Katie and I met during our time as FOCUS missionaries. She served at Auburn and Belmont Abbey and I served at Vanderbilt in Nashville. I was won over by her the moment we danced together. After we both spent three years on campus we finished up our tenure with FOCUS. Or so we thought.

 We married in New Orleans in the fall of 2016 and started our lives together with a desire to live a full family life. God blessed us with two sweet girls, Ellie and Lucy. Katie spent 4 years teaching Religion at an all girls high school and I worked in sales for a beer distributor in the New Orleans area. God provided a good home and a stable living for our little family.

In the spring of 2022 we were expecting our third child, a baby boy named Andre. For reasons that are beyond our understanding, Andre passed away. As we grieved we also received the grace to respond to God in new ways. Katie answered a call to serve and guide young people by becoming a certified spiritual director. I began to discern the possibility of changing jobs to better provide for my family, not just financially but spiritually and emotionally. When the chance to serve FOCUS in the Philanthropy Engagement Office became a possibility it was clear to me that God was welcoming our family deeper into mission.

Katie and I are excited to introduce our girls to the joys of missionary life. Even more, it’s an honor to welcome those around us to join our family’s story of renewal and our mission to make disciples of Jesus.