Pax et Bonum! I am a solemnly professed brother of the Capuchin Franciscans. I belong to the Province of St. Conrad (based in Denver, CO). I was born in La Junta, Colorado, and grew up a couple of hours farther north in the small town of Fort Morgan. I went straight from High School into a Bachelor’s program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Although I thought I was coming to Boulder to study Applied Mathematics, I ended up finding my home at St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish, where I was quickly plugged in after a dramatic deepening of my faith in the first weeks of college. At the end of my first year, I was invited to spend a summer as a missionary with Totus Tuus (a summer catechetical program for children and teens) in the Archdiocese of Denver. There, I met a Capuchin. I had previously been open to the idea of the religious priesthood, but when I met this Capuchin, I knew right away that he was my brother.
After a couple of profound experiences during the Gospel proclamation at Mass prompted me, I decided to attend a Discernment retreat with the brothers the next fall. Everything they presented as their way of life was what I was looking for: prayer (especially mental prayer) in community, a balanced harmony between the contemplative and active life, the joyful living of the Gospel counsels, and a radical life of service to the poor and marginalized. In brief, I saw that they were striving to live the Gospel, and that’s what I wanted to do. So, about a month later, I decided to apply. They accepted me into postulancy the following spring. I dropped out of college with a year left on my degree and began my formation in the summer of 2019.
Five years later, on August 10, 2024–the most joyful day of my life–I professed my solemn vows alongside four other brothers.
For the last four years, I have served my community as a vocations promoter and mentor, and as our primary animator in Texas for the last three years. In my time with the Capuchins, I have lived in Colorado, California, Texas, Mexico, and Italy. I completed my philosophy studies at St. John Vianney Theological Seminary in Denver. Throughout all this time, I have variously ministered to the homeless, on college campuses, as a hospital chaplain, a catechist, a music minister, and a simple porter, among other roles.
I am currently in my last year of theology studies in San Antonio, Texas. God willing, I will be ordained to the transitional diaconate in May 2026, and to the priesthood the following year.