You know some of the best stories and strongest vocations come from our beloved Catholic mission on this Hill Pope Francis would describe our work at KU as forming 'missionary disciples!' It's a term he coined in his first encyclical, 'The Joy of the Gospel.' The pope ' s vision for our Church is that there will only be one kind of Catholic, a Catholic who is simultaneously imitating Jesus Christ AND playing a critical role in His redemptive mission. There can be no such thing as a missionary who is not a disciple, and vice versa
Missionary Discipleship is our red dot hot button issue for the Center this year, the thing we most want and have to get right. It's also a critical metric that our Catholic mission has 250 students who are not only growing in faith but also playing a critical role in the St. Lawrence mission.
In these pages, I hope you will see St Lawrence's answer to what's in the heart of our Holy Father Maybe we can get Pope Francis to come visit, to see how we do it at KU!
We can't do it without you Thanks for supporting us!
+mj Fr Mitchel Zimmerman Director and Chaplain
“Hi, friends! My name is Madison Abbott. I was born and raised in Oklahoma. I graduated from Benedictine College with degrees in Theology and Evangelization Following undergrad, I studied scripture at the Augustine Institute in Denver, CO While I loved the mountains, it is a tremendous gift to be back in the midwest where life runs at a slower pace. I’m so excited to help form our students and journey with them as we seek to live integrated lives towards the Kingdom!”
Hello! My name is Jesse Henkensiefken and I am the new Director of Sacred Music here at the St Lawrence Center I am originally from Kansas and am a KU alumnus I am thrilled to be back working in the city that was integral in developing me As a cellist and conductor, I cant wait to integrate and collaborate with the St Lawrence staff and student body Outside of work, I enjoy pretty much anything on the tennis court, including coaching my 8 year old daughter My wife is also a musician, and I love traveling as a family, meeting new friends, and bringing people together through music Its a great honor to be part of the SLC Family
“Hey, I'm Brenna I was born and raised in Kansas and even graduated from the University of Kansas in 2021 with a degree in Strategic Communications I spent the last year working as a missionary with The Culture Project in Cleveland, OH speaking to young people about the life and love that they were made for. I am over the moon excited to be back at the St. Lawrence Center in a role where I get to invite new students into the KU Catholic Community When I'm not rooting for the Jayhawks, you can usually find me spending time with friends, drinking craft beer or reading a good book. It's good to be home!”
“Hi, I'm Alli I'm married to my husband Sam and we have two boys Calvin (4) and Kolbe (10 months) I grew up in a small town south of St Louis where Friday night football was the main attraction I moved from one small town to another and attended Benedictine College in Atchison, KS. There I played volleyball and studied Evangelization and Catechesis. I have been a youth minister for 6 years in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas I am passionate about creating opportunities for young people to encounter Jesus and an authentic community. I am grateful to be on mission at the St. Lawrence Center. I can't wait to meet you and share stories”
“Hey everyone, Sarah Wessel FOCUS team director here! We are so excited to have our FOCUS team back in town and are ready to encounter as many students as the Lord will allow us. We are hoping and expecting to witness miracles in the lives of many students this year Rock Chalk Jayhawk!!!”
FOCUS Team: Ethan Caligur, Kellie Flemming, Erin Kasprowicz, Sarah Wessel and Sean Clennan
Pictured: Newman House on the left and Fiat House on the right
As students embark on a new school year, moving into the dorms on Daisy Hill at The University of Kansas and into housing around the Lawrence community, temperatures flare, and so can the many emotions that students face as the new school year begins
The St Lawrence Center at KU has worked to change the way that students nurture their spiritual, mental, and emotional health by bringing in Lizzy Hollwedel, a licensed professional counselor and owner of Lux Counseling LLC Hollwedel is a practicing Catholic in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and serves clients at both Corporate Woods in Overland Park, KS, and at the St Lawrence Center She earned her bachelor’s degree from Benedictine College and her master's degree from Emporia State University
Hollwedel became interested in helping people after taking a gap year following high school and served for six months at an orphanage in Zambia, Africa She saw firsthand how PTSD, anxiety, and trauma impacted the lives of the children at the orphanage and used that as her catalyst in becoming a therapist
I saw these sweet children’s intense anxiety, sadness, intrusive thoughts, fear, nightmares and many other difficult symptoms, Hollwedel said. “I was their friend and mentor for 6 months but knew that I had not done enough Upon returning to the US, I was determined to learn the skills to help people heal from mental health struggles they had, such as PTSD and anxiety”
Over the course of the last year, Hollwedel has been able to serve 50 KU students This partnership has been successful due to the trusting environment that St Lawrence offers students
“Lizzy realizes the importance of human formation, and for a person to be healthy they need to be able to explore thoughts, feelings, and desires in harmony to relate well to God and others, Fr. Mitchel Zimmerman, Director of the St Lawrence Center, said It is critical that we offer what we can for their health, and our partnership with a counselor is a great step in that direction Lizzy knows that only in respecting the whole person, body and spirit, can one arrive at the fullness of life.
