| In June, I am going to move on to the next part of my life. I will have to find a job, grow up, pay bills, etc. However, that all seems like a smaller deal to the other task I am faced with: Finding a church and community where I am so welcomed and everyone is so giving and generous. I have never felt unwelcomed at St. T’s. Whenever I step into the church, I feel like I am part of the community. I may know only one or two community members at the mass; however, I am greeted with smiles and always leave knowing a few more. Being a part of the St. T’s community has made me want to be a better Christian and person overall. They are so giving and kind that I can’t help but want to make a difference too. The community members are so involved with service projects, donating to charities, and are always excited to interact with the college students. St. T’s offers many activities to us are so much fun and are a great way for the college students to meet the community members. I have so many memories throughout the years and I am sad to leave a great community. I am sure I will find a church that will make me feel welcomed and of course I will be able to be a part of a new community, but St. Teresa’s will always be special. I will remember how I grew as a Catholic and as a person the last four years, and I am so grateful to Father Kevin and the rest of the St. Teresa’s community. They truly live the lives of Christians and set a great example for the young adults. |  | The p ast four years of my life have been filled with classes, homework, clubs, meetings and occasionally some free time. Initially when it came to transitioning to college, I had never even thought about whether or not I would go to church, let alone become part of such a great community. When I first came to St. T’s the people, the music and everything else that went with it overwhelmed me. Father Kevin was so upbeat and outgoing compared to my home church that I wondered if I was even at a church. I eventually came to like the 9pm mass and started getting more involved. I became a part of a great adopt a student family, who allowed me to really have a home away from home. I helped out with Café Manna, played Euchre, went on the Fall Retreat and even helped with Vacation Bible School. My favorite crazy event was the amazing race; even if it meant running into cars and getting locked out of them! The best part that no matter which mass I decided to attend, I was welcomed by a smiling face and friendly hello. Over the past four years, St. T’s has really allowed me to have a place to grow spiritually, mentally, socially and truly become a part of something bigger than me. I was encouraged to try new things and reach out to others and I want to thank the entire community of St. T’s for being there with me and encouraging me to carry on. | | | Valparaiso University Senior Reflections on St. Teresa's
| | The other day I was sitting down reading about loan repayment, and it hit me: I’m graduating. From college. I’m actually facing that part of my life I’ve been thinking of for years, the one where I start to get alumni newsletters in the mail. It almost doesn’t seem real to me, and it certa inly doesn’t seem like four years has gone by. But I have a theory, and I think that my being a part of St. Teresa’s has something to do with it. My theory is that, like the time that flies when you’re having fun, time flies even faster when you’re a part of something big. And I believe that’s really what St. T’s is. But, you say, it’s only a renovated CVS and a bunch of college kids and Valpo community members. We don’t even have a bowling team. But every time I walk into the sanctuary of the church, no matter which mass, I instantly feel like I can talk to anyone I meet. I can go down to the kitchen, where I know Patty will be cooking up something delicious, or down the hall to the office where Christine and Kathy will always give me a smile, or out to the Greenhouse where some friends will be hanging out. We may not be a big community, but we are a group of people dedicated to living by serving others, and by trying to live out the Gospel, which is something a whole lot bigger. I know it sounds strange, but you don’t see that a lot in churches these days. People who legitimately are open-hearted, who want to be part of something—Café Manna, New Orleans reconstruction, a simple prayer group—and are passionate about it. It gives a certain draw to it, like perhaps if you got involved, too, you’d be a better person. And I know that after four years there, I am a better person. Thank you for being a committed community, and for four really swell—and really fleeting—years. God bless you all.
