Meet Rob Ponce, Our New Communications Director: Transmitting the Important Message of Jesus Christ

Having been born and raised in a Pentecostal family, Rob Ponce learned the importance of prayer and service to others.

“I come from a large family dedicated to serving the Lord and our nation,” Rob says. “From pastors, musicians, and church choir singers to sailors, soldiers, and airmen — serving others is in my blood.”

After being married for nine years and raising two children in the Catholic faith, Rob began to feel drawn to Baptism and the beauty of the Catholic Church. He joined the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults class, and at the 2006 Easter Vigil, he was baptized, confirmed, and received the Holy Eucharist for the first time.

At 19, Rob joined the U.S. Navy and spent 20 years serving our nation. This was a great service and sacrifice that both Rob and his family made — however, it made getting involved in parish life a little difficult.

“One of my goals after retiring was to be an active member of my community,” Rob says. “I made a choice to get involved and just start somewhere.”

So, Rob started small. He got involved in Bible studies and various classes. Yet, he soon began expanding his involvement to teaching a class, serving as an RCIA sponsor, helping the Live Stream Team broadcast Sunday Mass, and serving as treasurer of the Knights of Columbus Council #5266.

“Now, I am truly blessed to have fulfilled a deep desire to serve my Church in a more direct way as the Communications Director,” Rob says. “And this is only the beginning.”

In this role, Rob’s most important task will be to share the truth that Jesus Christ is Lord with St. Francis Xavier parishioners and the wider community. Rob will be responsible for maintaining the parish website, keeping the parish social media sites up-to-date, creating the weekly bulletins, and undertaking various other communications-related tasks. These efforts will help him fulfill the parish mission of evangelization and proclaiming Christ to others.

“My hope is to be effective and purposeful in everything I do and to reach as many as I can in the hope that the message of Jesus Christ is heard and brings many to know Him,” Rob says. “My goal is to accomplish a deep desire of mine, which is to become a missionary disciple, and perhaps, through this position, I can continue to work towards this goal.”

Rob has a strong passion for missionary discipleship and believes that it comes from his upbringing in a faith-filled family.

“We didn’t have a lot of money growing up, but that wouldn’t stop my mother from helping someone in need,” he says. “I’m grateful for her great example.”

Rob is honored and truly blessed to have this opportunity to serve his parish family as the Communications Director, and he looks forward to the future with hope. However, he is also thankful that he is not alone.

“We are a parish,” Rob says. “We are One Body in Christ. We receive the Source and Summit of our faith through the Holy Eucharist and are blessed with the necessary graces to transmit the most important message of Jesus Christ.”

Rob Ponce with his wife, Maggie