Hometown: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Year in Formation: Postulant
College: University of Notre Dame, 2025
College Major: Philosophy
Patron Saint: Pope St. John Paul II, St. Joseph, St. Therese, St. Gemma Galgani
Favorite Movie: Braveheart, Peanut Butter Falcon, Kickin’ and Screamin’, Shawshank Redemption
Favorite Books: The Screwtape Letters, Crime and Punishment, & East of Eden
Favorite Music: The Avett Brothers, Jon Bellion, Caamp, Johnny Cash, and the Hillbilly Thomists
Hobbies: Soccer, running, fishing, and guitar
Most Memorable Prayer/Liturgy you have Attended: I was privileged to serve the Good Friday Liturgy for the Holy Father in St. Peter’s Basilica in the Spring of 2024.
Place of Pilgrimage you Most Want to Visit and why: Our Lady of Guadalupe. She brought me to her Son when I was in high school. I would love to go and see the tilma especially after reading about all of it’s intricacies and hearing it’s history.
Favorite Way to Pray: My favorite way to pray is sitting with my hands open on my lap in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Oftentimes, I like to prayer ‘Amen’ in my heart and think about accepting the past and the present.
Favorite Devotion: The Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
What drew you to Holy Cross? By God’s providence I found myself at the 2020 Summer Seminary Immersion Program on Zoom and was struck by the Holy Cross Priests who led the program. Their great personalities, depth, and relatability really drew me in to wanting to know how they lived their lives with such joy. During the program, they introduced us to the Constitutions of Holy Cross which I began to pray with often. I fell in love with the idea of being a Holy Cross religious soon after.
Your Vocation Story: When I was a little kid, I was always fascinated by the priests in my parish. I always wanted to talk to them because there was such a mystique about them. I remember telling people that I wanted to be a priest when I grow up. As I continued to mature, the thought of priesthood never subsided. On an 8th grade retreat, I remember deciding that I would be a priest because I thought I was being called. Then in my sophomore year of high school, I was challenged to pray a rosary for homework and my prayer life took on a new life. I started praying daily and fell more and more in love with God. This rich spiritual life that I was beginning to cultivate led me to talk to priests and go on visits to seminaries. One seminary I visited was Old College, the undergraduate seminary for Holy Cross at the University of Notre Dame. When I was there, I truly enjoyed meeting the men in formation and saw myself thriving in formation there. I prayed, especially with the Constitutions of Holy Cross, and made the decision to join Old College.
Favorite Verse: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” – John 12:24
Favorite Spiritual Quote: “The world promises you comfort, but you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness” – Pope Benedict XVI
How can visitors to this page pray for you? Please pray that I might have the humility to accept what the Lord gives me.