Q: Tell us a little about yourself.  
A: I grew up in the small hills of Avocado Heights, riding my bicycle in the San Gabriel river bed and San Jose creek.   Realizing that I have always enjoyed the tranquility that mother nature provides, through green trees and large grassy areas, I attended Whittier College.  I am the eldest of four siblings, and the only male, which makes for wonderful stories.  This has given me a chance to visit more of mother natures beauty, I have a Dartmouth College alumn, a UC Santa Cruz alumn, and a TBD little sister.  As you gathered I enjoy, hikes and walks in the peaceful surroundings.  I also enjoy listening to live music, whether it be Jazz or your local high school band, I find it very relaxing.

Q: Why and /or when did you feel that this was your calling?
A: For many years, I have found enjoyment in the enrichment and empowerment of young people.  Over the last few years I noticed the joy in being a servant leader and realized that sharing your faith through action can yield larger results, in community building and faith formation.  We all have gifts, and sometimes we just need to be reminded to embrace those gifts.

Q:  What interested you in St. Luke the Evangelist?
A: I was invited to visit the parish by a good friend of mine.   Upon my visit I recognized that there is a great amount of talent among the young people.  When I heard that there was an opening, I felt it would be a great opportunity to help foster and bring forward those talents.

Q: What do you hope to bring to our Life Teen and Confirmation programs?
A:  A different medium to re-ignite God’s love that exists within each and every one of us, along with the opportunities to take the lead role in evangelization and faith formation.   I believe that every person has the capacity to accomplish great things, through true servant leadership.   There is a humble desire to lead in everyone, just as Jesus lead by action.

Q: What can our teens look forward to with the coming year of confirmation and Life Teen?
A:  This coming year is a time for observations. During the year we will look at different ways to improve an already great program, of course with the great insight from the teens themselves, our dedicated volunteers and the parish community.

Q: What experience do you have with both programs?
A: With many years working with confirmation programs, I understand that youth and volunteer insight is crucial.  This allows an existing program an opportunity to be enhanced by using alternative presentation methods that may engage the youth to better understand their spirituality.   Having been actively involved with youth ministry programs, both Life Teen and comprehensive youth models, as a team we will be evaluating the existing program and the needs of the parish to ensure we have the right program in place.  Setting a strong foundation, no matter how small, is fundamentally important for the success of any program.