Heeding the call to serve
Hainsey plans life of service
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By Holly Claycomb
hclaycomb@altoonamirror.com
As the U.S.A. and Canadian delegations's webmaster for EmperorCharles.org, Jordan Hainsey is responsible for design, maintenance, site content and development of holy reminders available in the online store.
But, that's just a small part of the 2007 Hollidaysburg Area High School graduate's busy life.
Hainsey, son of Raymond and Denise Hainsey of Hollidaysburg, said the work on the website is strictly a voluntary position. It's all the other activities -- not the least of which is attending St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe -- that keeps him busy as he works to heed a call to the priesthood.
In high school, Hainsey was involved in the art and Latin clubs, and both of those passions helped lead him on his current path, he said.
"When in high school, I worked at the Friars' Shop in the Logan Valley Mall," Hainsey said.
Once the largest online retailer of Catholic devotionals, the Friars' Shop provided statues, books, nativities and religious jewelry, he said, noting it "was incredibly unique to the area and people would drive from near and far, often hours away, so they could spend the day shopping for that perfect gift or just a 'holy reminder' so that they could grow in their spiritual life," he said.
Working in the store, operated by the Franciscan Friars T.O.R. of Loretto, gave Hainsey more insight into the Catholic faith, as he grew up a Lutheran, he said.
Following high school, Hainsey attended St. Vincent College, where he studied graphic design and marketing, graduating with a bachelor's degree in graphic design.
It was his daily interactions with monks, he said, that led him to consider and then decide to enter the priesthood.
Path to priesthood
In 2015, Hainsey entered the seminary at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Philosophy.
Now, he's beginning the journey to become an ordained priest with the Diocese of Covington, Kentucky, by attending St. Vincent to earn a Masters of Divinity degree, and he's hoping to use his art and graphic design skills to focus on the sacred and beauty found in art.
Joining the priesthood and becoming an ordained priest doesn't mean he will be a parish priest, he said. "There are so many opportunites to use your skills in many different ways."
He could work in schools, as a chaplain, in accounting, or a myriad of other positions, he said.
Where he'll be assigned is unknown at this point.
According to Tony DeGol, spokesman for the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese, the bishop of the Covington, Kentucky, diocese will appoint Hainsey to a position within that diocese once he graduates and becomes an ordained priest.
And, since he has become a member of the Covington Diocese, he will always serve in that diocese located in Kentucky, DeGol said.
While the appointment is up to the bishop in each diocese, DeGol explained, bishops do consider the priest's abilities and talents and place them in appropriate service areas.
Hainsey has plenty of experience in not only the arts and graphic design, but business operations, as well.
During his senior year at St. Vincent, he spent a semester as an intern with American Eagle Outfitters Inc. in the Pittsburgh offices. While there, he worked in the web design department, which "gave me a firm footing in commercial design and marketing." He uses these skills on the EmperorCharles.org site, he said.
"I learned a lot of valuable skills," he said, "with Photoshop, campaign development and interdepartmental work with the myriad of departments which work to bring the clothing from conception and construction to marketing and distribution."
After graduating St. Vincent, Hainsey was hired as Assistant to the Archabbot and Public Relations Associate for St. Vincent Archabbey and Seminary.
There, he completed a variety of jobs, from working on "Heart to Heart," the Archabby Monastery Magazine, "Leaven," the seminary magazine, and on the design and maintenance of many of St. Vincent's constituent websites.
In addition to the design work, he was able to fulfill another passion, that of art as he had the opportunity to photograph many of the special masses and events across campus.
As an added bonus, in the summer, "I would often photograph Steelers training camp on the sidelines," he said.
Further expanding his knowledge of the arts, Hainsey was hired through the work-study program with the St. Vincent Gallery, where he worked closely with the curator and director, Brother Nathan Cochran, O.S.B. "He cultivated my interests and talents. I helped in curating, installing and designing exhibitions," Hainsey said.
It was Cochran who first exposed Hainsey to Blessed Karl of Austria and the website devoted to him -- EmperorCharles.org.
