This past week, the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend underwent a second compliance audit required by the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, adopted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in June 2002. The audit took place between Monday, Oct. 11 and Thursday, Oct. 14, 2004.
The auditors were two former FBI agents from the Gavin Group appointed by the National Office for the Protection of Children at the Bishops' Conference. I met with the auditors at the beginning and the end of their visit.
The auditors met with members of our diocesan review board, law enforcement officials, victims from many years ago and members of the diocesan staff. Following closely the charter, which represents a mandate for each diocese, they examined all our policies. The major focus of their work was the period since the last audit 14 months ago.
The executive summary was received through electronic mail on Oct. 18. I quote the following sentence from this summary:
"At the conclusion of this audit, the diocese was found to be in compliance with all articles of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People."
This executive summary will be printed in full next week in Today's Catholic, as well as on our Web site at www.diocesefwsb.org.
I am especially indebted to certain members of our staff who worked intensely to prepare the audit and assist the auditors while they were here. Special thanks to my administrative assistant, Maureen Schott; administrative assistant to Father Robert Schulte, Mari Raatz; Kim Cunningham of our office of catechesis; and Scott Hall of Barnes and Thornburg, our diocesan attorney. Their work was essential to the happy completion of this audit and to our excellent report. April 28, 2004
