G O O D N E W S F R O M C A T H O L I C C H R I S T I A N O U T R E A C H

REACHING FUTURE LEADERST O D AY ��

S U M M E R 2 0 0 9C O N T E N T S

Drawing Every Heart to Him . . . . . . . . . 1

Student Testimonies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

CCO At Home and Abroad . . . . . . . . 6-7

Alumni in Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Donations of Time and Talent. . . . . . . . 9

Deeper Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Meet a Supporter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

CCO ’s annual domestic summermission project, IMPACT!

provides students with a unique faith expe-rience. This summer, 7 staff and 53 univer-sity students from across Canada are gath-ered in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to deepentheir faith as they serve that diocese throughthe work of evangelization. This is accom-plished through small group faith studies,retreats, diocesan-wide youth events andother outreach programs.

The nature of the IMPACT! mission iswell suited to the needs of a university stu-dent since, in addition to specific missionactivities, each student finds ‘regular’ sum-mer employment. The workplace providesIMPACTers with their particular missionfield for the summer months. Althoughexperiencing a new city is an attractive partof the mission, local students are just aseager to be taking part in the project. JonMann, a student from the University ofSaskatchewan, said, “I am more than excit-ed to help bring the joy of Jesus to my home-town.”

Much of the mission work takes place atthe parish level. The student missionariesare grouped into parish teams and receivetraining in leading faith studies and facili-tating retreats. This summer, 11 Saskatoonparishes are hosting IMPACT! teams. Theopportunity to work in parish evangeliza-tion gives students valuable skills as they

prepare to enter their careers and serve intheir own local parishes. In addition,IMPACT! hosts a weekly diocesan-wideevent called Cornerstone, which consists ofa speaker, praise and worship music, andtestimonies.

The theme for IMPACT! Saskatoon is“Draw every heart to Him”; in an effort tofully live this out, a new initiative called theApostles Team is being launched. This teamof students is serving rural parishes andschools in the Saskatoon diocese. Due to thedemands of travel and availability, studentson the Apostles Team do not hold regularsummer jobs. Rather, they receive a stipendas they serve full time on the mission. AlanaHodge from Queen’s University is thrilledto have this unique experience: “I’m reallyexcited to be traveling around ruralSaskatchewan. I’m looking forward to beingfully immersed in the IMPACT! project.”

All missionaries on IMPACT! live in com-munity, which is both a challenging andrewarding experience. The 53 members ofIMPACT! are grouped into households ofmen and women. Each household consists of6-8 members who share in morning prayer,preparing and eating meals together, keep-ing each other accountable and encouragingone another in personal holiness.

Please keep each member of the IMPACT!mission in your prayers as they seek to bringevery heart to Jesus! ◆

Drawingevery Heartto Him

Members of IMPACT! serving at St. Paul’sCathedral in Saskatoon.

▲

22

When my sisters and I were

young, my little sister

would ask the rest of us,

“Who’s your best friend?” I would name

someone and she’d respond, “You mean,

it’s not Jesus?” We would laugh at her

and I figured she was just being annoy-

ing. It wasn’t unusual that she’d ask a

question like this because I came from a

practicing Catholic family. We went to

Mass as a family, sometimes even daily.

We prayed together before meals, at bed-

time and during car rides, and we all

went to catechism.

In my teenage years I really loved the

Church, but I also loved being ‘churchy’

because it made me different. I wanted to

stand for something, and so I stood for

the church. The summer before I started

high school, CCO’s summer mission

project was in Halifax and three mis-

sionaries were assigned to my parish.

Though I had been ‘catechized’ as a child,

I took part in the Discovery faith study

and I was amazed at the basics. During

the lessons we talked about Jesus being

our Lord and Saviour. I realized that I

had never consciously grasped the con-

cept of Jesus as our Saviour. I understood

that he was part of the trinity. I knew He

was a miracle worker. But somehow

throughout my childhood reli-

gious education I’d missed that

without the death of Jesus, we

would have no way to eternal

life. After the Discovery lessons

I finally understood that Jesus

didn’t just come to teach and

heal people, He came to earth

to be our Saviour. And it didn’t

end there.

