About the Foundation
Dominican Friars Foundation
Support Dominican Formation
Support Dominican Preaching
Donations to the Dominican Friars Foundation advance the Dominican mission of preaching for the salvation of souls. Your generosity directly supports the national Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage, weekend retreats, the Contemplata podcast, digital evangelization efforts, and other preaching initiatives.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Fr. John Paul Kern, O.P.
Fr. John Paul Kern, O.P., entered the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Joseph in 2012, was ordained to the priesthood in 2019, and served as Catholic chaplain at the University of Louisville for two years before being appointed Executive Director of the Dominican Friars Foundation.
He grew up in Annapolis, Maryland, where his father taught at the United States Naval Academy. Before entering the Order of Preachers, Fr. John Paul earned degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering from Penn State University and worked as a reactor inspector for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Fr. John Paul currently serves as the Vicar Provincial for Advancement for the Province of Saint Joseph as well as the Executive Director of the Dominican Friars Foundation in New York City, where, in the tradition of Dominican mendicancy, he leads a team in raising support for the formation and preaching of the Dominican Friars and providing for the spiritual needs of the benefactors of the Province of St. Joseph.
Fr. John Paul also enjoys preaching retreats, leading pilgrimages, and serving parishioners at the Parish of St. Vincent Ferrer and St. Catherine of Siena in New York City.
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
Fr. Joseph-Anthony Kress, O.P.
Fr. Joseph-Anthony Kress, O.P., entered the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Joseph in 2010. He made his solemn profession on August 9, 2014, and was ordained a priest on May 21, 2016. In the spring of 2010, he graduated from Franciscan University of Steubenville with a Bachelor of Arts and subsequently received a Bachelor of Sacred Theology and Masters of Divinity from the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception. Fr. Joseph-Anthony served as the Chaplain to Catholic Hoos at the University of Virginia from 2017-2024. In 2025, he began to serve as the Promoter of the Rosary for the Province of St. Joseph and Associate Director of the Dominican Friars Foundation. He is a co-host of the Godsplaining podcast alongside three of his Dominican classmates. Over the years he has worked in overseeing large-scale liturgies which include World Youth Day Krakow, USCCB Convocation, Fr. Emil Kapaun Homecoming, Amazing Parish conferences, and the National Eucharistic Congress. A native of St. Clairsville, OH, he is the youngest of three.
Board of Directors
Executive Committee
Fr. Allen Moran, O.P.
Br. Martin Davis, O.P.
Fr. John Paul Kern, O.P.
Mr. Edward C. Sweeney
Mr. Thomas Sharkey, Jr.
Directors of Board:
Mr. Peter Carey
New York, NY
Br. Martin Davis, O.P.
Provincial Economic Administrator, Province of Saint Joseph
New York, NY
Mr. Kevin Fee
Nashville, TN
Fr. Gabriel Gillen, O.P.
National Chaplain, Fellowship of Catholic University Students
Denver, CO
Mr. Matthew Hantzmon
Charlottesville, VA
Fr. John Paul Kern, O.P.
Executive Director, Dominican Friars Foundation
New York, NY
Fr. Dominic Legge, O.P.
Director, Thomistic Institute
Professor of Systematic Theology, Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies
Washington, D.C.
Fr. Allen Moran, O.P.
Prior Provincial, Province of Saint Joseph
New York, NY
Mr. Thomas J. Sharkey Jr., Board Vice President
Cranford, NJ
Mr. Edward C. Sweeney, Board President
Lyndhurst, NJ
Mr. Dale Friemoth
Cincinnati, OH
