“It was one of the best weeks of my life and changed my faith in ways I could have never imagined,” declared Ryan Eilermann, a junior at Chaminade College Preparatory School in St. Louis.

“LIFE helped strengthen my faith,” noted Natalya Garcia, a senior at Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School in Dayton, OH.

“I truly believe I am where I am today because of LIFE,” stated Theresa Mayorga, a participant in 2019 and auxiliary moderator in 2025.

What exactly is this LIFE (Living In Faith Experience) that warrants such passionate reviews from teenagers and young adults? It’s a Marianist summer program, a faith-formation experience for high school students and moderators.

This summer, 151 students from 17 Marianist schools in the U.S. Province, two from the Province of Meribah, St. Laurence College in Ireland, and two non-Marianist institutions, along with 61 adults, attended one of two Summer LIFE opportunities. One was held in June in Occidental, CA, and the other in Dayton, OH, in July.

DeDe Barth has participated in 15 Summer LIFE programs, formerly as a moderator and now as the national coordinator, and continues to be amazed. “Every time I am in awe of the community built during our time at LIFE and the impact it continues to have on our faith journeys for the rest of our lives,” she said.

“My LIFE experience truly shaped the direction of my life. At LIFE, I first learned about the Marianist Leadership Program (MLP) at St. Mary’s University, which I later applied for and joined. I never would have chosen St. Mary’s without MLP. There, I learned about Marianist PULSE, a year of service program that I just completed this past year,” shared Mayorga. It’s what prompted her to pursue being a physician assistant caring for underserved populations.

The takeaways of Summer LIFE may be different for each participant. Eilermann said the impression for him was “realizing that my faith will grow by helping others grow in their own.” Garcia revealed the keynote for her was “we have to learn how to trust people and help others.”

Everyone involved agrees that it is a life-changing encounter and one they encourage everyone to experience.

“It ignited my faith. I can never replicate what I felt, but I can share it. If I were able, I would make it a required trip. Jesus moved through the trees there, and I could feel it; therefore, finding myself compelled to tell anyone who listens what I experienced that week,” exclaimed Eilermann.

“One thing I want to share with my school is that if you have the opportunity to attend LIFE, do it because it will change your life,” said Garcia.

“Serving as an auxiliary moderator reminded me of how God moved in my life through LIFE and how he would continue to move through the lives of all the students who spend a piece of their summer at LIFE,” noted Mayorga.

Blessed was the theme for this year’s program, inspired by the song “I’m so Blessed“ by Cain. The program was blessed by the following vowed Marianists who shared their time, talents and presence: Fr. Bob Jones, Fr. Peter Heiskell, Bro. Brandon Alana, Bro. Chicago Schuller, and Bro. Peter Sennert. Novice Paul Pruski also served on the coordinating team.

Chaminade University Announces New Board of Regents

Chaminade University of Honolulu has appointed two respected Hawai‘i business leaders to its Board of Regents, strengthening the university’s mission-driven leadership as it celebrates its 70th year of educating students. The two new members are David Oyadomari and Kristine Stebbins.

Oyadomari is the founder and managing director of Ekklesia Capital, an innovation and strategy firm that supports small business growth. He serves on Chaminade’s School of Business and Communication advisory board and actively participates in community service, including work with the Hoea Foundation and Kakaako Christian Fellowship.

Stebbins is the Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Bank of Hawaii, with nearly three decades of experience in digital marketing, brand strategy, and customer engagement. She has been a longtime supporter of the university and is a dedicated community advocate, mentoring local entrepreneurs and serving on the board of the Girl Scouts and other initiatives.

Chaminade University President Lynn Babington said, “Each is dedicated to the service-focused mission of Chaminade University, and each brings extensive experience as business and community leaders.”

Marian Library Receives Gift of Art & History

West Virginia researcher John Shaffer has donated his collection of works by the Italian artist Ezio Anichini to the Marian Library. In 2022, he loaned his artwork to the University of Dayton for a major exhibit.

Shaffer, who retired in 2017 as director of arts programming at the State University of New York at Oswego, began building his collection after seeing illustrations the artist had done for Dante’s Divine Comedy. When he discovered that the Marian Library had one of just a few copies in the world of a book featuring Anichini’s work, he reached out for more information. So began a collaboration that resulted in the exhibit A Vision of Art and Faith: The Litany of Loreto and the Work of Ezio Anichini (1886-1948). 

The John Shaffer Collection on the Works of Ezio Anichini, 1886-1948, which contains more than 250 items, can be viewed at the Marian Library (appointments are preferred). Can’t make it to the Marian Library to see the artwork in person? Selected items in the collection have been digitized and are now available for browsing in eCommons, the University’s institutional repository. Click here to read more.

Auschwitz Legacy Fellowship Awarded

An English teacher at Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati, OH, was awarded the Auschwitz Legacy Fellowship. Mandy Ocariz underwent an application process and interview before being selected as one of 44 teachers across the country chosen for the fellowship. It is a year-long, fully funded educational program for high school teachers, launched by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Foundation (ABMF) to deepen Holocaust education in the United States. The program includes intensive pre-trip preparation, a transformative trip to Poland to visit Auschwitz-Birkenau and other historical sites, and the opportunity for the selected teachers to bring their firsthand knowledge and empathy-driven lessons back to their students and communities for years to come.

First Marianists to Reach U.S.

Courtesy of the North American Center for Marianist Studies (NACMS)

In late 1849, Marianist Bros. Damian Litz, Andrew Edel, John Stintzi, and Maximin Zehler bravely crossed the Atlantic from France to join Bro. Charles Schultz, SM, and Fr. Leo Meyer, SM, who had arrived earlier that July. This determined group established the first Marianist presence in the United States, ministering in the Cincinnati-Dayton area and founding institutions like St. Mary’s School for Boys in 1850. This institution eventually evolved into University of Dayton, which is celebrating its 175th birthday this year.

For those traveling, we hope your summer adventures are far smoother than the arduous journey described by Bro. Damian Litz: “We got aboard a rickety, old merchantman in which a sort of den was made of rough boards to hold us and our originals. We did not sail: we rolled and rolled for forty-two and a half days. I was the first among the passengers to discover land. Brother Edel was sick of [with] dysentery during nearly the whole time. I myself got seasick at every heavy roll. (Brother Edel relates that during a severe storm, the vessel received such a severe shock once as to make Brother Litz jump up and cry out “Salve Regina.”) Brother Zehler was once flung from one side of the ship to the other and was badly hurt.”

To delve deeper into the Society of Mary’s early years in the U.S., read Father Leo Meyer’s 13 Years at Nazareth, by Fr. John Graves, SM, available in the NACMS bookstore.

Please join us in prayer for these members of the Marianist Family.

◆ Recent deaths and those in need of prayers for healing in the Marianist Family

◆ Obituaries of U.S. Province Marianist brothers and priests since 2018

World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation

The World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation, celebrated on Sept. 1 every year, is the foundational day of the Season of Creation, which runs from Sept. 1 to Oct. 4 and culminates each year on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. This day was observed in the Orthodox Church’s liturgical traditions before being adopted by the universal Church. The Catholic Church, under the leadership of Pope Francis, embraced this celebration in 2015.

Click here for resources on celebrating the Season of Creation.

Retreats Available Through December

Classes may have started, and summer is coming to a close, but retreats continue at the Marianist Family Retreat Center in Cape May. There are six retreats scheduled in September, and a variety of others are planned from October through December.  Some are on a wait list, so click here for the Retreat Calendar and book your getaway today!

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