My faith study leader kept talking

about having a relationship with Jesus. I

think I had a relationship with the church

- I loved the traditions, the beauty and

the structure of it - but I had no idea that

the man who was at the center of the

church loved me; that God loved me, not

just humankind in general, but every sin-

gle person, including me; that He want-

ed to have an intimate relationship with

me. I wanted that.

During lesson five of the Discovery

Study, we were encouraged to make a

commitment to live with Jesus as the cen-

ter of our lives, to make a decision to live

with Jesus, asking him to come into our

hearts and begin an intimate relationship

with him. That evening, I knelt before the

Blessed Sacrament and I made that com-

mitment.

I made a choice that night, and because

S T U D E N T T E S T I M O N Y

Who’s your

Best Friend?B y C l a i r e B r o w n

of it I changed the way I lived. I saw the

importance of regular prayer and have

worked to talk to Jesus daily and to build

my relationship with Him. My love for

the church has deepened and is much

more meaningful. Also I began to have a

burning desire to share what I had

learned. Thankfully over the years I’ve

had opportunities to lead several faith

studies through CCO.

If my sister were to ask me today who

my best friend is, I would say Jesus. But

that wouldn’t be completely true because

Jesus is much more than just a friend. He

brings me joy. He comforts me, shares

beauty with me, loves me, surprises me,

He leads me through difficulty and He

picks me up when I fall. He is the lover

of my soul. He is my everything, and I

want to live every moment with Him as

my center. ◆

33

S T U D E N T T E S T I M O N Y

New HopeB y S t e v e n G o l d i e

I n my senior year of high school I led

a pretty sinful life. I was arrogant,

jealous, and I didn’t respect my

body. I was more concerned with what

others thought of me and doing well in

school than I was with my spiritual life.

I knew that I shouldn’t sin so much, but

sometimes I just couldn’t resist tempta-

tion. In fact, at times I completely

stopped trying to resist, thinking that

even if I were successful in the short

term, I wouldn’t have the willpower to

prevent myself from sinning a year later.

I found it futile to try so hard and felt that

I might as well not worry about it. As

time went on I sinned more and more

and cared less and less about the conse-

quences. Whenever I felt guilty or unful-

filled with my actions, I pushed those

thoughts to the edge of my mind and

tried to think about something else.

Luckily this way of thinking came

crashing down on me when I travelled

to rural India the summer after grade 12.

I saw widespread poverty, suffering, and

squalor – all the ingredients for doubt

and despair. Yet somehow almost every-

one I met displayed a happy disposition.

Was I missing something? I thought that

the Indian people had been given so lit-

tle. I understood that I, on the other

hand, had so much, yet I was neither

happy nor appreciative. It seemed that I

had been showing my thanks for God’s

gifts by wilfully sinning. I came back to

Canada feeling tremendous guilt for

wasting my gifts. My conscience ate at

me until I resolved to do all the good that

I could once again. Based on my previous

actions I felt that I was unworthy of

God’s grace, but I still had a burning

desire to please Him after contemplating

my past and reflecting on my experience

in India.

I came to university still feeling guilty,

but at least with the resolution to try not

to sin and to strive to use God’s gifts the

best way that I could. In this spirit, I got

CCO Headquarters is looking for volunteers!We are looking for people who would be able to come into our headquarters

for even 4 hours per week, starting this fall. Familiarity with computers is an

asset but not necessary. Volunteers offer help in a variety of ways such as: data

entry, filing, organizing, editing, mail outs, shredding, etc.

involved with the greater Kingston com-

munity. I volunteered with various

organizations, and got involved with

Catholic Christian Outreach, Campus for

Christ, and started attending Church reg-

ularly. For the first time in a long time I

felt genuinely happy about the way that

I was living my life. The Christian organ-

izations helped me to realize that my

efforts could bring me closer to God, and

that He loved me very much regardless

of my past sins. This message of God’s

love for me gave me new hope as I final-

ly realized that I could be close to God

simply by wanting to be. Today I strive

to maintain and strengthen my good

relationship with God by observing the

sacraments, praying to God and reading

scripture, and by serving my communi-

ty in whatever ways I can. ◆

44

I've always been more of a fol-

lower than a leader. It's easier to

be a follower and avoid taking

on responsibility. But it seems that

God had so much more in store for

me.

