The Levittown Chamber of Commerce would like to spotlight Father Ralph Sommer, who has been Pastor of St. Bernard’s Roman Catholic Church for the past 12 years.
Father Ralph was ordained in 1983 having attended Adelphi University and then the seminary but was beginning to find his “ calling” much earlier serving as an altar boy, singing in the choir and then teaching religion and writing in the parish publications during his teen and college years. His uncle who was a priest really inspired Fr. Ralph to serve people and help them in their relationship with God. Father Ralph has served in three other parishes before coming to St. Bernard’s.
In Father Ralph’s words he says his mission and the people of St. Bernard’s parish family‘s mission is “With faith, hope and love to bring the gospel of Jesus to the Levittown Community and beyond”.
St. Bernard’s currently has eight pastoral staff members and nearly 20 support staff members with additional volunteers. In addition, Father Patrick and Father Innocent serve at the church.
While St. Bernard’s does have some masses and programs in Spanish, they welcome people of any ethnic or racial background, any orientation or ability. They recently asked non-parishioner Chamber Members what our church was known for in the community and they said, “The food pantry, acceptance, a resource, faith, the holiday fair and a community connector.”
Always with a sense of humor, Father Ralph when asked the standard question of offering a special discount to chamber members, “Chamber members can attend mass for free, but then again so can everyone.”
Father Ralph is a very busy man, finding time to visit his siblings and nieces and nephews. He loves spending time with people, going to local school concerts and games. In addition, Father Ralph enjoys going to people’s homes and sharing meals with them. In his spare time, he likes gardening, woodworking, writing, web development, photography (always has a camera in hand) and baking. He also loves social media and reaching out to people of all ages and stages of life.
To learn more about Father Ralph and all that St. Bernard’s offers visit https://www.stbernardchurch.org and https://www.facebook.com/stbernardslevittown