SALT LAKE CITY —Ruth Dillon has accepted the position of Director of Liturgy for the Diocese of Salt Lake City. Dillon was appointed by the Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City. "She was secretary to Timothy Johnston, the previous director, and she also studied with her husband, Deacon Dale Dillon, during his formation to be ordained a deacon," Bishop Wester said of Dillon’s experience. "She has had a lot of parish experience; she is the director of music at Saint John the Baptist Parish. She has a wealth of information and she is very organized and a very good administrator." Dillon is also the choir director at Saint John the Baptist Parish. She will also work closely with Monsignor M. Francis Mannion, pastor of Saint Vincent de Paul Parish, and Gregory Glenn, both of whom are noted liturgists in the nation and in the Church, said Bishop Wester. Glenn is director of liturgy and music at the Cathedral of the Madeleine and pastoral administrator of the Madeleine Choir School. Dillon will also work with Father Sam Dinsdale, pastor of Saint Marguerite Parish, Tooele, who is head of the Diocesan Liturgical Commission, and with several people who serve on the commission. "Ruth has a clearly delineated support staff to work with her, and she heads the office in terms of coordinating our liturgical efforts in the diocese, working on such things as the Chrism Mass and the Rite of Election ceremony," Bishop Wester said. "She also will be a source of support for me in terms of monitoring and promoting good liturgy throughout the diocese. "Ruth works well with people; she is very cordial and kind and I think she will work well with the priests, deacons, religious and lay leaders," Bishop Wester added. "She is doing a splendid job and I am delighted she said ‘yes’ to this position." Dillon grew up in Texas and came to Utah with her family when she was 13. She graduated from Davis High School in Kaysville and from the University of Utah with a bachelor’s degree in education. Dillon’s interest in music began while playing the flute in junior high, which continued through college. "I didn’t get a degree in music because I always wanted to teach," she said. "But while I was in college I had an administrative position in the music department. I worked part-time and when I graduated they offered me a full-time job, which enabled my husband to go to school." Deacon Dale and Ruth have one son, Michael, who lives in Madison, Wisc. He graduated from Juan Diego Catholic High School in 2005, and the University of Portland in computer science. Dillon has worked for many non-profit organizations, including the Utah Chapter of the American Cancer Society. After working for this organization, she decided to do something totally unrelated to health care. "It was then I started working for the Diocesan Development Drive office," she said. "For the past eight years, I’ve worked in the DDD office, in the diaconate formation program, the Office of Liturgy and the bishop’s office, so I feel like I have a really good understanding of the diocese’s mission and how it works. I was an assistant in the diaconate formation program and attended all of the sessions over five years." In Dillon’s position, she gives support and resources to the parishes by offering workshops to liturgical ministers and musicians. "The liturgical commission has three committees: rites, music and arts," said Dillon. "All of those committees work together to strengthen the bishop’s mission."
Stay Connected With Us