January 1, 2026 | Local News
Fr. Stephen Van Lal Than

Fr. Anthony Shonis offers the prayer before the Christmas dinner for the Tri-County Council of Labor, AFL-CIO, in Henderson, Kentucky, on Dec. 4, 2025. COURTESY OF KEVIN WALTON

A prayer for those who work

BY WKC STAFF

Editor’s note: In the evening of Dec. 4, 2025, Fr. Anthony Shonis, a priest of the Diocese of Owensboro, offered the prayer before the Christmas dinner for the Tri-County Council of Labor, AFL-CIO, in Henderson, Kentucky. Below is the text of his prayer.

Dear God, as we look back over this past year, we are grateful for all the ways you have blessed the Tri-County Labor Council with good leadership and a spirit of solidarity. The struggles of organized labor never end, but we pause this evening to thank you for our jobs and to be mindful of all our union brothers and sisters who have been killed at their on the job. Bless the food you have given us this evening, those who have harvested it, those who have transported it and those who have served it to us. We pray for the nation as for our president and we pray for all workers in our country especially the most vulnerable. Help us never to falter in the struggle for worker justice. Amen.


Originally printed in the January 2026 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.

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