Archbishop of Baltimore, William E. Lori, announced the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s re-designed and re-launched Medals of Honor that align with the archbishop’s pastoral letter, A Light Brightly Visible 2.0, and more broadly with the five core pillars of the archdiocese’s mission statement: Evangelization, Liturgy, Education, Service, and Stewardship. The prestigious Medals of Honor awards will be presented on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at the Archdiocesan Gala at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel.

The Medals of Honor recognize a religious and lay person who has demonstrated a willingness to go above and beyond throughout their work. Each will be honored for their dedication, passion, and outstanding contributions in one of five categories. A 2023 award has been named after Mark Pacione. Learn more here.

The Dubourg-Pacione Medal (Evangelization): named after Bishop Louis Dubourg, S.S. and Mark Pacione, this honor recognizes a layperson or religious who has significantly impacted the work of evangelization.

The 2023 recipients of the DuBourg-Pacione Medal are:

Dr. Joseph Orlando and Mr. Gilbert Hoffman, Recipients of the DuBourg-Pacione Medal

Gil and Joe were both instrumental in establishing The Catholic Men’s Fellowship of Maryland (CMF-MD), which blossomed from a men’s prayer group at Church of the Immaculate Conception in Towson. In those early days, Gil worked tirelessly to establish this group and its board finding early success in reaching consensus on their goals. Utilizing his innate talents of humor, good sense, logic, and generally excellent communication skills, he was able to focus everyone’s attention on one unifying principle: maintaining and promoting Catholicism in these challenging times. Joe, then took what Gil had started, and, as they say, “ran with it,” growing this parish-centered group, into a massive and diverse gathering of devout Catholic men, who strive to preserve and promote the faith. Notwithstanding his busy surgical practice, Joe spent countless hours obtaining speakers and venues for CMF-MD conferences while also recruiting new board members likely to grow the Fellowship and advance its mission.

What their faith and service mean to them, in their own words:

“The plan [for CMF-MD] was for the evangelization of Catholic men and for them to return to their families and parishes to do the same, to share with other men the joy of a personal relationship with Our Lord and with His Church,” Joe Orlando said.

“Faith is really the blueprint for living that reaches into all areas of life that affect a man: his core beliefs, his work, his play and ultimately, his legacy. We must fight the good fight with brothers in Christ by our side, strengthened by the Word and Sacraments,” Gil Hoffman said.