Father Jamie Bono didn’t grow up thinking of the priesthood. He graduated from Passaic High School and started a career at the Grand Union. Twenty two years later he began to contemplate a change. One night while having dinner with his girlfriend, she asked him to order a bottle of wine. He never drank wine, ordered a $200 bottle of Puligny Montrachet as a bit of a prank. To his surprise, he loved it and was inspired to become a wine connoisseur. He continued to work at the grocery store but began taking night courses at The World Trade Center and The International Wine Center in NYC. One night, during a snow storm, he stopped in a Catholic Church for shelter. He hadn’t been in a church for years. As he walked in a little bell rang and Mass began. Here is the story in his words. “It was like a blast form the past. The structure of this church was very similar to Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Passaic only much larger. The gospel that night was about Jesus’ compassion over the people who wanted to kill him. I wanted that kind of compassion for people. I went back the next week, and the next, until it became a ritual for me. I started attending daily Mass and fell in love with Jesus and The Bible. “I started taking courses at Morris County Community College and eventually gave up my management position to further my studies. I went back to the NYC Church for Mass and remained in the pew after to pray. A priest came up to me and asked my name. I told him Jamie. He said, Are you married Vinnie?’ I said no and my name is Jamie. He asked Have you ever thought of becoming a priest?’ I asked him if he was crazy. “Then I went to Mass with my girlfriend. She suggested I enroll in a vocation awareness program. I asked her if she was crazy, but she made me promise I would go, so I enrolled. “I fought it, but after two years of community college, I sold my house and my Harley Davidson and went off to Saint Mary’s Seminar and University in Baltimore. I would give it one year. One year turned into two. “After three years I was ordained a deacon, a year later, ordained a priest. I made a deal with God if I became a priest, I could have my Harley back. “After being ordained, I experienced true happiness. When one can fully know the Will of God in their life, it provides a sense of peace that is inexplicable. That is the peace I feel in my life.” After serving in an AIDS hospice, a youth ministry and at Saint Vincent DePaul in Sterling, Father Jamie was assigned to Our Lady Queen of Peace in July of 2004. “I found the Holy Spirit to be present at Our Lady Queen of Peace in a special way. It’s a wonderful and loving community, “ he said. This week, the church will bid the priest goodbye as he moves into the next phase of his vocation. He will fill some temporary assignments and then plans to teach theology to young people. “ I believe in my heart that the youth of today are good people. Sometimes, they make wrong choices and that lead to difficult situations for them. I want to assure them they are not bad people because of bad choices. I want to assure them of the love God has for them.”