While many students are currently in spiritual mentorship with staff members at the St Lawrence Center, counseling has been able to tend to the emotional and mental health that spiritual direction doesn’t always cover
Stacy Cretors, the Discernment Director at the St. Lawrence Center is currently enrolled and studying to become a certified Spiritual Director through Divine Mercy University in Sterling, Virginia Her training and time spent as a spiritual mentor has been enlightening in seeing how these offerings are different but work in harmony
“Spiritual direction isn’t going to fix all of our problems,” Cretors said “The goal is to help us develop our relationship with God, but if there are things getting in the way of that happening sometimes a spiritual director can invite a student to look at counseling as an option to help them get rid of or eliminate the things in their lives that spiritual direction alone can’t do”
Some clients see Hollwedel for as little as one session to learn strategies and implement them, sometimes for a couple of months, and sometimes for monthly check ins that happen for years Regardless of frequency, therapy can offer a safe place to work through what is taking peace and joy
Regardless of what a client’s care plan might look like, Hollwedel believes that God wants us to take care of ourselves and therapy is one of the many ways that we can do that” To inquire about working with Hollwedel, visit her website, luxcounselingllccom
*Pull Quote the Bold Section
M E N T A L H E A L T H
Every year, the St Lawrence Center staff discerns our 'red dot' the rallying cry of where God is leading us in the new academic year. Our red dot for 2022 23 is Missionary Discipleship We sense God inviting us to empower and Reflection By: Nick Labrie, Director of Missionary Discipleship
equip students to reach their peers with the gospel through authentic friendship and good conversation
As a staff, we can provide spaces for students to gather and host high quality transformative events, but our reach is naturally limited. Empowering students to go out on mission multiplies the reach of our church
U T R E A C H
We realized that the first step in building a culture of missionary discipleship was to define our terms If we asked twelve students to define 'missionary discipleship we knew we'd hear some common threads, but ultimately get twelve different answers. We define a missionary disciple as, " one who aims to be with Jesus, become like Jesus, and ultimately do the things that Jesus did."
When we talk about missionary discipleship, it starts with the foundation of a deep spiritual life for the students, learning to abide in Jesus We believe the first step in missionary discipleship is to form students in a deep and intimate personal and liturgical prayer life.
Neighboring: In imitation of Jesus, students are entering into intentional relationship with those God brings into their life through their classes, work, and living situations
Eating & Drinking: Jesus spent so much time eating and drinking with his disciples and those far from God that he was called a glutton and a drunkard (Mt 11:19) We are seeing students coming to view their dorms, apartments, and homes not as places to retreat from the world, but as places of refuge for the world, gathering around their tables
Asking Questions & Telling Stories: Yes, Jesus had moments where he taught the faith in a didactic way, but often he shared faith through asking good questions and capturing hearts through stories By learning the art of conversation, students are engaging their peers in deep and meaningful discussion.
Secondly, we want to help students to become like Jesus We explore the heart, mind, and lifestyle of Jesus We want to love like Him, think like Him, and learn to live a full, vibrant, and free life from Him.
The ultimate goal of missionary discipleship is to "Go and make disciples" (Mt 28:19) But how do we do that?
As we look at the example of Jesus, we see four particular ways in which Jesus did ministry that we felt the Lord inviting us to focus on with our students:
Invitation: Jesus' invitations ranged from "Come have breakfast" (Jn 21:12) to "take up your cross " (Mt 16:24) For students, oftentimes, the right invitation is, "Hey, why don't you come over for dinner?" Or "Let's go grab a cup of coffee" and that opens the door to having a good conversation From there, we are seeing students invite students to St Lawrence events, Mass, and even RCIA!
Thank you for your prayers and support as we continue to form and send students on mission This would not be happening without you!
