The Apostolate for Family Consecration (AFC) mourns the loss of their beloved founder Jerome Francis Coniker (b. November 2, 1938) who passed into eternal life on July 4, 2018 in Kenosha, Wisconsin.  Jerry and his late wife Gwen (d. 2002 and declared a Servant of God) were the 2008 recipients of the IRL’s Pro Fidelitate et Virtute Award. They knew that “the future of the world and the Church passes through the family” (Familiaris Consortio, no 79) and so founded the AFC “to help families get to Heaven.”

Jerry and Gwen were the parents of 13 children and founded the AFC in 1975.  Desiring to live the message of Our Lady of Fatima, they consecrated themselves to Jesus through Mary according to the motto “Totus Tuus” and dedicated themselves to transforming families, neighborhoods, schools and parishes into evangelizing communities, nourishing them with the timeless, Eucharistic, Marian and family-centered spirituality of St. John Paul II.

The AFC is located in Bloomingdale, Ohio, where at Catholic Familyland, there are opportunities for families to participate in events on the 803-acre property (a former abandoned seminary). There are Family Fests, silent retreats, youth conferences, the Totus Tuus “Consecrate Them in Truth” Family Conference, and much more.

“My father was a man truly driven to make a difference in the world,” said their daughter, Theresa Coniker Schmitz. “The salvation of souls and the protection of families through consecration were his passion. He desired the laity to know and embrace their call to holiness, to be saints, because he was convinced that ordinary fathers, mothers, and children can help to bring about the kingdom of God on earth when they make their daily family life an offering to God.”