Meet a Seminarian
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Class of 2013:
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Andrew Faron, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello! My name is Andrew Faron, and I am a senior studying for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Family-wise, I have one older brother and one younger sister, making me the middle child and getting all the benefits that come with that. As an Eagle Scout, I have spent a few summers working at Scout camp. While Scouting and gaming were key points in my life, I have stepped away from those, focusing on what the seminary calls us to - that of discernment and formation. With three years of formation under my belt, I look forward to continuing my studies this year. Any time spent in discernment is time well spent. |
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Christopher Floersh, Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee Hello! My name is Christopher Floersh, and I am from the Diocese of Knoxville- Saint John Neumann Parish. Many factors have brought me to the seminary, but an easy way to sum them up is that I am drawn by the beauty of the Mass. I also draw inspiration from the Holy Rosary, my parents and influential priests in my life. Much of my inspiration also comes from Saints like Saint Augustine, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Saint Clare of Assisi, Saint John Bosco and Saint Pius X. |
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Michael Holmquist, Diocese of Colorado Springs, Colorado My name is Michael Holmquist, and I’m studying for the diocese of Colorado Springs. I converted to Catholicism in 2007 after witnessing the example of some wonderful Catholic individuals and reading Born Fundamentalist Born Again Catholic. I also was blessed to get to know several priests early on while still in RCIA. From their example, I was interested in discerning God’s call in my life at seminary. I’ve been here at Cardinal Glennon College since Fall 2009. |
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Joseph Miloscia, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello. I am Joseph Miloscia, and I come from St. Joseph Parish in Imperial, which is a part of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I am blessed to have come from a wonderful family of twelve brothers and sisters. My parents have played an essential part in my growth in the Catholic faith. I graduated from Windsor High School in Imperial in hopes of fulfilling my call to attend the seminary for priestly discernment. I've always felt drawn to the priesthood, even at an early age, but there were times when thoughts of the priesthood were put on hold because, like any typical ambitious student growing up, my mind would tend to be distracted by everyday mediocrity. I am happy to say though I never strayed away from the Catholic fold, and, due to the efforts of great role model priests and my parents, I was bound to discover where priests were made-the seminary. After careful discernment and frequent visits, I fell in love with the seminary way of life, its order, its formation, and its goal of making young menservants to the Church and its flock as Catholic priests. Coming right out of high school, I finished the application process and was (with the grace of God) accepted into the college seminary program. Was I nervous upon entering? Most definitely, but through careful formation and a substantial growth in my spiritual life I have learned to accept my role in being a part of a seminary community. Even to this day I am happy with the choice I made in coming to the seminary, and I continue to pursue my call to the priesthood. I say that the seminary college is a good example of how a college should be - with a focus on their vocation in life, a personable community, a strong formation program, and with an attentive faculty. As for the young men considering the seminary, I encourage them not to keep God waiting on the back-burner, and in the words of Bl. Pope John Paul II, "Do not be afraid." |
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Clark Philipp, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello! My name is Clark Philipp, and I am a senior studying for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I am a son of St. Joseph’s Parish in Cottleville, Missouri, a small town in the midst of St. Charles County. After attending the parish grade school, I graduated from De Smet Jesuit High School in 2010, entering Cardinal Glennon College immediately thereafter. It would be difficult to concisely summarize my time since entering the Seminary, but the inspired word of God has helped me with that. The author of the Song of Solomon [Song of Songs] writes, “I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not let him go” (Song 3:4). These last two years have taught me much about myself, about the Church, and about the Truth; but the greatest gift that I have received, however, is a deep love of Jesus Christ, Our Lord. May it please God that His Love and Mercy is known, honored, and adored in every place at all times into eternity. I humbly ask for your prayers as I continue to study for the priesthood. May Mary, Our Mother, keep us always under her protecting mantle. “My God, ‘I choose all!’ I don’t want to be a saint by halves, I’m not afraid to suffer for You, I fear only one thing: to keep my own will; so take it, for ‘I choose all’ that You will!” ~St. Therese of the Child Jesus |
