Notre Dame dean-turned- Catholic priest and prison chaplain Father David Link will give a lecture April 9 at Regis University about the rights of the homeless and incarcerated.
The captivating speaker, a noted scholar ordained a priest at 71, will share stories of prison ministry and serving the least and lonely as part of a university lecture series.
The priest also spoke in Denver in December as part of the University of Notre Dame’s Hesburgh Lecture Series. The Denver Notre Dame alumni club invited him back to speak on the rights and needs of the forgotten prison population.
Aimee Bennett, board member of the Denver alumni club, said he’s an effective storyteller who can draw moral lessons from real world experiences.
“To many of us who went to Notre Dame, he’s definitely known as having the longest tenure of any law school dean,” Bennett said. “He was very much an icon on campus.”
Father Link, known by many as “Dean Link,” was a practitioner and teacher of law for years at Notre Dame. He wrote extensively on professional responsibility and ethics for law students. He later became dean of the law school and president emeritus of the university’s location in Australia.
Father Link’s story spread after his wife of 45 years died and he felt called to the priesthood. Volunteering as a chaplain became his full-time ministry when he worked as director of religious activities for the Indiana Department of Corrections and co-founded foundations and homeless centers.
He brought healing and forgiveness to murderers and thieves, who he called “the least of society.”
His biographer, Maura Zagrans who chronicled his life in the book “Camerado” (which translates, “I give you my hand”), said his passion for the homeless and incarcerated comes in part from his belief about life. She said in an interview with Colorado Springs’ Bishop Michael Sheridan that Father Link believes the measure of his life before God will not be what he’s accomplished, but rather how many he’s brought to heaven with him.
Often in his lectures and publications, he’s spoken about how every person can extend a hand to help others, especially to the least among them.
Following his lecture inside Regis’ chapel, Father Link will open the talk to a discussion. Refreshments will be provided. Father Link also gave a lecture in Colorado Springs March 27.
The lecture is free and open the public.
Prison chaplain Father David Link lecture
Title: “Serving the Least, the Last and the Lonely: Discussing the rights and needs of homeless and incarcerated men and women.”
When: 7 p.m. April 9
Where: Chapel on Regis University, 3333 Regis Blvd., Denver
Cost: free
RVSP: to 303-668-9333 or jhilger2@msn.com by April 5
Sponsored by: University of Notre Dame Club of Denver
