TEUTOPOLIS — The Franciscan Friars of the Sacred Heart Province will hold an information session for all interested men, ages 18-40, on Sunday, Aug. 23 from 2-4 p.m. The gathering will be held at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Teutopolis in St. Clare Hall (on the east side of the church). Brother Thom Smith, OFM, vocation director, will host the event with the Friars of St. Francis of Assisi Friary.

The Franciscans first came to the area at the invitation of Bishop Henry Damian Juncker of the Diocese of Alton (now Springfield) in 1858. He wished to have the friars establish a friary which would serve as a center for missionary work. The friary in Teutopolis was established in 1858. Friaries at St. Francis Solanus Parish in Quincy (1859) and Quincy University (1860) soon followed.

Today the Friars of the Sacred Heart Province serve as pastors, teachers, chaplains, and in many other ministries in Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas, Louisiana and Alaska.

For more information, go to www.befranciscan.com. If you or someone you know is discerning a religious vocation, or would just like information, please plan to attend. Register by calling Brother Thom at (314) 766-1952 or emailing him at .