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Daniel Prize, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello, my name is Daniel Prize, and I am a senior in the Cardinal-Glennon College program of Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. Born and raised in this Archdiocese, I will God-willing be ordained for the Holy Priesthood in 2017 to serve the people of St. Louis! My home parish is St. Barnabas the Apostle in O’Fallon, Missouri. I received my elementary and high school education through the generosity of my parents, who homeschooled me and continue to do so for eight of my ten younger siblings. In reflecting on my path to the seminary, I believe Christ’s call to serve in the ministry of the Sacred Priesthood began from my childhood at home. Here I was blessed to grow up knowing I was loved by my family and God. After eighth grade, I went on Kenrick-Glennon Days during the summer to see what a seminary is. I had thoughts of becoming a priest, but I had no idea what this entailed. This was the beginning of many visits to the seminary for the forthcoming years of high school. During these years Jesus’ voice, speaking through my experiences and the support of my family and others, was too loud to ignore. In the fall of 2009, after having frequented the sacraments of Holy Communion and Reconciliation throughout high school, I entered the college seminary of Cardinal-Glennon. When I had decided to give the seminary a try, I was not sure that the Holy Priesthood was my vocation. However, after nearly three years of giving myself to the prayer, study, and fraternity of seminary life, I can honestly say in humility that I am convinced that Christ is lovingly calling me to be a Catholic Priest! |
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John Schneier, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello! My name is John Schneier, and I’m a senior in Cardinal Glennon College, studying for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I’ve lived my entire life here in St. Louis and at my home parish of St. Ferdinand. I attended St. Louis University High, graduating in 2010 and entered the seminary after graduation. I have two younger siblings (a sister at Benedictine University and a brother at SLUH), two wonderful parents and a fantastic extended family who have been extremely supportive of my vocation. I’ve enjoyed philosophy classes so far, and am looking forward to completing my degree this spring. I’ve worked the past two summers in the Vocations Office, helping organize events like Kenrick-Glennon Days, Project Life, Steubenville Weekends and Catholic Adventure Week Scout Camps. I also enjoy Cardinals baseball, playing the piano, writing and traveling. Thank you all so much for your prayers, and know that you are in mine as well. |
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Class of 2014:
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Max Miller, Diocese of Belleville, Illinois Hello everyone, my name is Max Miller and this is my first year at Cardinal Glennon College entering as a junior. I belong to St. Liborius Parish in St. Libory, Illinois and study here as a seminarian for the Diocese of Belleville. I’m very excited to begin my first year with this program, as I have been confident that the next step in my vocational discernment must be to pursue the studies of the seminary. Words cannot express my enthusiasm and I’ll leave you with a quote from my confirmation saint, St. Louis IX. “Be kindhearted to the poor, the unfortunate and the afflicted. Give them as much help and consolation as you can. Thank God for all the benefits he has bestowed upon you, that you may be worthy to receive greater…” |
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Patrick Russell, Archdiocese of St. Louis My name is Patrick Russell and I am currently a junior in Cardinal Glennon College for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I am a proud member of St. Robert Bellarmine Parish in St. Charles and a graduate of Duchesne High School in 2010. I come from a smaller and extremely loving family consisting of my parents and younger sister, Rebecka. I have truly fallen in love with Christ during my time at the seminary. These past two years I have learned a great deal about myself. I am constantly blown away with what I learn both in and out of the classroom. I really enjoy studying the Liturgy and the history of the Archdiocese. One thing that has always played a key role in my life is the support and love I experience from my friends who I love and pray for constantly. My goal is to make sure people know that they are loved by Christ and to be a catalyst for that love in the image of Jesus Christ. During the summer I enjoy my job at the Office of Youth Ministry part of the Catholic Youth Apostolate of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I work as the Assistant Coordinator for the Steubenville Youth Conferences. I am always ready to serve wherever needed. I ask that if you are reading this that you offer a prayer for me to our Mother, since without Her I would not be where I am today. "May the Lord bless you and keep you may his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May he look kindly upon you and give you peace" -- Numbers 6:24-26 |
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George Staley, Archdiocese of St. Louis My name is George Staley, and I am in my third year at Cardinal Glennon College as a junior. I am from St. Clement of Rome Parish in St. Louis County. I was homeschooled for eight years growing up, attended St. Clement of Rome Grade School for one year, and St. Louis University High School for my four years of high school. I have an amazing family to whom I owe much gratitude and appreciation for all that they have done out of love for me. Looking back at my discernment in grade school and high school, I think that the time that I spent in prayer before our Lord exposed in the Blessed Sacrament was the one of the most powerful influences on me in deciding to enter into the Seminary. Although I certainly had fears about entering into the Seminary right out of high school, I realized that I was losing nothing in giving at least two years to honest discernment. After two years now, I have realized how much I would have lost if I had not entered when I believed the Lord was calling me! God has showered so many blessings on me, and my desire is to give of myself completely in service to Christ and His Church. I am reminded of what our Lord says in the Gospel of Matthew: “Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give” (Mt 10:8). Please continue to pray for vocations and for us through the intercession of our Blessed Mother. She certainly has led me to Her Son, Jesus, and I pray that She may lead many other men and women who feel a call to the priesthood or religious life to Him, too. You will be in our prayers! Thank you very much, and may God bless you this day! “Surrender to God, and he will do everything for you.” - Liturgy of the Hours, Office of Readings, Week II, Tuesday, Ant. 1 |
