I’m currently serving my third year of Mission at the University of Missouri (Mizzou) to serve as a missionary with the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS)! Serving at Mizzou I get the opportunity to walk with students in their relationship with Christ. FOCUS missionaries played a huge role in my faith journey at Iowa State, and I’m excited to have this opportunity to intentionally invest back in the lives of other college students to help them come to know the love of Jesus and how much he is pursuing our hearts each and every day! 

Please keep me and this mission in your prayers and go tigers !!  🐯

My journey with FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) began during my time in college at Iowa State. At first, I didn’t fully understand what it meant to live out my faith in a deep, personal way. I grew up with a general sense of faith, but something was missing. That all changed when I became involved with the ministry.

Kate, a FOCUS missionary, played a pivotal role in my transformation. She didn’t just teach me about the faith—she invited me into a relationship with Christ that went beyond surface-level belief. Through her guidance, I learned what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ. She helped me grow in my prayer life, in fellowship with others, and in understanding the beauty of the sacraments. The teachings of the Church came alive in ways I hadn’t experienced before.

But the real spark came when Kate invited me into discipleship. It was through that invitation that my relationship with Christ began to flourish. My heart burned with a new passion for living out my faith authentically. I felt called not only to deepen my own relationship with God but to share that fire with others.

That’s when Kate asked me to start leading a Bible study. It was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life. I walked alongside my peers, helping them grow in their relationship with Christ, and I witnessed firsthand the transformation that comes from opening one’s heart to God. Watching my friends fall in love with the Lord was nothing short of a miracle. I realized that by sharing my faith, I was helping to ignite that same passion in others, and that was a gift I could never take for granted.

When my senior year approached, I faced a pivotal decision: should I pursue grad school or take a leap of faith and join FOCUS as a missionary? I prayed for clarity, and in my heart, I felt a deep calling from the Lord. It was clear that He wanted me to continue this mission of bringing souls to Christ, and so I chose to step into the unknown, trusting that He would lead the way.

Becoming a FOCUS missionary has been nothing short of life-changing. It’s not just a job or a career path—it’s a way of life, a commitment to serve God and others. Every day I get to walk alongside students, sharing the Gospel and witnessing firsthand the life-changing power of God’s love. The mission of FOCUS has deepened my own faith even further, and I am constantly amazed by the ways God uses this ministry to transform hearts.

We can’t carry out this mission alone. As FOCUS Missionaries, we invite others to join us in this mission through both prayer and financial support. Curtis Martin, the founder of FOCUS, had the privilege of meeting Pope John Paul II when he was first starting the organization. The Holy Father’s advice was simple but powerful: “Be soldiers.”

As FOCUS missionaries, we serve on the front lines of college campuses, but every soldier in the field relies on the support from those back home. This is why we turn to Mission Partners—so we can carry out this mission of evangelization together.

Thank you so much for your time and consideration. If you’d like to learn more about how you can join me in this mission, please don’t hesitate to reach out at 515-418-3385 or email me at [email protected].