DATE: OCTOBER 8, 2025​

• MASS: 5:15 pm
• RECEPTION AND  AWARD DINNER: 6:30 pm​ ​​

 RECTOR & PASTOR, CATHEDRAL OF ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, MILWAUKEE

 BASSELIN CLASS OF 1982

Very Rev. Timothy Kitzke, M.A., S.T.B., M. Div., will receive TC’s 2025 Alumnus Lifetime Service Award in recognition of a lifetime of outstanding priestly service as a Church leader, mentor, and champion of the poor and vulnerable.

Father Tim  is the rector and pastor of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Concurrently, he is pastor of Old St. Mary, Our Lady of Divine Providence, Ss. Peter and Paul, and Three Holy Women Parishes, also in Milwaukee. For the archdiocese he serves as episcopal vicar for Urban Ministry, helping parishes in the city address the issues of poverty, food insecurity, and racism. He is on the Board of Directors for Seton Catholic Schools, Chiara Senior Living Communities, Saint Francis de Sales Seminary, Fr. Gene’s Help Center, and Milwaukee Catholic Home. His other roles in service of the Church include: ex officio member of the archdiocesan Priest Placement Board, pastor of teaching parishes for seminarians and mentor to newly ordained priests for Saint Francis de Sales Seminary and the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, advisor to Kinship Community Food, and chaplain for the Italian Community Center in Milwaukee.

Father Tim was born to Leo and Mary Ann Kitzke and raised in South Milwaukee. He is the youngest of four children. After graduating from de Sales Prep Seminary, he attended Saint Francis de Sales College Seminary for two years. He then moved to Theological College where he studied as a Basselin Scholar until earning his MA in Philosophy in 1982. He went on to earn his STB in Sacred Theology and MA in Religious Studies at the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. He later earned a Master’s in Divinity from Saint Francis de Sales Seminary in Milwaukee.  He served as parochial vicar at two parishes before his current assignments on the east side of Milwaukee.   Father Kitzke credits his time in the Basselin Scholars Program as golden moments in his education. Studying the great philosophical traditions of the church was a solid foundation for undertaking further studies in theology. The pastoral formation he received at the Theological College was outstanding preparation for the many pastoral duties he has been blessed to undertake.

Father Tim tries to maintain a healthy, balanced, priestly lifestyle by walking, praying, reading, and spending time with friends. He is thankful for the many priests, religious, and lay ecclesial ministers who not only shaped his priestly formation but accompany him on his priestly ministry. The people of God in his parish work are sure signs of the presence of Christ, and he is grateful to be a priest for over 36 years.