Reverend David Coon, the priest at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Dexter, recently celebrated a milestone in his service to the Lord. That milestone was the 30-year anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood.
A special mass and dinner were held at the church in honor of his service. Coon said during the mass that the celebration was for God, not the man (Coon).
Coon is from Charleston originally. His mother, Shirley Coon, whom he affectionately refers to as “Momma Coon,” still lives there. Coon visits her as often as he can with the help of a parishioner driving him.
When attending a mass celebrated by Coon, one quickly notices he does not read the biblical readings or his notes for the sermon he has prepared with his eyes, but rather with his fingers. He is legally blind and reads by braille. He was born with cataracts and had eye surgeries until age 15. He has no sight in his right eye and limited sight in his left. He does not see small images closeup or images at a distance, but Fr. Coon sees this as a blessing from God.
“God is good,” he says.
He explains that some doors have been closed because of his sight issues.
“I am not flying an airplane. I am not broadcasting Cardinal games, and I am not constructing or building houses. But it opened this door. God, I think, used that along with serving at mass, being a reader, parents encouraging me. It is another piece of the puzzle God used to help me hear that call to the priesthood. That was probably the last part of the piece that got me to the seminary anyway, he explains.
“I think God used that.”
“God uses all of our trials and struggles we call “crosses” for the greater good. I think it has made me more patient and more empathetic toward others and perhaps I more easily heard the call to the priesthood.”
Coon began his education at the State School for the Blind in St. Louis. He said he returned to Charleston after the fourth grade and began helping at a mass as an altar server. Coon attended St. Henry's Elementary School at the time. Coon said it was in the sixth grade he began having thoughts of entering the priesthood.
“I think it was a combination of initially being an alter server and having grandparents especially encourage me, you ought to think about that possibility,” said Coon. “Priests and my parents were always very supportive. I think God worked through those simple things, you know, being active on the altar, serving, lecturing, God speaking through the encouragement of family members and good priests. I think all of that kind of worked together beginning with being an alter server for sure.”
Coon said the bishop at that time, The Most Rev. Bernard Law who later became His Eminence Bernard Cardinal Law, had a message for young people concerning vocations. That message said to keep all options open, not to shut anything out in the early formative years.
In the spring of 1984, while attending high school at Notre Dame in Cape Girardeau, the diocese sponsored a trip to Conception Seminary College north of St Joesph, MO.
Coon said he spent the weekend at the seminary, attending mass, seeing the facility and attending a few classes.
“It was a great weekend at the seminary. The priests were very hospitable, very friendly,” said Coon. “There just seemed to be a joy about the place and a real peace.”
Coon returned home and finished high school and narrowed his college choice to Southeast Missouri State or the seminary. He said SEMO would have been a really easy choice being close to home and having a program for vision-impaired students. He decided to try the seminary for at least a year. He said the priest at the seminary asked that those who come to stay for at least a year to determine if this is the path they wish to take.
Coon said this was asked due to students (designated as seminarians at the seminary) getting homesick, but he was used to being away from home while attending the state school for the blind. Coon smiled as he said he stayed more than a year. He stayed four.
Coon said the first four years provided a good college education with college-level classes in math, science, history, etc. Pre-theology classes were also attended by the seminarians along with seeing spiritual advisors and character formation to help overcome sins. Coon said anyone after the four years that decided the priesthood was not the path for them would have a good college foundation with the variety of classes offered. He then attended four years at Kenrick - Glennon Seminary in St. Louis where the focus became major theology.
Coon was ordained as a deacon on May 23, 1992, and ordained into the priesthood on May 30, 1993.
Coon said for the ordination mass that the bishop, a priest, a deacon and the man being ordained are in the front of the church. For this mass, four sets of matching vestments are needed. Coon was ordained on Pentecost Sunday, a day when red vestments are required. He was being ordained at his parish in Charleston, and the parish did not have four sets of red vestments. Some vestments were borrowed from the Cathedral in St. Louis for the mass. The matching vestments are used for uniformity during the mass, so there are no multiple colors at the altar during the service.
Coon served as associate pastor in Springfield for six years (five at Immaculate Conception and one at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton) before receiving his first pastoral assignment.
Priests are started as associate pastors to gain experience under an experienced priest overseeing a parish. His first pastoral assignment was at St. Joseph in Scott City from August 1999 to September 2007. This meant a lot to Coon as the assignment brought him back closer to his hometown of Charleston and made it easier to visit his family. While in Springfield, he would meet his parents halfway between Charleston and Springfield with the help of a parishioner giving him a ride since he was unable to drive.
From 2007 to July 2015, he was at Sacred Heart in Poplar Bluff and St. Benedicts in Doniphan. From 2015 to 2021, he was assigned to St. John’s in Leopold and St. Anthony in Glennon. He came to Dexter in 2021 and will be in Dexter for at least one more year until the bishop releases the parish assignments in 2024.
During Rev. Coon's time as a priest, he has also been able to make trips outside the United States. This includes trips to the Holy Land, Mexico and three trips to Rome. There is another trip he spoke specifically about, a 10-day mission trip to a remote area in Nigeria.
Coon said there was not much in the way of hot water, and electricity was not consistent in the village. He said there was poverty everywhere. Basically, the only place with conveniences was the rectory because the residents wanted to take care of the priests. The rectory is the parish-owned house where the priest stays while serving a parish.
Coon said he did not lead the celebration of mass due to not being able to speak the native language. Rather, he concelebrated mass alongside another priest. Mass started at 5:30 a.m., and the residents would show up to mass with flashlights before heading to the farm fields to start work for the day.
Coon also enjoys playing cards and board games in his free time, and he’s an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan. He likes to attend games when the opportunity arises.
With a smile, he says he takes a radio and binoculars and knows the proper time to yell and cheer.
Coon says although it is not always easy being a priest, particularly when having to walk a parishioner or a family through the final steps of earthly life or rushing to the emergency room to be with a parishioner, he considers it an “honor” to be called to serve the Lord.
“It is a privilege. It is an honor, to what we call “confect” the eucharist…to call the Holy Spirit down upon the bread and wine to become the body and blood of Christ,” said Coon. “To send a person of Christ and be able to say I absolve you of your sins and just know the freedom, the healing and peace that brings to souls. Those are priceless things. And it's humbling. It’s a privilege. It’s an honor, and I would not trade it for anything.”