Last October I was asked to chap-

erone a youth group attending a

retreat. It was the first time that my

faith had any responsibility attached

to it – I was responsible for the phys-

ical and spiritual well-being of these

youth. I returned home on Sunday

afternoon with a renewed sense of

maturity. I felt confident to start tak-

ing on more of a leadership role, but

I really didn’t have any outlet for this

new desire to lead.

During this time I was also in the

middle of taking CCO’s Faith Study,

Discovery. After I finished Discovery

as a participant, I was challenged to

lead the study myself. This seemed

doable - as long as I didn't know any

of the people who would be in my

study group, since that would put me

way outside my comfort zone. But I

soon learned that CCO staff would

not provide me with study members.

S T U D E N T T E S T I M O N Y

Followerto LeaderB y C h r i s O ' H a r a

No, I had to personally ask friends

and classmates. This was intimidat-

ing, but with my newfound confi-

dence and desire to lead, I decided to

accept this challenge and take on the

responsibility.

Getting started was very difficult,

and many times I almost lost the

motivation to find people to join the

study. Almost everyone I talked to

gave me a “Maybe” – which essen-

tially translated to “No”. I came very

close on a number of occasions to giv-

ing up entirely. But I continued every

day to pray faithfully, meticulously

and specifically that God would pro-

vide people with whom I could share

the gospel and spread His message.

I decided to step out in faith and

cast my net very wide. I e-mailed all

the guys in my history class and asked

even those friends that I considered

to be definite “No’s”. Even if they

said no, I at least told them where and

when the study was taking place, in

case they experienced some sort of

miraculous change of heart. But the

truth is that I had very little hope that

anyone would show up.

On the day the study began five

people showed up! I was able to lead

with confidence and everyone

seemed to get a lot out of the study,

with all of our discussions being

thought-provoking and fruitful. It

was a huge success! One person in

particular that I definitely thought

would not come really entered into

the study – even in the very first les-

son.

There is not one hour of my week

that I look more forward to, or that is

more rewarding than the hour that I

spend leading a faith study for my

friends and classmates. I have grown

so much since I decided to go from

being a follower to being a leader, and

I am now taking part in CCO’s sum-

mer IMPACT! mission. I challenge

each of you to take the next step

towards becoming leaders in your

own community - or at least to let

God push you in the right direction –

and I can personally guarantee that

you will be left neither unsatisfied nor

unfulfilled. ◆

55

S T U D E N T T E S T I M O N Y

During high school, I was liv-ing on the fast track of life –literally. I ran track and field

and cross country, sometimes even run-ning with the boys. I poured effort intobeing a better athlete and I had a visionof where I wanted my athletic abilitiesto go. Things were really working too.I won the majority of my races, andeven people who didn’t really knowme, knew my running abilities. I feltlike my identity and worth was in run-ning and I liked that. Looking ahead touniversity, I decided I would only dothree things: school, running, andchurch (once a week… maybe).

By some crazy coincidence, justbefore I left for university I heard aboutCCO at my church. Not being tooinvolved in “church stuff” at the time, Iwas very skeptical. I had my prioritiesfor university already set. If I had timeleft over, I might get involved in churchstuff.

But a few weeks into my first semes-ter I suffered a back injury that pre-vented me from running. I thought itwas going to heal quickly, but itdragged on for months. My injury pre-vented me from fulfilling my plans forrunning and I was very disappointed.Then a second injury caused me to startto doubt myself and my abilities. I soondiscovered that I didn’t really knowwho I was or what I was doing with mylife. I felt like, without my running, I

had no identity. My priorities wereshifting, and I wasn’t sure if I liked it.Everything I had accomplished in thepast 4 years in running seemed insignif-icant now that I was injured… again.

With the encouragement of mydorm's resident assistant and a few oth-ers, I started going to events. I tookCCO’s Discovery Faith Study and soondeveloped strong friendships within thegroup. I began to realize that this wasthe right place for me to be. I decidedto go to CCO’s annual Christmas Con-ference, Rise Up. This was definitely thehighlight of my Christmas holidays –much as I liked being home and visitingfriends and family, I gained much morethan I could’ve asked for through RiseUp.

