Calendar of Events

Page updated Sept 9, 2025

Some events may be in order by group type. Some events are also listed in our Calendar of Events category section besides this area

Sept. 11
Davenport — Bishop Dennis Walsh will celebrate a Blue Mass for first responders at 5:30 p.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Church.

Davenport — QC Catholic Young Adults will meet at Pancheros for dinner at 6 p.m., then head over to Our Lady of Victory Parish for holy hour from 7-8 p.m. Reconciliation available from 5-7 p.m.

Sept. 14
Iowa City — In celebration of the Jubilee Year of Hope, a 2-mile pilgrimage walk and Eucharistic procession will take place at 2 p.m. The walk begins in the Regina High School gym and concludes at St. Patrick Parish with exposition, adoration, benediction, bilingual prayer, hymns and refreshments. For more information go to stpatsic.com.

Sept. 16
Iowa City — A 40 Days for Life kick-off will take place at Pizza Ranch from 5-6:30 p.m. Learn about the annual prayer vigil, meet fellow prayer volunteers and enjoy dinner with a free will donation. Josh and Shelbi Boyce will share their adoption journey. RSVP at JCRTL.org by Sept. 14.

Sept. 17
Davenport — A retirement open house honoring Barb Arland-Fye and her many years of service as editor of The Catholic Messenger will take place at St. Ambrose University in the Rogalski Center from 3-6 p.m. All are welcome.

Sept. 18
Iowa City — Women from the Davenport Diocese are invited to join the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia for dinner, conversation and prayer at St. Mary Parish. Register at https://tinyurl.com/DDDiscern

Coralville — Five pilgrims will recount their transformative journey along the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain during a presentation at St. Thomas More Parish at 7 p.m.

Sept. 20-21
Mount Pleasant — St. Alphonsus Parish is hosting a two-day autumn festival and auction. Look for details in a future edition of The Messenger.

Sept. 21
Davenport — QC Catholic Young Adults Faith on Tap features Father Jacob Martin of Immaculate Conception Parish in Monmouth, Illinois, and St. Patrick Parish in Raritan. He will speak on Understanding the Liturgy, Part 4 — “The Why Behind What we Do” at 4 p.m. in the Upper Room at Jersey Grille.

Farmington — St. Boniface Parish is hosting a fall dinner from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Purchase roast pork dinners and participate in a silent auction and raffle.

Iowa City — There will be a Byzantine Catholic Divine Liturgy at 4:30 p.m. in Sacred Heart Chapel at St. Patrick Church.

Sept. 22
Davenport — St. Anthony Parish’s book club will begin studying “Klu Klux Klan in the Heartland” by James H. Madison today. The group meets Mondays at 6 p.m. in the parish center.

Sept. 23
Bettendorf — Women’s Choice Center and Life and Family Medical annual Life and Family Gala is at the Waterfront Convention Center. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Dinner and program at 6 p.m. Abby Johnson, author and former Planned Parenthood clinic director is the keynote speaker. Reservations due Sept. 10 by contacting Christie or Kathy at the center at 563-332-0475.

Bettendorf — Amy and Ken Novak (St. Ambrose University president and spouse) will speak on “Radical Hospitality” in the chapel of St. Joan of Arc Catholic School, 6900 Hopewell Ave. at 6:30 p.m. No cost; childcare provided. Reception to follow.

Sept. 28
DeWitt — St. Joseph Parish is hosting a fall festival in Harness Hall with food, games, a farmer’s market and live music. Pork and beef dinners cost $15 for adults, free for children; dine in from 4-6:30 p.m. or carry out from 3:30-6:30 p.m.

Sept. 29
Watch Bishop-elect Hennen’s Ordination
The livestream of Bishop-elect Thomas Hennen’s ordination and installation as Bishop of Baker, Oregon, will begin at 3:45 PM CST on Sept. 29. Watch the livestream at www.dioceseofbaker.org/bishop-thomas-hennen.

Oct. 4-10
Iowa City — The Iowa City Deanery Eucharistic Rosary Congress, a seven-day perpetual Eucharistic Adoration with an Hourly Rosary, will be held Oct. 4-10 at St. Patrick Catholic Church. Hourly Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will take place at the Sacred Heart Adoration Chapel with the Rosary prayed aloud at the start of each hour, followed by silent prayer for the remainder of the hour. Confession and Mass will be offered each day. For more information, contact Christine Martin at irish3721@mchsi.com or Father David Paintsil at paintsild@diodav.org. Sign up for one-hour adoration shifts at https://tinyurl.com/ICadoration.

Oct. 5
Iowa City — St. Wenceslaus Parish will serve turkey dinners with all the trimmings. Purchase dine-in meals from 11:15 a.m.-2 p.m. or carry-out dinners from 11:15 a.m.-3 p.m. Kolaches will be for sale while supplies last. Go to www.stwenc-ic.com for more information.

Keokuk — The Keokuk Catholic Fall Festival will take place from 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. at St. Vincent School, 2981 Plank Rd. Purchase chicken dinners with sides and dessert from 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Eat on site or carry out. Festivities include carnival games, inflatables, face painting, a silent auction and more.

Wellman — St. Joseph Church is hosting a fried chicken and pork loin buffet-style dinner, including dressing, noodles, desserts and more, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Purchase meals to eat on-site (handicap accessible) or drive-through. A live auction will follow the dinner.

OCT. 11
Davenport — A White Mass for health care professionals with Bishop Dennis Walsh begins at 9 a.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Church. The Catholic Medical Association Guild of the Quad Cities will host a talk by Dr. Michelle Stanford, president of CMA and pediatrician in the Denver, Colorado, area following Mass in Denning Hall. No RSVP required. Anyone can attend.

