Hundreds of Catholic business leaders from around the country, including corporate leaders from within the Diocese of Orange, attended the 2024 Legatus Summit for fellowship, adoration and inspiration.
The 2024 Legatus Summit was held Jan. 25-27 at the Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point and featured noted Catholic speakers, daily Mass, awards and exhibitors.
Legatus (Latin for ambassador) is an executive peer group of Catholic CEOs, business owners, company presidents and others.
The mission of Legatus is to create ambassadors for Christ, said Angela Chargualaf, Vice President of the West Region of Legatus International.
“The thought is, it’s lonely at the top and these business leaders need to be nourished,” said Chargualaf, a parishioner of Santiago de Compostela Catholic Parish in Lake Forest. “And they do have a huge influence. So, if we can kind of nourish them so that they can go out and spread the word to their business, their community, and their family, it can change the world.”
The theme of the 2024 summit was “To Whom Shall We Go?”
HEART SHAPED PINS WERE BEING GIVEN AWAY AT THE LIVE AUCTION TABLE AT THE 2024 LEGATUS SUMMIT HELD JAN.25-27 AT THE MONARCH BEACH RESORT IN DANA POINT. A PRO-LIFE ADVOCACY GROUP, LIVE ACTION WAS AMONG SEVERAL EXHIBITS ON HAND FOR THE SUMMIT. PHOTO BY LOU PONSI/DIOCESE OF ORANGE
Summit attendees Ralph and Oonagh Linzmeier have been Legatus members since 2002 when they were invited to join the organization by the late philanthropist Carl Karcher, founder of Carl’s Jr. fast food chain and a devout supporter of the Catholic church.
“We were drawn to it because of the community aspect of it,” said Linzmeier, a retired financial advisor who previously served on the Legatus Board of Governors for six years. “And at the same time, we build relationships in our local parish and the relationships we build in this community are sometimes very profound.”
Linzmeier, incidentally, also hosts a radio podcast through the Spirit Filled Hearts Ministry titled “Finding Your Way.”
Legatus speakers have expanded their knowledge of the Catholic faith, Oonagh Linzmeier said.
“Because you need to be fed in many ways,” Oonagh Linzmeier said. “And you’re meeting also with other people who are like-minded in leadership. And also, we were introduced to so many wonderful organizations and movements that we would have never been aware of, because in church, you can’t always know these things.”
The Linzmeiers are parishioners of San Francisco Solano Catholic Church in Rancho Santa Margarita.
Every year at the National Summit, Legatus honors a group of individuals for exemplary service to the Catholic Church in categories.
The Defender of the Faith Award was given to Fr. Robert Spitzer for “his strong defense of Our Lord in the Holy Eucharist, upholding longstanding Catholic teaching and witness to the sanctity of life and marriage despite today’s societal opposition.”
Fr. Spitzer is the president and co-founder of the Magis Center, which is located at Christ Cathedral.
Featured speakers included author Lila Rose, a staunch pro-life advocate and president of Live Action, a human rights nonprofit believed to have one of farthest-reaching digital footprints in the global pro-life movement.
Other speakers were Fr. Mike Schmitz, noted speaker, author and podcaster, and Sr. Deirdre “Dede” Byrne, Mother Superior of the Little Workers of the Sacred Hearts community, a surgeon, a physician and a retired colonel of the U.S. Army Medical Corps.
Attendees had the opportunity to attend the summit’s opening Mass at the Mission Basilica San Juan Capistrano.
Legatus International was founded in 1987 by Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino’s Pizza and former owner of Major League Baseball’s Detroit Tigers. Monaghan was inspired to start Legatus to help Catholics grow professionally and spiritually.
Today, Legatus has 5,000 members from 90 chapters in the U.S. and abroad, including two Orange County chapters.