consecrated_by previous_post predecessor successor consecration birth_place title article_title type see term birth_date ordination name church ordained_by
john roach none kenneth joseph povish michael joseph hoeppner september 2 , 1976 meppen , illinois bishop emeritus of crookston victor hermann balke
 bishop crookston september 2 , 1976 -- november 30 , 2007 29 september 1931 may 24 , 1958 victor herman balke roman catholic church william aloysius o'connor
victor hermann balke

victor hermann balke -lrb- september 29 , 1931 -rrb- is the former roman catholic bishop of crookston from 1976 -- 2007 .
born in meppen , illinois -lrb- in calhoun county -rrb- , his parents were elizabeth knese and bernard balke , sr. .
he attended st. joseph grade school in meppen as well as the monterey grade school , and graduated from hardin community high school in 1949 .
in september 1949 , he entered the seminary and was ordained a priest on may 24 , 1958 , by bishop william a. o'connor for the diocese of springfield in illinois .
following his ordination in springfield , balke served as assistant pastor at the cathedral of the immaculate conception for four years and was chaplain at st. joseph home for the aged .
later he was named procurator , and then rector of the diocesan seminary of the immaculate conception in springfield .
he served on the matrimonial tribunal as synodal judge and defender of the bond .
he was also the chairman of the diocesan commission on ecumenism and secretary-treasurer of the priests ' council .
he was appointed bishop of crookston by pope paul vi on july 3 , 1976 , and was consecrated the sixth bishop of that diocese on september 2 , 1976 .
after being the bishop of crookston for 31 years , and one day before his 76th birthday , pope benedict xvi appointed michael joseph hoeppner as the new bishop of crookston .
bishop balke remained at the helm of the diocese as apostolic administrator until bishop-elect hoeppner was installed on november 30 , 2007 .