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Class of 2015:
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David Farel, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hi! I’m David Farel. I’m a sophomore in the college.Before that, I went to SLUH. I belong to St. Gabriel the Archangel parish, but for the past few years I’ve spent more time at St. Mary Magdalen, helping and hanging out at their youth group. At heart, I’m a revert: a cradle-Catholic convert. Toward the end of grade school, I fell away from the faith. Though I still went to Mass--even serving until the end of grade school--I became extremely skeptical of the faith I’d learned. This doubt spiralled into full-blown cynicism, and I became a sarcastic, idealistic, dark and utterly miserable agnostic. Junior year, I took a class at SLUH that dove into the practical and intellectual reasons why the Faith made sense. Though my newfound weakness for the Faith made me a little more open to it, I definitely did not approach it with an open mind. The first few weeks, I spent class picking apart everything the teacher said. But as weeks passed, I began to realize the arguments were stronger that I thought. If Jesus hadn’t risen from the dead, why would all the apostles rather suffer agonizing deaths than admit a lie? What do I make of the dozens of healings at Lourdes that, despite meticulous medical scrutiny, cannot be explained? Everything in that class didn’t convince me. Most arguments, actually, didn’t. But some I couldn’t refute. I couldn’t honestly say the facts were solidly on the side of agnosticism. And so I became skeptical of my skepticism. Atheism didn’t make sense anymore. So I opened my mind, and began my spiral upward. I began to read the writing of C.S. Lewis, and gradually realized that my objections to Christianity made much less sense than Christianity itself. I began praying again, I started going to daily Mass, and everything began to click. At this point, the story ceases to be interesting enough to justify telling. So I’ll give a little about myself. I read lots of books. I love many authors: C.S. Lewis, Peter Kreeft, G.K. Chesterton, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and others. I write occasionally, and have had five stories, two articles, and an interview with Peter Kreeft published. I was once an only child. Then I had six brothers. Brothers are louder, but more fun. When I’m not doing something with the seminary, 95% of the time I’m reading, sleeping, praying, thinking, texting, or hanging out with holy people. |
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Zachary Griffith, Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee
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Alexander Hernandez, Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee My name is Alexander Hernandez. I am studing for the diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee. My home parish is Our Lady of Fatima in Alcoa. My family is from the island of Puerto Rico so it seems that my being bilingual was a big reason I was accepted into the Seminary. Some of my favorite saints include the Virgin Mary, St. Peter, St. John, St. Paul, St. John Bosco, Cure de Ars, and St. Francis. My favorite prayer is the Rosary, followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet. And that is a little about me. |
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Haydn Holloway, Diocese of Belleville, Illinois Hello, my name is Haydn Holloway, and I am from the Diocese of Belleville, Illinois. I am looking forward to another year of discernment with my brothers. God be with you! |
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Anthony Mersmann, Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas Hello! My name is Anthony Mersmann. I am a seminarian from the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, and I love all things Kansas (except KU). I attended one year at Kansas State University before I entered the seminary, and I really enjoyed my experience there. I was born and raised on a farm in Eudora, Kansas with eight siblings. Seven of my siblings are older and I have one younger sister. I went to school at the public schools in town and my home parish is Holy Family. Most people who know me well can tell you that every week I would have a different plan for my life, it ranged anywhere from being an Engineer, to a teacher, or a priest. The seminary, however, was what came to mind more times than anything else. Throughout my life I felt a pull towards the seminary and the priesthood, but I really started to pursue this interest during my high school life. I began to go on retreats, spend more time in adoration, and pray a lot more for our Blessed Mother's intercession. What helped me most was a devotion to the most amazing example of humility and obedience, Mary, who happens to be the Queen of Vocations. I cannot emphasize enough how much she has helped me grow closer to her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Continue to pray for God's will to be revealed in your life, and I will be praying for you as well! |
