Pillar of the diocese

For almost four decades, Bill Utic has been sharing his time and talents in service to the Diocese of Oakland, its parishes and its religious communities. With 36 years of experience as a manager and director at PG&E in strategic planning, construction and property management, most of the major construction projects undertaken by the diocese in recent memory have benefitted from Utic’s expertise. Among the highlights are the Cathedral of Christ the Light, the Divine Renovation Project at St. Joseph parish at Mission San Jose in Fremont and the Valley Foundation grants for CYO gym improvements. 

Utic’s commitment to serving the church follows the example of his parents, who volunteered at their home parish, St. Patrick in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as lectors, choir members and more. At the age of 13, he became an Eagle Scout, building and painting a fence for the parish parking lot. He continued to volunteer in college, and it seemed natural to him to continue to serve his parish community when he moved to the Bay Area.

“He’s always been a doer, throwing himself into community volunteering. He’s done so much behind the scenes for so long,” Utic’s wife, Dr. Dianne Martin, a retired internal medicine and infectious disease doctor, said. Their relationship began at St. Monica in Moraga where their early dates consisted of Mass and lunch afterward, and both served as lectors and extraordinary ministers of holy Communion.

Utic realizes the skills he built during his career benefits parishes, and he encourages others to reflect on their own skills. He said,  “If you have work experience, skill or interest in gardening, woodworking, painting electrical, or plumbing work or are simply good with home maintenance, and if you are an architect, engineer, contractor, property manager, business owner, project manager or are just willing to learn from others and help – your parish has a place for you!”

Although Utic is unsure how he and his skill set came to the attention of the diocese, he accepted the invitation to join the Diocesan Finance Council in 1994. And he kept saying yes when asked to participate in more projects. He credits former diocesan chief financial officers Mike Canizzaro and Paul Bongiovanni with identifying areas where the diocese needed help, mainly with building-related projects. “One thing led to another,” he said of being able to use his career experience to help the diocese. 

Cathedral of Christ the Light construction

The cathedral project is one that stands out to Utic as satisfying to see come to fruition. He was involved in the project from the beginning as a member of the steering committee and by helping make decisions on location, architect, design and construction contract negotiations. He continued to support the project through settlement of the construction defect case. He saw parallels between working on the cathedral and his day job. “It took longer from start to finish but required a similar skill set that allowed me to add value,” he said.

Bongiovanni called Utic an incredible, invaluable supporter of the diocese. He recalled weekly meetings during the five years of construction defect litigation. “Not only did Bill bring incredible talent and commitment, but I have not met anyone else who can distill complex construction problems into layman’s terms.”

“There’s always work to be done and not enough people in the vineyard, so to speak, so when I could help, I was glad to do it,” Utic said. “It was a good fit to be able to help the diocese in an area where they didn’t have staff with that experience. Pastors rely on volunteers, and it’s no different at the diocesan level.” 

“I couldn’t imagine doing any of what we did during my 10 years as CFO without Bill,” Bongiovanni said. “He was a steadying influence.”

Divine Renovation Project

In 2021, Father Anthony Le became pastor of St. Joseph Parish at Old Mission San Jose in Fremont. The parish had a committee already in place with the purpose of looking to build a new church. It soon became clear that the parish needed to pivot its focus away from new construction. According to Utic, the question became: “How do we transform what was originally intended to be a hall into a proper church?” From there, Utic set about transforming Father Le’s vision into a reality.

“Our priests and parish staff aren’t chosen for their building management and landscaping skills!  Our churches, buildings and parish campus are physical representations of God’s presence, visible for all to see. It’s important to keep them beautiful and inspiring,” Utic said. 

“With Bill’s help and dedication, we accomplished almost everything we set out to do in rebuilding facilities,” Father Le said. “We are blessed to have him. He is very faithful, devout and generous with his time 
and resources.”

The renovation of the church took six months from start to finish. “A retrofit or remodel is not the same as starting from a set of blueprints,” Utic explained. “It required a daily presence, a good contractor and volunteers from the parish. It was truly a team effort of people working together to accomplish a goal for the parish. Everything I learned in my career was used here 
as well. The outcome was really beautiful.”

Fellow parishioner Judge Mike Gaffey agreed that Utic was the right man for the job while the parish undertook those major construction projects. “He was a great guy to have around with experience over the years with PG&E. He has a great depth of knowledge with construction and utility issues,” he said.

CYO gym improvements

Utic managed two grants from the Valley Foundation for improvements to gyms at approximately 20 parishes. Utic visited parishes with fewer resources and helped them figure out their needs before working with the contractors and suppliers to transform the spaces where maintenance would be deferred when money was tight. He notes that buildings and grounds are not often high on any parish’s priority list, at least until there is 
a problem. 

The grant money was allocated for replacement or refurbishment of gym floors, replacement of old bleachers, new scoreboards, upgraded lighting and other projects, based on the needs of each parish. 

“Bill Utic was the volunteer project manager working with all these projects through the CYO athletic directors, pastors and contractors in bringing the grant to life.  Because of his tireless work and expertise, our CYO players now enjoy quality places to play in their parishes,” CYO Director Bill Ford said.

 “A lot of the credit goes to Bill Ford for establishing that relationship with the Valley Foundation and inspiring them to make those grants,” Utic responded. “I implemented what Bill inspired. We wouldn’t have those grants without him. It was rewarding and inspiring to see the kids and coaches and what 
was important to them and then to see the finished product and the gratitude.”

He was honored by Bishop Michael C. Barber, SJ, with the diocesan Medal of Merit on Nov. 7, 2024. At the ceremony,  Bishop Barber declared, “You are a pillar of the diocese,” perfectly summing up Utic’s long history of service.