DALLAS — Joe LaRussa, a member of St. Brigid Parish in San Diego, is the recipient of The Evangelical Catholic’s Ad Extra Award.
It was one of two Avery Cardinal Dulles Apostolic Activity Awards presented at the nonprofit organization’s Priests for an Apostolic Age Conference, held Jan. 24 to 26 in Dallas.
The Evangelical Catholic is dedicated to transforming lay people into zealous leaders who are equipped to joyfully make disciples in their communities. It bestowed the awards on two leaders whose response to the Great Commission (“Go, and make disciples of all nations”) has resulted in success. One award was given for the Church’s mission within (ad intra) and the other was for reaching outward (ad extra) to more fruitfully make disciples.
LaRussa is an active Catholic and native San Diegan. He and his wife of 42 years have three adult daughters and four grandsons.
Once a business owner, LaRussa now works solely for Convene, an organization whose mission is to connect, equip and inspire Christian CEOs and business owners to grow exceptional businesses and become higher-impact leaders to honor God.
LaRussa’s degrees from the University of San Diego in Business Administration and Practical Theology, along with his six decades of life experience, have prepared him for the role of coaching others to integrate their faith into all aspects of their lives.
An active parishioner of St. Brigid’s, LaRussa facilitates a Connection to Christ group, a “Whiskey and the Word” men’s group, and recently served as rector for a Men’s Cursillo in Christianity weekend.
Succinctly, his passion is to “turn good Catholic men into raving disciples.”