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Arick Middeke, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello I am Arick Middeke and I'm studying for the great Archdiocese of Saint Louis. I grew up in Saint Charles, Missouri with my three younger brothers, one older brother and two wonderful parents. We have been parishioners at Saint Joseph Parish in Cottleville my whole life. Throughout high school I spent so much of my time at the church between youth group, a couple paid jobs with the parish office and maintenance, daily Mass, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, volunteering, and other activities, that it came to be like a second home to me. Ultimately I just fell in love with the Church and by getting to know my parish priests I began to see the priesthood as a very possible calling for me. I admired their understanding of the faith, their willingness to serve others, and their joyful spirit. When I first visited the seminary for a discernment retreat, I felt a sense of relief meeting many other guys who shared the same admiration and curiosity about the priesthood. I couldn't help but keep coming back to the seminary for retreats and anything I could because I felt so at peace there. I then discovered that I also experienced that same peace any time I spent participating in the life of the Church, especially when kneeling before Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. After much prayer, I knew that I was being called to discern a life of total service to Christ in His Church as a priest. God has blessed me more than I could have ever imagined on my journey thus far and I cannot picture myself being happier anywhere else. I humbly ask for your prayers as I continue to strive to do His holy will. As is the case with most of my brother seminarians' vocations, I accredit my journey to the heart of Christ greatly to the intercession of Our Blessed Mother. She will always remain in my own heart as a perfect example of love, obedience, peace, humility, and purity. Our Lady, Cause of our Joy... pray for us! |
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Kirby Rust, Archdiocese of Louisville, Kentucky Hello! I'm Kirby Rust and I am the first seminarian from the Archdiocese of Louisville to attend Cardinal Glennon College. I am coming in as a sophomore in the college because I did one year of college at the University of Louisville where I was an intended major in middle and secondary education. I grew up outside of the small town of Bardstown, Ky. I have attended Catholic schools for all of my education and I attended St. Catherine of Alexandria Academy in New Haven, Ky and I graduated from Bethlehem High School in Bardstown, Ky. I am one of five children and I have three nephews. I have been discerning the priesthood since I was in the seventh grade and I have been attending Archdiocesan "discernment meetings" in Louisville for about a year. Pray for me as I go through the discernment process and be formed into the Royal Priesthood of Jesus Christ. "He who desires anything but God deceives himself, and he who loves anything but God errs miserably." ~St. Philip Neri |
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Joseph Shaver, Archdiocese of St. Louis My name is Joe Shaver, and I am studying for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I hail from St. Dominic Savio Parish in Affton and am a 2011 graduate of St. Louis University High School. My family consists of my parents and two brothers, one older and one younger. I am extremely grateful for all of the support I have received from my family, friends, and parish thus far. So, how do I know that I want to be a priest? Well, I don’t know. Being my second year at the Seminary, I am still simply discerning the possibility of being called to the Holy Priesthood. I have felt a pull to the priesthood since around third grade, when I first became an altar server. Getting more and more involved in Church activities and forming amazing faith-based relationships only strengthened my relationship with God. I decided my senior year to apply to the Seminary; after all, the best place to discern such a calling would be the Seminary. While it’s true that there have been plenty of challenges, last year was extremely beneficial to me as a human being, as I have come to grasp at a greater level the fact that I am a son of God. All four pillars of Seminary formation – Human, Priestly, Spiritual, and Intellectual – have challenged me and made me a better man throughout the year, and I am looking forward to continuing my formation. "We are all good men…but we can always be better." ~ Most Rev. Edward M. Rice |
 Blog- Deo Volente
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Class of 2016:
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Andrew Auer, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello, my name is Andrew Auer and I am a freshman studying at Cardinal Glennon College for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I grew up in South County and attended St. Francis of Assisi School before entering high school at St. John Vianney, whence I graduated in 2012. It was a particularly difficult decision for me to enter the seminary, but for the short amount of time spent here I feel confident the Lord is calling me to discern a priestly vocation. My family, consisting of two loving parents and three sisters, has been most supportive during the process and encourages my spiritual growth. I anticipate a challenging course study during my collegiate years, but I maintain a certain love to learn which I pray helps me persevere. I also enjoy reading, writing, NFL and college football, exercising, and Cardinals baseball. Thank you for your continued prayers for current seminarians. Know that we are praying for your salvation and for that of the world. |
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Daniel Belken, Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau My name is Daniel Belken, and I will be a freshmen in the Cardinal Glennon College program this year. I am studying for the diocese of Springfield- Cape Girardeau, I live in Farmington, Missouri, and my home parish is Our Lady , Help of Christians in Weingarten, MO. I am the son of Mike and Cyndi Belken, and am the oldest of five boys, with another sibling on the way. Some of my favorite things to do include playing the organ and taking walks outside, I have just started seminary, but I believe that my discernment is going well thus far. One of my favorite quotes is made by St. Paul, which is: "Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is pleasing and perfect." -Romans 12:2. One of my favorite saints is St. Daniel the Stylite, because he inspires me to persevere. |
