry in preaching, and he has ministered extensively in Spanish-speaking parishes. Most recently, he served at St. Paul Catholic Center at Indiana University.

With ties to southern Indiana and even family connections to Purdue’s Smith Hall, Fr. Dennis looks forward to continuing his ministry at St. Thomas Aquinas — and he even looks forward to students teaching him all the latest Gen Z lingo.