JJ Nazzaro - FOCUS

JJ and Jordan Nazzaro

Hello! I’m JJ, a Parish Missionary with FOCUS.

Where I serve

God has called me, my wife and three children, Zelie, Joseph and coming soon – baby brother, to serve the parish of St. Mary in Spokane Valley!

My Story

Jesus has been pursuing me beginning with Sunday school at a Baptist church during daycare, to my time at NBC basketball camps and in other Christian sports ministries, and throughout my high school years attending Foursquare church in Puyallup, WA. Throughout these experiences, I encountered a God who was the answer to all of life’s biggest questions, a Divine Friend who dispelled the loneliness of life, and I made promises to this God to serve Him the rest of my life and give everything to make Him known.

During college, I went through seasons of living for God mixed with times of pursuing worldly pleasure and searching for fulfillment in things that left me empty. After college, my career goals came crashing down and several other griefs followed including the loss of my father to cancer. Out of the depths, I came broken and empty back to The Lord.

My journey back to God led me to the Catholic Church which I entered on the Easter Vigil of 2018. During that process, I met my beautiful bride and we discerned to move to Spokane, WA to start a life together. In Spokane, Jordan has been serving as a mental health counselor, while I have served as a youth minister. In the fall of 2024 we felt the call to give our lives more fully to the mission of evangelization by joining FOCUS.

Jesus has already shown me how good He is and I’m ready to experience even more as we enter this new season. God has orchestrated every moment of this journey for my family and we are excited to continue to say yes to whatever God gives us, especially here at St. Mary in the Diocese of Spokane.

Your Impact

Saying yes to God’s call to join FOCUS includes inviting generous people to join me in this mission through financial support. This is an opportunity to invest in the mission to reach the entire world with the salvation of Jesus Christ, especially in the Diocese of Spokane. Please pray that God would stir up hearts to respond to His never-ending love for them. May God bless you in your own efforts to change the world.

Find other missionaries

FOCUS brings the joy of the Gospel to colleges and parishes across the United States (and beyond)!

GET STARTED

FOCUS Find A Missionary Know Love Serve God Monstrance

Know, Love and Serve God

We encounter God in an intimate relationship through daily prayer, the sacraments and the Scriptures.

Build Virtuous Friendships

By building genuine friendships, we meet students on a deeper level.

FOCUS Find A Missionary Teach Others Share Christ Smiling

Teach Others to Share Christ

We teach students how to share the gospel, who in turn teach other students how to pass it on.

Host	Retreat Type	Start Date	End Date
Tulane University	Way of the Disciple	09/05/24	09/07/24
University of Nebraska Lincoln	The Sanctifier	09/13/24	09/15/24
Parish Outreach	The Father’s House	09/16/24	09/18/24
Kansas State University	The Father’s House	09/20/24	09/22/24
University of Delaware	Rec	09/20/24	09/22/24
University of South Carolina – Columbia	Rec	09/27/24	09/29/24
St. Francis University	The Father’s House	10/04/24	10/06/24
Nicholls State University	The Father’s House	10/04/24	10/06/24
Northwestern State University	The Father’s House	10/11/24	10/13/24
University of Memphis	The Father’s House	10/11/24	10/13/24
Southern Illinois University – Edwardsville	The Father’s House	10/18/24	10/20/24
Ohio State University	The Father’s House	10/18/24	10/20/24
University of Dallas	The Sanctifier	10/24/24	10/26/24
Central Connecticut State University	The Father’s House	10/25/24	10/27/24
Universidad de Monterrey	The Father’s House	10/25/24	10/27/24
California State University – Fullerton	The Father’s House	10/25/24	10/27/24
Sts. Anne and Joaquim, Fargo, ND	Way of the Disciple	11/01/24	11/03/24
University of Krems	Men’s	11/01/24	11/03/24
University of Mary	The Father’s House	11/08/24	11/10/24
DePauw University	Rec	11/08/24	11/10/24
Philanthropy Engagement	Way of the Disciple	11/15/24	11/17/24
University of Passau	Rec	11/21/24	11/23/24
Texas A&M University	The Sanctifier	02/07/25	02/09/25
FOCUS Greek Southeast	The Father’s House	02/14/25	02/16/25
FOCUS Greek Midwest	The Father’s House	02/14/25	02/16/25
Worcester Polytechnic Institute	The Sanctifier	02/14/25	02/16/25
FOCUS Greek Southwest	The Father’s House	02/21/25	02/23/25
Wayne State University	The Father’s House	02/21/25	02/23/25
University of Illinois-Chicago	The Sanctifier	02/21/25	02/23/25
Queens College of the City University of New York	The Father’s House	03/07/25	03/09/25
Nicholls State University	Way of the Disciple	03/07/25	03/09/25
Grand Valley State University	The Father’s House	03/28/25	03/30/25
University of Northern Iowa	Way of the Disciple	04/03/25	04/05/25
University of Nebraska Lincoln	The Father’s House	04/04/25	04/06/25
Arizona State University	Men’s	02/07/25	02/09/25
University of Nebraska at Kearney	Rec	09/27/24	09/29/24