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Jacob Brock, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello my name is Jacob Brock and I am a freshman in the college program at Kenrick Glennon Seminary. I attended De Smet Jesuit High School and am from Assumption Parish in South County. I have been discerning since I saw the video Fishers of Men on a retreat. I felt like the seminary was the right place to be and I am looking forward to growing in my faith and discerning the call to the Priesthood. |
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Joseph Detwiler, Archdiocese of St. Louis My name is Joseph Andrew Detwiler and I will be a freshman in Cardinal Glennon College. I was born and raised here in St. Louis and have been in Queen of All Saints Parish my whole life. I went to grade school at my parish at Queen of All Saints and went to High school at DeSmet Jesuit High School after that. Next I went on to Meramec Community College where I spent one year before I entered the Seminary. I have felt a very strong pull to the seminary for a few years now, and it is great to finally be here. I am so excited for what God has in store for me and I hope to become closer to God through this experience. Like every seminarian, I would ask if you could please pray for me. And also know, I will be praying for you as I remember the archdiocese of St. Louis in my daily prayers. "God does not choose the qualified, He qualifies the chosen." ~Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta |
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Anthony Ritter, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello, my name is Tony Ritter. I belong to the small but vibrant parish of St. Joseph’s in Josephville, Missouri and am studying for the archdiocese of St. Louis. I have been blessed with two loving parents and one loving sister (who is currently enrolled in Fort Zumwalt North High School). I began to love the priesthood at a very young age. I remember imagining myself as a priest as a fourth grader and writing a first homily. My middle school and high school years were somewhat of a struggle for me spiritually going to a public school, but with the help of Jesus in the Eucharist, frequent daily mass, and quiet prayer I was able to rediscover that God was directing me to the seminary. I truly love it here so far, and am greatly looking forward to discerning more with Christ and my fellow brothers. "See mother, I make all things new.” ~from The Passion of the Christ film |
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Tylor Starkey, Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee Hello, my name is Tylor Starkey. I'm a freshman in Cardinal Glennon College studying for the Diocese of Knoxville. I'm also a convert to the faith, my family having raised me Methodist. I have really enjoyed my time here and look forward to an exciting year of study, fellowship, and prayer. "Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand. Anyone may gather it and no limit is set. Everyone can reach this love through meditation, spirit of prayer, and sacrifice, by an intense inner life." -Bl. Mother Teresa |
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Jacob Wessel, Archdiocese of St. Louis Hello, I am Jacob Wessel and I am from the Archdiocese of St. Louis. My home parish is St. Gianna in Lake St. Louis, though I also have served the Holy Mass many times with my brothers at Sacred Heart of Elsberry. I was Homeschooled in High school and attended the St. John Bosco Homeschool Co-op. Growing up I attended camps at the Seminary and always seemed to want to come back again and again. Fr. Elliot’s and also Fr. Hagger’s reverence towards the Blessed Sacrament inspired me to think deep about what goes on at the Holy Mass and about how we all should act. I realized how much the Holy Eucharist should mean to us. For years I wondered about the Holy Priesthood and if God could be calling me. I was very inspired by the stories of what the Saints did when I was young and homeschooled. I know my parents homeschooling me has a lot to do with me being here today. In my senior year of high school, with the help of Fr. Elliot’s spiritual direction, I realized that I had a deep desire to find out if God is calling me to enter into the Holy Priesthood. Presently I have only been here a couple of days, but I am very at peace with being here and excited to continue my journey towards the Holy Priesthood. God willing I am excited about finishing that journey in the future. God bless! "I throw myself at the foot of the Tabernacle like a dog at the foot of his Master." ~St. John Vianney |
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Maxwell Wilber, Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas My name is Max Wilber and I am currently a freshman at Cardinal Glennon College. I am studying for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. I hail from Church of the Ascension in Overland Park, Kansas and graduated from Saint Thomas Aquinas High School. I come from a terrific family consisting of my loving parents, my older sister (University of Kansas), and my younger brother (STA). This last summer I was privileged to work at Camps Kateri Tekakwitha in my Archdiocese. I was blessed to work with a terrific staff and amazing youth of the diocese. If you are reading this please offer a prayer to our Blessed Mother to watch over and guide me this year. “We never give more honor to Jesus than when we honor his Mother, and we honor her simply and solely to honor him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek – Jesus, her Son.” ~St. Louis Marie de Montfort |
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