M I S S I O N A R Y D I S C I P L E S
In my time at the SLC, I was able to be involved in several Bible studies, the Koinonia retreats, Sacred Music, and lots of different events and trips through FOCUS and GoodCo Daily Mass and prayer in the chapel were staples for me, and I loved attending classes and seminars at the SLC each week
The SLC was like an anchor for me in college keeping me close to Jesus and helping me to stay grounded in my Faith I was able to truly find my home in the Church through the doors that God opened for me at St Lawrence, and that influenced my whole college experience for the better I met so many incredible people through SLC, and God blessed me with truly Christ centered friendships that continue to be a great blessing for me
I will be forever grateful for the gift of having received the call to my vocation while at St Lawrence In His perfect timing, Jesus gave me the invitation to belong totally to Him in religious life once I had opened my heart to Him in prayer and in the Sacraments The SLC was the place where I learned to pray and where I fell in love with the Lord Praying before Him in the Eucharist gave me the space to listen to His invitation and let Him speak to my heart, and ultimately to give me the invitation to live my vocation as a Sister of Life
Once I received the invitation from the Lord to consider giving Him everything in religious life, there was a big question in my heart as to where I could make this gift My spiritual director encouraged me to pray about what moves my heart most deeply and to ask the Lord where He was leading me I found that as I prayed about this question, my heart was pierced in a particular way as I realized the effects of the culture of death I was involved in the humble pro life groups on campus, and I went to pray outside of the abortion clinic in Overland Park as many Saturdays as I could but even with those activities, there was still always an interior ache that was urging me to give more of myself to protect the most vulnerable As I continued praying and discerning, I learned about the Sisters of Life, and I got in contact with the Vocations Director through a FOCUS conference As I got to know the Sisters, I felt like the unique charism that God stitched into my heart when He created me simply matched with the Charism of Life
Professing my vows was an incredible gift, and I feel so blessed to have made my vows to the Lord alongside the six other Sisters who entered the convent with me and on the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary! To belong totally to Christ is the greatest gift I ve received, and I m excited to begin the journey of professed life
What would you say to someone who is in the discernment process?
Be not afraid! God is faithful, and He will lead you in each step of the journey During my time of discernment, Mass, prayer, and the Sacraments were essential It was also a huge help to be in conversation with my Spiritual Director and the Vocations Director for my Community
Sr Miriam Bethel Sisters of Life on the day of ProfessionFALL 2022 COTH WEDDINGS
Kristin (Haeusser) and Grayson Johnson April 22, 2022
Sarah (Dean) and Julian Garfield May 28, 2022
Alex Fesi and Katie (Antonacci) June 11, 2022
Erin (Scanlan) and Jacob Falbo June 25, 2022
Andrew Poehling and Leah Buck July 2, 2022
Caleb Book and Emma (Freeman) July 9, 2022
Jordan (Schartz) and Matthew Dolechek July 23, 2022
Molly (Hackett) and Austin McKeithan October 8, 2022
Mateo Anderson and Emily (Vitt) October 8, 2022
FALL 2022 COTH BIRTHS/BAPTISMS
Kate Schiedermayer of Erin (Hastings) and Daniel Schiedermayer born March 27, 2022
Jay Robert Waldenmeyer of Mary (Contrary) and Jake Waldenmeyer born May 26, 2022
Francis Nolan Warn of Alex and Emily (Prowant) Born May 30, 2022
Joseph Anthony Krause of Mary Kate (Danaher) and Austin Krause baptized June 24, 2022
Cecilia Rose Hampton Connor Hampton and Faith (Biermann) baptized June 5, 2022
George Russell Arends of Tylar (Lock) and Pete Arends born July 2, 2022
Emilia Therese Hill of Meghan (McCoy) and Aidan Hill July 9, 2022
Sullivan Joseph Haeusser of Kyle and Brigitte born July 22, 2022
James Michael Joseph Skoch Kelsy (Bob) and John Mark Skoch Born August 10, 2022
Lauren Elizabeth Walters of Katie and Chris born August 15, 2022
Mary Elizabeth Dill of Mike and Grace (DelNero) born August 22 2022
Ezra Luke McMahon of Adelle (Loney) and Lee McMahon born August 23, 2022
Bernadette Louise Quayle of Mary (Tuttle) and Tim Quayle baptized August 28, 2022
Join Paul and Mary Thompson for the Divine Winefest at Fiorella's in Overland Park!
2022
Fr Mitchel Zimmerman
Dan Morris
Cretors
McKeithan
Labrie
Flood
Abbott
Henkensiefken
Mark Wertin
Alli
Wessel, FOCUS
Clennan, FOCUS
Kasprowicz, FOCUS
Flemming, FOCUS
Caligur, FOCUS