Oct. 20
Iowa City — A Cornerstone Catholic Scripture Study will be held Monday evenings from 7-8:45 p.m. at St. Mary Parish through April 20. For more information contact RoseMary at rfiagle79@gmail.com.

Oct. 22
Coralville — A Cornerstone Catholic Scripture Study will be held Wednesday mornings from 10-11:45 a.m. at St. Thomas More Parish through April 29. For more information contact Sue at smwaterman28@gmail.com.

Lincoln, Neb. — Rachel’s Vineyard is offering a weekend retreat in Spanish in the Lincoln area to women, men, and couples who are ready to heal from having taken the path of abortion or after having pushed a partner to do so. For more information call Sonia at 531-215-3608 or go to www.rachelsvineyard.org or www.elvinedoderaquel.org. The next Spanish retreat will be Oct. 24-26. Cost is $220 with partial scholarships available. ¿Sufres en silencio y dolor después de provocar un aborto? No estás solo. Hay un retiro del Viñedo de Raquel el 24-26 de octubre. Llame Sonia 531-215-3608 o visita www.elvinedoderaquel.org.

Season of Creation events
CORALVILLE — The Green Team at St. Thomas More Parish is hosting a series of events for the Season of Creation:
Sept. 11: Stations of the Cross for Creation, 6 p.m. at the church.
Sept. 12: Stations of the Cross for Creation, after 9 a.m. Mass at the church.
Sept. 19: Blessing of the Peace Pole, after 9 a.m. Mass at the church.
Sept. 28: “Life is a Pathway, Wandering and Wondering for the Pilgrims of Hope,” 1-4 p.m. at Prairiewoods in Hiawatha, Iowa.
Oct. 5: Blessing of the Pets, after 11 a.m. Mass at the church.

ONGOING

A LIFE Runners Chapter is being started in the Quad Cities. Life Runners use prayer and teamwork to defend life from conception until natural death. Running optional… Faith required. If you are interested in becoming a charter member, go to https://band.us/n/ababAcndt3P8Q or call/text Al and Beth Budelier at 815-499-8010.

Online/Rock Island, Ill. — For a list of upcoming Benet House Retreat Center events go to www.smmsister.org/retreats.

Davenport — The Catholic Messenger hosts a monthly podcast, Catholic Messenger Conversations, with host Barb Arland-Fye. Listen to the podcasts at www.catholicmessenger.net/podcasting or on your favorite podcasting app.

Davenport — Our Lady of Victory Parish will start a new GriefShare session Sept. 2. It will meet Tuesdays from 1-2:30 p.m. through Nov. 11 in the Gathering Space meeting room. Register by calling the rectory at 563-391-4245. Cost is $20 for the series.

Davenport — Our Lady of Victory Parish will host Nourish for Caregivers Wednesdays from 1-2:30 p.m. in the Gathering Space Meeting Room starting Sept. 17. RSVP to Char at 563-508-3890, especially if you are bringing your loved one.

Iowa City — The Fathers of St. Joseph, a group for husbands, fathers, grandfathers and mentors, meets the second Wednesday of the month from 6-7 a.m. at St. Mary Parish, and the fourth Saturday of the month (excluding November and December) from 6:30-8:20 a.m. (including 7 a.m. Mass) at St. Wenceslaus Parish. For more information or to be added the meeting reminder list, contact dan-icstmarys@q.com.

The Catholic Service Board seeks new members to join the organization for fellowship, fun and to assist its endeavors to support the Kahl Home in Davenport and other nonprofit organizations. For more information about Catholic Service Board or for membership information, contact CSB Vice President Pam Brandt at
pambrandt8@gmail.com or 563-505-9305.

LeClaire — Our Lady of the River Parish Caregiver Support Group meets the first Monday of every month in the parish hall from 10:30-11:30 a.m. unless it falls on a holiday. It is open to all caregivers who are looking for emotional and spiritual support as well as resources available to them. The facilitator is Amie Hammes, caregiver support specialist at Milestones Area Agency on Aging. Loved ones are welcome to attend and meet separately as long as no physical care is required during the hour. Contact Jennifer Hildebrand at 563-370-4412 or kjhildebrand@windstream.net or call the church office at 563-289-5736 with questions or for information.

Hiawatha, Iowa – Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center in Hiawatha, Iowa offers programs and retreats year-round. Discover upcoming programs and retreats at www.prairiewoods.org.

Project Rachel is a confidential, post-abortion healing ministry of the Catholic Church offering hope and healing to women and men hurting from past abortions. Call (563) 333-4107 Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Or, email projectrachel@diodav.org.

Natural Family Planning courses
Learn the Couple to Couple League method of Natural Family Planning (NFP), which gives couples the knowledge to track fertility signs as a way to achieve or avoid pregnancy. NFP is the only method of family planning approved by the Catholic Church and modern, symptom-based methods demonstrate an accuracy of about 99% in identifying times of fertility and infertility, according to the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology. Self-paced, online classes are available. Go to https://ccli.org/main-nfp/ or contact Al and Beth Budelier at (563) 324-7040 or elizabethimel@yahoo.com for more information.

The Iowa Catholic Conference (ICC) encourages you to sign up for its newsletter. The ICC is the official public policy voice of the bishops and Catholic Church in Iowa. Go to www.iowacatholicconference.org and click on “Join the Network.”

New Melleray Abbey in Peosta, Iowa, offers private discernment retreats. For more information contact Matt at MLM319656@gmail.com.

Podcast — “Conversations in Faith, Exploring the Questions You’re Afraid to Ask” is a new podcast that will begin airing Sept. 5. Each podcast will feature two representatives of different faiths who will explore questions submitted by you — questions you have been pondering but are uncomfortable asking. Email questions to conversationquestions@chmiowa.org