Father Vitalis Anyanike is a priest of the Archdiocese of Omaha. He was born in Nigeria December 2, 1970, to the family of Ignatius and Virginia Anyanike. The family immigrated to the USA and settled in Kansas City, Missouri. Since his childhood he felt a deep passion to be active in visionary mission of the Church. As a young adult, he gained naturalization as a U.S. citizen. Father Vitalis was drawn to priestly vocation under the sponsorship of the Archdiocese of Omaha. He graduated from St. John Vianney College Seminary and the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul Minnesota in May 1999. Father Vitalis attended graduate school in Theology at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis Missouri, August 1999-May 2002. He earned a degree in Bachelor of Arts, and a master’s degree in Divinity and Theology. He has a post graduate diploma in Educational Leadership through the University of St. Thomas, in Minnesota. He speaks English, Igbo and can celebrate Mass in Latin and Spanish. He was ordained a priest on June 1, 2002, and incardinated into the Archdiocese of Omaha. Father Vitalis’ priestly ordination has allowed him to serve at several diverse parish communities in the Omaha archdiocese: urban, rural and suburban and inn city parishes with each parish requiring a different skill set. He currently serves as the pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes-St. Adalbert catholic parish in Omaha and also pastor of St. Andrew Kim Korean Community Omaha. He loves being a priest and would not trade it for anything. In addition to his parish duties, he is very involved with the Ad Gentes Missionaries’ religious community of Sisters, brothers and priests that he founded and are working in the following countries: Burkina Faso, Cameroun, Nigeria and the USA. This religious community is dedicated to serving the pastoral needs of the Christian minorities in predominately Islamic regions of Africa, and also among the inner-city communities in America, immigrants and those of the periphery with limited resources.