TKC!
Totally His

 
            I was born in Dayton, OH, on May 11 ^th, 1997.  My dad had just converted to Catholicism a few months before I was born, and my parents were looking for a group of Catholics as on fire as they were.  They soon met the Legionaries of Christ and the Regnum Christi movement through a group of friends, and immediately fell in love.  I ended up going to a Regnum Christi school in Cincinnati called Royalmont academy, from 2 ^nd grade through 8 ^th grade, and then to a private Catholic high school for 9 ^th grade. 
 
           I grew up in a big family—I’m the oldest of 10 kids—and that became for me the school of what it means not only to be Catholic, but also the basic virtues of being selfless and looking out for others.  My parents were great examples: they taught me the Faith, but they taught me even more (even when I wasn’t aware of it) by constantly putting themselves aside to take care of us kids.  I’m sure that without the solid foundation that I received from them, I would not have been able to answer the call.

            As I said previously, I went to a Regnum Christi school for 7 years.  It was here that I was introduced personally to the Legion.  They were always around the school.  Whether it was giving spiritual direction (during class, which we loved!) or going out to play football with us during recess, they made a huge impact on all of us students.  They were young, they were excited, they were…normal.  I had never met priests or brothers like them, with whom it was easy to talk and get along.  That said, the thought never crossed my mind that I could also one day be a Legionary…

            I stayed in contact with the Legion after I left Royalmont to go to high school, and the summer after my 9 ^th grade year attended camp at Sacred Heart Apostolic School, the Legion’s school in Indiana for boys discerning the priesthood.  I had never considered going there, but that week I experienced a powerful call from God that I needed to join the Legion.  Thanks be to God my parents supported me, and so in 10 ^th grade I left everything and joined Sacred Heart.  Since then, the conviction has stayed with me that this is the vocation to which God is calling me, and I’ve only become more and more grateful. 

            On September 2, 2017, I made my first profession of the Evangelical Counsels, to live in poverty, chastity, and obedience.  That was, in a sense, the definitive “Yes” to the question Christ asked me five years ago.  I still have a long journey to the priesthood, but I know and can be confident in the fact that I’m totally His, and following Him.