Catholic college students from across state gather in fellowship

This past summer, Emily Gramley, vice president of the Newman Catholic Campus Ministry program at Montclair State University, ran into the Catholic campus minister from Rowan University, Glassboro.

The two got to talking about their programs and the idea of a collaborative event with Catholic students from their respective campuses.

“I just thought it would be a really cool way to connect our Catholic communities,” Gramley said. “It ended up blossoming into something bigger and more special than I ever had planned.”

Earlier this month, some 40 young adults from five Catholic campus ministries across the state gathered in Glassboro for Mass and at the Newman House at Rowan University for  an evening that included dinner, sharing, praise and worship music, games and socialization. In addition to Montclair and Glassboro, the students came from the Newman Clubs of Stockton University, Galloway; and Rutgers University campuses in Camden and New Brunswick.

“My favorite part was just getting to meet my brothers and sisters in Christ from all different places and build a stronger faith community,” said Gramley, a senior whose home parish is Our Lady of Peace, Williamstown. “I’m always happy to be given more opportunities to meet other Catholics and learn more about how God has worked in their lives. Community is such a beautiful thing, and I’m so happy I got to meet more of my faith family.”

Gabriele Depaor, a senior studying health science at Stockton University and vice president of the school’s Newman Club, was happy he decided to attend the gathering, too.

“I loved it, and it reminded me how God’s love can truly bring so many people together,” said Depaor, who attends Saint Katharine Drexel Parish, Egg Harbor.

He enjoyed the opportunities to connect with like-minded students from other schools throughout the evening, and he and another member of his ministry even came away with some ideas to bring back to Stockton to help increase engagement in their program. One of the highlights for Depaor was when participants formed a large circle and took turns introducing themselves, which he said helped folks get comfortable with one another.

The gathering was such a success, that participants have already planned to set up another in the spring – which will be hosted on Depaor’s campus in Galloway.

Marian Yanka is a junior mechanical engineering major at Rowan. “Seeing so many young Catholic college students from all over New Jersey in one room was a little bit surreal. The ice was very quickly broken because of us all being one Catholic family,” said Yanka, whose home parish is Saint Peter, Merchantville. “It’s amazing how much we are all truly brothers and sisters in Christ and how we naturally felt like a family even though most of us had never met before.”

Yanka reflected on the bonds the participants shared, the jokes that got everyone laughing and the friendships created. Participants also had the idea to establish a group chat with members of Newman Centers across the state so they could stay in touch, share news and spread the word about events.

“It really opened my eyes to the other Newman worlds out there and just how many other Catholic students there are,” she said. “It is also an amazing way for us to know that our Catholic young adult family is within reach wherever we go, however far apart we may be.”

Boone Bautro Jr. is a senior accounting and finance major at Rutgers University’s Camden campus, and a member of Mary, Mother of Mercy Parish, Glassboro. He said he has been missing the opportunity to engage with fellow Catholics his age on his college campus.

“Knowing that Rutgers-Camden is more of a commuter school, it is difficult how students like myself go to class and go home – and don’t get an opportunity to focus on the Lord,” he said. “The feeling of seeing more like-minded peers is what I was missing.”

He has found ways to meet other Catholic students, including by attending gatherings at the New Brunswick campus, and was happy to be a part of this recent gathering.

“We were able to see the different ways that people praised and worshipped God,” he said. “It wasn’t just the singing, but seeing people down on their knees and raising their arms and palms facing up really created a sense that God was in the building filling our hearts with joy.”

He also invited a friend, Patryk Dziedzic, who attends Rutgers in New Brunswick. Dziedzic has enjoyed joint gatherings between his campus ministry and others in the past, and this recent get-together didn’t disappoint. In particular, he appreciated the part of the evening when participants shared about themselves and their faith.

“It was beautiful to hear others’ stories and to share my own,” he said. “Many shared how they encountered Jesus through the people they have met and how their faith has grown radically when having others around them pursuing the same goal.”

Like Bautro, Dziedzic also found the gathering to be a source of encouragement that there are other young Catholics continuing their faith journey while in college.

“I think it’s a common feeling to feel alone and isolated on secular campuses,” he said, “so to meet others with the same values as you to build God’s kingdom was very edifying and hope-giving.”