Latest news with #DioceseofBuffalo
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Diocese of Buffalo announces 2 education department appointments
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Diocese of Buffalo on Wednesday announced two new appointments to its Catholic education department. Father Steven Jekielek, the Vicar Forane of the Niagara/Orleans Vicariate, was named as the deparment's finance manager and Michael Baumann, the chief operating officer at Cardinal O'Hara High School, was appointed the human resources manager. Jekielek started his role in April and before priesthood, he worked at Thermo Fisher Scientific in Grand Island for 19 years. Baumann will start in July. He was previously the superintendent of schools at Newfane Central Schools and an assistant superintendent at the Sweet Home Central School District. Katie Skoog joined the News 4 team in April 2024. She is a graduate from the University at Buffalo. You can view more of her work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
Survivors of sexual abuse react to Buffalo Diocese's $150M settlement
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Survivors of the sexual abuse reportedly carried out by members of the Diocese of Buffalo reacted to the Diocese's agreement to pay $150 million to settle over 800 claims of sexual abuse. Their reactions followed a federal court hearing regarding the settlement that took place on Tuesday in downtown Buffalo and took years to reach. One survivor said he was disappointed and doesn't believe the church took enough accountability, while others said no amount of money will truly heal them from what they went through. Gary Astridge, who said he was sexually abused for four years when he was a child, addressed reporters after the hearing. He said he still carries the trauma with him. 'When someone like me says, 'Yeah, I'm a survivor of sex abuse,' people can take that at face value and say, 'Oh wow, that's terrible, I'm so sorry,'' Astridge said. 'But the reality is, you don't really know and it's like. Do you really want to hear the story of what happened to me? Do you really want to know? It's disgusting.' He said that after five years of litigation and legal fees, the settlement offer is a slap in the face and an insult to survivors. 'It's not money that's gonna change anybody's lives and from the way we were damaged as people, myself specifically, being a child and being sexually abused and raped from the ages of 7 to 11,' Astridge said. 'It affects you through your whole life.' Richard Brownell, another survivor who was at the hearing, was also disappointed and said the settlement is taking way too long. He also doesn't believe the church has done everything that it could to settle in a timely manner. 'I always call us victims, because we're victims, so we're here, but we're victims of what the church allotted,' Brownell said. 'They knew what was going on. That's it. Ruined a lot of people's lives. That's a fact.' Another survivor, Kevin Brun, said he hopes the settlement brings some people closure, but for him, it doesn't. 'To me, it's a shallow offer,' Brun said. 'It's low and I'll leave it up to my fellow survivors to form their own opinions and hopefully it brings closure to some people. It hasn't brought closure to me.' Attorneys for the survivors said that although money doesn't make the pain go away, they have seen it bring closure to some people. Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Buffalo Diocese agrees to pay $150M to settle sexual abuse claims
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Diocese of Buffalo agreed to pay $150 million to settle over 800 claims of sexual abuse, sources confirmed to WIVB News 4 on Monday. The settlement follows years of efforts to reach an agreement of compensation for victims, and the Diocese's bankruptcy filing in 2020. The claims were a large factor in the Diocese's decision to close and merge churches across Western New York over the past year, along with declining number of priests and parishioners. One year after state lawmakers passed the Child Victims Act in 2019, the Diocese filed for bankruptcy and victims started filing sexual abuse claims against it. In October 2023, the Diocese originally offered $100 million to settle the sexual abuse cases. Around 600 of the abuse cases involved clerics. Some of the clerics had multiple allegations against them. Approximately 54 parishes were originally affected by the Diocese's downsizing announcement last May. Last August, there were 52 different counterproposals from parish families, Bishop Michael Fisher said at the time. Save Our Buffalo Churches, a group that advocates for keeping local churches open, announced earlier this month that, along with two churches in Buffalo, 14 additional churches will remain open after the Vatican accepted its appeals. Other cuts the Diocese made was to its insurance services department, which was officially eliminated at the end of August. Dioceses in other areas of New York, including Syracuse and Rochester, also announced settlements with sexual abuse victims in recent years, though the number of claims were smaller than Buffalo's. There will be a hearing regarding the settlement in federal court at 10 a.m. Tuesday in Buffalo. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Katie Skoog joined the News 4 team in April 2024. She is a graduate from the University at Buffalo. You can view more of her work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
