Kathi and John Hamlon

Kathi and John Hamlon were honored at the CANFP conference as 2002 recipients of the  Calegari Award. The Hamlons were personal friends of Fr. Calegari, so it is only fitting they should be honored with this award given in his name. Those attending the banquet were treated to wonderful glimpse of Fr. Calegari as the Hamlons shared some nostalgic memories of times spent together, and surely Fr. Marc was smiling down upon them as they shared as well a bit of the history of NFP in California, particularly Northern California.

Kathi and John were instrumental in bringing modern NFP to the Bay Area, founding and directing the first NFP program at St. Mary’s Hospital in San Francisco in 1975.  That same year, in collaboration with other NFP pioneers of the time, they put together the first NFP Clergy Days for the Archdiocese of San Francisco and a day for Seminarians. They took the message on the road, bringing the good news to the Santa Rosa and Sacramento Diocese as well.

Returning to John’s home state of Minnesota, they conducted NFP and marriage and family seminars and worked to promote NFP on a national and international level.  From 1980 to 1989, they co-edited the International Review, a scholarly, bioethical journal featuring articles and studies on human sexuality, NFP, contraception, abortion, euthanasia, and other ethical issues.  Together they have conducted numerous marriage preparation classes, NFP training classes, and NFP and marriage informational sessions for medical and other professional groups, college and high school students, clergy groups, and the general public.

John Hamlon was the associate director of the St. Ignatius Institute at the University of San Francisco for seven years. He has an MA in theology from USF and studied as a doctoral student at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. He’s the author of the book A Call to Families: A Commentary and Study Guide for Familiaris Consortio, as well as numerous articles on marriage, NFP, and sexuality.

Kathi Hamlon is presently fighting “artificial family planning” at the end of life. She is the public information and educational director for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide (ITF), an international network fighting for the right of patients to receive real care and compassion, not lethal prescriptions or injections.   In addition, she is the editor of the bi-monthly publication, ITF Update, and speaks on euthanasia, assisted suicide, and related end-of-life issues.

Though not professionally involved in NFP these days, we continue to benefit from their vast knowledge and experience, which they shared in a particular way as presenters at the 2001 CANFP Conference in San Francisco.