Blessed Karl of Austria
Cochran, who was part of the Delegate for the Gebetsliga in U.S.A. and Canada, worked to promote the cause for Karl's Sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church. In 2004, Hainsey said Cochran worked at Vatican City as the special secretary for the Beatification of Emperor Karl I of Austria.
He coordinated and organized the various beatification celebrations in Rome, and wrote, edited and oversaw the translation, printing and distribution of various publications and press releases in 11 different languages, Hainsey said with admiration.
"Soon he was asking me to help design holy cards and posters for events associated with Blessed Karl," Hainsey said.
Unfortunately, in 2014, Cochrain suddenly died, Hainsey said.
"Imaginably, his loss left a large gap in spreading devotion to Blessed Karl throughout North America," Hainsey said. "Having worked so closely with him, I quickly launched into action to assemble and segregate all of the important documents and files related to the League in the U.S.A. and Canada so that we could push forward and continue the truly incredible work he started."
"One of his final wishes before he died was to update the website," Hainsey continued. "He was my best friend, so it wasn't even a question whether or not to try and get involved. I had to continue his legacy. "
"Beginning in fall 2014, I began stripping and sorting the old website's content so it could be reorganized and seamlessly integrated into a new platform. In 2015, I undertook the migration of the old Gebetsliga website to a newly designed, user-friendly platform that integrates a secure online store and donation processing system," Hainsey said.
Today, the website focuses on English-speaking viewers, as many countries now have their own Blessed Karl websites, Hainsey said.
"With the colors of black and gold harkening to the Habsburg Monarchy, I designed the site to be intuitive and user friendly," he said. "The homepage of the site is meant to greet and accommodate visitors who've never heard of Blessed Karl and want to know more. More specialized sub pages expose people to articles and news stories, which reveal Blessed Karl's sanctity and pivotal role in World War I. Photo galleries and YouTube-embedded videos further enhance the site in making it a one-stop shop for anyone wanting to learn more," he added.
Hainsey has also created the online store to help make Blessed Karl more well known, and has redesigned several booklets to meet the growing demand for printed materials on Blessed Karl's life.
The work on the Blessed Karl site and booklets is all done in his spare time, Hainsey said, noting that this year he also had the opportunity to oversee the design and creation of a devotional Emperor Karl bust statue -- the first mass-produced statue of Karl to be created since World War I.
The outpouring of response to the site and to the bust has been great, he said. "Orders have flooded in from around the globe, from all across North America to Europe. It is not strange for weekly orders to come from as far away as Leichenstein and Malta."
Life as a Seminarian
When he's not attending classes and studying for the priesthood, or making changes and updates to EmperorCharles.org, Hainsey said he enjoys photography and graphic design.
"I love hiking, kayaking, art stuff, reading and spending time with my family," he added.
"In my spare time, I love checking out a new museum or exhibition," he said, and likes perusing flea markets and antique malls for lost treasures. And he enjoys reading up on history and historical figures, one of the reasons he's drawn to the The Emperor Karl.
"What I love most about being the webmaster for the Gebestliga U.S.A. and Canada is making the person of Blessed Karl accessible to the world. In the Catholic Church, we believe saints are in Heaven and are capable of interceding on our behalf before the throne of God. More than ever in our world gripped by violence and terror, we need examples of men and women who worked for peace and oriented their entire life toward the pursuit of God. The Emperor Karl worked for peace during World War I, and there are so many parallels between his time and ours that we can look to for inspiration and solace. In our troubled times we can call on him to intercede before God as we work and pray for peace."
To further the public's view of Emperor Karl and to honor the wishes of good friend, Cochran, Hainsey said he will continue to tweak the Emperor Charles.org website and get the word out about the leader who may one day be a saint.
And, as he continues on his journey to the priesthood, Hainsey said he wants to spread the word of the saving grace of God.
If he had to pick one verse that surmises his calling to serve, Hainsey said it would be Romans 8:38-39, which states that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. -- Romans 8:38-39.