By Amy White
The Texas Catholic
When Father Parker Thompson walked through the doors of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Frisco for his ordination last year, the occasion marked the grand culmination of years of prayer, discernment, and formation, according to the priest’s parents, Kathi and Bryan Thompson.
Even in his earliest years, the couple recalled, a young Father Thompson was fascinated by the priesthood. Kathi remembered watching her son ‘play church’ as a child, sitting in the pews of St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church with rapt attention before coming home to imitate what he had seen from the priest during Mass.
“So many young men ‘play church’ growing up, for lack of a better word, and then they kind of outgrow it,” Kathi said; but Father Thompson instead grew increasingly enamored with the sacredness of the celebration. He wanted more. So, as an elementary school student, he asked his parents if he could begin attending daily Mass. Then, he started altar serving.
“That’s where it all started,” Kathi said.
As Father Thompson began serving Masses over weekends and summers, members of his faith community started to note the reverence and prayerfulness they saw in the young altar server.
“We had multiple comments from people that could see (a priestly vocation) in him at an early age,” Bryan said, before admitting, “We didn’t necessarily see it.”
Although unsure of their son’s call, Kathi and Bryan did their best to surround Father Thompson with positive role models in the Church. In the fifth grade, they began taking Father Thompson to the public Masses at Holy Trinity Seminary, where he could converse with seminarians over donuts. As their son entered his high school years, the Thompsons brought him to the Diocese of Dallas St. Andrew’s Dinner, an event for young men discerning the priesthood. Father Thompson had eagerly anticipated attending the dinner for years, Kathi shared.
“I think he already knew” his call, she said. “I think he had been thinking about it for a long time.”
As Father Thompson neared the end of high school, his parents could see he was set on seminary; and in 2015, he joined Holy Trinity Seminary in Irving before transferring to St. Joseph Seminary College then Notre Dame Seminary in Louisiana to complete his formation. The experience of sending a son to seminary was similar to what other parents might feel when waving goodbye to their college-bound children, the Thompsons explained — it was a transition, but a happy one.
“It just felt very natural,” Kathi said. “We didn’t have any fears. I guess it was a God thing… We were just supportive.”
On May 18, 2024, Father Parker was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Dallas, a joyous experience for Kathi and Bryan, who had seen their son through almost a decade of seminary formation — and many more years of formation at home.
“It was surreal, because it’s been this long trying to get there, and here it is,” Kathi said. “It was all blessings along the way.”
Father Thompson now serves as parochial vicar at St. Monica Catholic Church — an assignment that his parents celebrate. The Thompsons said their son is more than up to the task of serving the Dallas community with his characteristic patience, understanding, and joy; plus, Bryan said, “he’s loving what he’s doing!”
“God chose a very, very good vocation for Parker,” Kathi agreed.
Editor’s note: This article is the third in a three-part series sharing stories of religious and priestly vocations from the perspective of the parents.
Cutline for featured image: Father Parker Thompson, center right, is pictured alongside St. Monica Catholic Church pastor Father Michael Guadagnoli, left, and Father Thompson’s parents Kathi Thompson, center left, and Bryan Thompson. Kathi and Bryan shared that their son, now parochial vicar at St. Monica, has demonstrated a deep faith as early as childhood. (Courtesy photo)
