Formation Stage

Configuration Stage I

Home Parish

St. Joachim, Costa Mesa

Seminary

Mount Angel Seminary

Favorite Saint(s)

My favorite saints are St. Jude, St. Benedict, St. John of Damascus, and St. John the Dwarf!

Favorite Marian Apparition(s)

Favorite Marian Apparition is Our Lady of Beauraing / Favorite Devotion is the Chaplet of St. Jude.

Favorite Book or Movie

My favorite books are The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton and The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene. My favorite movies are Whiplash, Tenet, and Pursuit of Happyness.

Favorite Hobby

I love skateboarding, swimming, running, and playing volleyball!

Background

What are some of the factors that led to your decision to enter the seminary and discern the question of a vocation to the priesthood?

I remember one of the first moments that planted a seed in me was a dream that I had when I was around 6. In this dream, I was standing behind the altar celebrating Mass, but the most important part at the time was that I was young and had a full head of hair, and this is important because all of the priests that I knew at the time were old and bald!

Who are some of the people who influenced your decision to enter the seminary? What is it about them that assisted you?

Some of the people that influenced me were my own father. Under God our perfect father and St. Joseph, another role model of a great father, my own dad has shown me what it means to be a loving father, a strong provider, and an overall gift of oneself towards others, especially in times of need. Another person that influenced me as well was my former youth minister, Laura Schuberg. At St. Edward the Confessor, she became another influence in my life as another face of Christ, shepherding all of the confirmation and youth teens with such a love for the Lord’s ministry.

Describe the moment that you knew you wanted to take the next steps to become a priest?

After hearing the Lord speaking to me and saying, “Give yourself up to me and I will heal you”, following it with the sudden and miraculous overnight healing of my heart condition of Severe Aortic Stenosis, I knew at the age of 9 that I was called to give myself up to the Lord and serve Him in whatever capacity He is asking of me