| | | I first got involved with St. T’s because I couldn’t read a form correctly. I went on the Kairos retreat freshman year of college, and it took me two whole hours to realize that I was on a Catholic retreat. This freaked me out a little, because as a Lutheran I believed all Catholics wore garlic crosses around their necks to scare away vampires. Okay, maybe not, but it was pretty similar. However, the people that I met on that retreat—the St. T’s staff and the students—convinced me pretty quickly that I was right where I needed to be, and that I would stay with this church until I left Indiana. This community is so welcoming that I just couldn’t say no to them. I started going to 9PM Mass every week, eager to see all my new friends and hear thought-provoking homilies from Fr. Kevin. I became a part of a Women’s Prayer Group, which gave me an hour of sanity in an otherwise stressful week, and time to re-center on God. It was so easy to become a part of the church that it seemed like I had always been a member of it, which I think is one of the best and most important features of the church—in general—today. I jumped when I heard that St. T’s went annually on a mission trip, and was very grateful that I could serve at a few Café Manna dinners; activism, another important part of the church, is at work here as well. I couldn’t have asked for a better or more committed community for which to stretch myself, mentally, socially, and spiritually; I think you’ve all challenged me to be a better person by being better people, and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart. God bless you all. | |  St. Teresa wrote, “May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.” Over the past few years, I have found that St. T’s parish embodies this blessing. The people that I have met at Café Mana, mass and student ministry activities generously give of themselves. I have seen members constantly volunteer with setting up for Café Mana, cooking for the Sunday night mass, and putting together events for the community and students. Their service and strong faith has inspired me to want to be a part of St. T’s. I first discovered St. T’s during the middle of my sophomore year. Before then, I had visited several Lutheran churches in Valpo and explored the services and programs at VU’s chapel. I loved going to the chapel’s peaceful candlelight services, but I felt that a part of my faith life was missing. My high school had a very strong ministry department and I was hoping to find a similar faith community in Valpo. So sophomore year when a friend highly encouraged me to go to the 9pm mass one Sunday, I decided to join her. Since then, St. T’s has become a family away from home for me. I felt a connection right away with parishioners’ enthusiasm and openness. I also was amazed by all of the service and fellowship opportunities. My favorite experience at St. T’s has been through Kairos. The support of St. T’s through sponsoring retreatants, making snacks, and writing letters was touching. These contributions enabled the group I led and the other retreatants to reconnect with God. Recently I applied for Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest with the encouragement of Father Kevin. I hope that where ever I am placed, I can inspire and pass on the love that has been given to me by the members of St. T’s.  Four years at St. Teresa’s has provided me with more experiences that have impacted my life than I ever anticipated. I knew I wanted to be involved with the church from the beginning and I was drawn to the unique student-community relationship that I had never witnessed before coming here. There were many times when coursework and other commitments seemed to consume my thoughts and my life, but St. T’s and its members always stood there for me, beckoning for me to come and give it all up to God. The Habitat for Humanity spring break trips, Euchre tournaments, Café Manna, and Amazing Races have all shown me the spirit and love of Christ through others- community members, students, and all those we have served. It is not as if one moment drastically impacted me, but rather the steadfast support of all those involved at St. T’s. It is difficult to describe the smile that always comes across my face as I enter into the church or community center. It is as if I feel the love of God coming from the spirit of the center, and it instills in me a desire to spread and share it with everyone I know. Every time I have brought a friend with me to a service, they have commented on how “cool” the center is and I can only smile and respond with, “I know!” You can describe it with as many words as you can think of, but only truly understand it when you have witnessed the spirit of the community personally. I will truly miss St. Teresa’s when I graduate from Valpo. Thank you to every member that has made St. T’s into what it is. I pray that I find a new community in Boston where I feel the love of God as I do here!
I was familiar with St. Teresa’s prior to my arrival at Valparaiso University, since older siblings had attended this school. St. Teresa’s was one of the aspects of Valpo that I was looking forward to the most. St. Teresa’s is a vibrant community, and Fr. Kevin is very passionate about what he does. St. Teresa’s has affirmed me in my conviction that Catholicism is more than abstract theology studied in an academic setting. Rather, it is a way of life. One of my favorite memories was the Habitat trips during the last four spring breaks. These trips enable me to put Christ’s call to serve others into practice, while spending quality time with fellow college students. The Kairos retreat offers the opportunity to reflect on how to grow closer to God, while enhancing friendships with others. Also, the Busy Students Retreat gave me the opportunity to seek individual guidance on growing deeper in my faith. Finally, there were many other spiritual, service, and social events that are fond memories.
Some of the most satisfying moments that I experienced at St. Teresa’s were the moments where I was in a leadership role, and I had the chance to give to others what I had received from St. Teresa’s previously. This was the case when I was on the team for the Kairos and Fall Retreats, and also when I was on Student Commission, the student leadership team.
I will be moving out to the South Bend area shortly. There, I plan on being just as involved in my faith as I was here, bringing the presence of Christ to others. | |
