Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma hires Canfield as Associate Director for Gift Planning

OKLAHOMA CITY – The board of directors for the Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma announced April 12 it has hired Owen Canfield to serve as the new associate director for gift planning.

Canfield, 61, will help lead the foundation’s mission to guide Catholics in estate planning and in making gifts through the foundation to benefit parishes, schools and ministries within the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City.

“Owen will bring an entirely new level of support to foster Catholic generosity throughout the archdiocese,” Executive Director Peter de Keratry said.

Most Rev. Paul S. Coakley, Archbishop of Oklahoma City, welcomed the announcement.

“Owen and his family have been faithful, generous and dedicated Catholics for many years,” he said. “This new position provides him a chance to bring together his faith and his knowledge for the betterment of the archdiocese and the people we serve.”

Danny Stith, chairman of the foundation’s board of directors, said he looked forward to Canfield’s efforts to advance the foundation’s work to “help donors make an impact on the programs and services they care most about.”

Canfield joins the foundation after a long and award-winning career in journalism. He most recently was the opinion editor for The Oklahoman newspaper, where he worked for 17 years. Prior to joining The Oklahoman, he spent nearly two decades in the Oklahoma City bureau of The Associated Press.

Canfield and his wife, Lori, have been married 36 years and are active and longtime members of the Saint Eugene Catholic Church in Oklahoma City. They have four grown children who attended Saint Eugene Catholic School and Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School, and three grandchildren.

Established in 1965, the Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma was incorporated as a nonprofit with a mission to procure and build endowment funds to support the ministries and entities of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. With the spiritual leadership and guidance of the Archbishop of Oklahoma City, the foundation is managed by a board of directors, consisting of priests, deacons and professional lay men and women who represent various geographic areas of the archdiocese.

In carrying out its mission, the foundation provides estate planning and charitable giving information and assistance, distributes earnings on its endowed funds to designated archdiocesan entities, and furthers the development of the Catholic Church in central and western Oklahoma.