At Rise Up, I experienced somethingI thought could never happen. I saw somany other Catholic young adults inlove with God! I had never before expe-rienced a room full of youth singingtheir hearts out to Him. On the night ofEucharistic adoration, I felt deeplymoved – when I looked up at theEucharist, it was as if Jesus was stand-ing there in the light, looking back atme. I looked into His eyes and felt muchshame. I realized that I was a sinner andthat I was not the person God had mademe to be. I had used running as a wayto remove my anxieties. I literally “ranaway” from some of my problems.Instead of turning to God, I was run-

ning away from Him, going on my own.But when running was taken away fromme I had to face these issues straight-on, and I have done so with God at myside, and the Holy Spirit with mealways.

I now believe that being injured wasthe best thing that could have hap-pened in my life at that time. Had I notbeen injured, I might not have joinedCCO, or discovered my faith. Thenwhere would I be right now? Probablyat some track meet, actually – runningwith an empty heart. I wouldn’t havethe friends that I do, I wouldn’t havethe same opportunities, and I would-n’t know God. I came to the realizationthis past year that Jesus knew I wascoming… He knew I was going to sin,and He gave His life, just so that I mightshare in eternal life with Him in heav-en. This message has been told to memany times over the years, but it did-n’t really mean anything until I trulyexperienced God’s power in my life.Now, instead of trying to run awayfrom God, I try to run to Him with allaspects of my life. ◆

Run to MeB y Va l e r i e C h r i s t i e

66

Youth Summit

Shown here are some of the staff and students who attendedMonté Jeunesse (Youth Summit), in Québec City from May 15-18, 2009. The conference was a follow up to last yearsEucharistic Congress. Twenty two people representing CCOwere present. CCO co-founder Angèle Regnier was a keynotespeaker, and Talitha Lemoine who will be heading up CCO atLaval University in the Fall lead a workshop on how to use theCCO Discovery Faith Study.

Building Relationships

This semester, CCO Halifax hosted a coffeehouse at a coffeeshop on campus. The evening provided an opportunity forstudents to gather for a social event and share their gifts withone other. Many who passed by or who attended to see theirfriends perform were introduced to CCO for the first time.Social events are one way that CCO reaches out andwelcomes new students to the community of young Catholicson campus.

Dalhousie University

Building community with students is an important part ofCCO's ministry. At Dalhousie, students and staff often gatherin the evenings and on weekend to play “one bounce” a gameinvented by staff member Lorne Stang. These one bouncegatherings model to students that a Christian lifestyle caninclude sports and other interests.

CCOat home and abroad

Church Universal

Pictured here is the staff team of CCO Halifax having supperwith priests from the Companions of the Cross. This order ofpriests have communities across the country and exist in manyof the cities where CCO is present. CCO and priests providemutual encouragement to one another as they work togetheras labourers in the harvest.

University of Saskatchewan

Each April students and supporters look forward to CCO’sSpring Banquet, held in each city where the movement ispresent across Canada. Students are encouraged to share atestimony of how God has been working in their life over thepast year. It is an encouragement for all to hear how lives arebeing transformed by the power of the gospel. Shown here isa 3rd year student from the U of S giving witness to Christ.

Connecting Students with the Church

Many university students have questions about CatholicChurch teachings. CCO’s campus teams have made anattempt to fill this need for answers by bringing in priests orother experts to field anonymous questions at a Q & A event.This spring, CCO Halifax hosted a very successful Q & A thatbrought both Catholic and non-Catholic students intodialogue with two priests from the diocese.

77

Summer Mission: IMPACT!

The Diocese of Saskatoon is hosting the CCO summer missionproject IMPACT! 53 students from across Canada and 7 CCOstaff missionaries are serving in 11 parishes and being awitness to the Gospel. The theme of this year's IMPACT! is"Draw every heart to Him".

Simon Fraser University

CCO encourages students to develop their gifts and use themfor the Lord. Here, students are leading worship at SFU'sCornerstone event in Vancouver. Worship music is one of theways that CCO students gather in prayer at campus events.

Ottawa Spring Banquet

Across the country, CCO hosted Spring Banquets to celebrateall that God has been doing in the lives of students throughoutthe past year. Pictured here are students and staff from CCOOttawa and Carleton dancing at their Spring Banquet held atNotre Dame Cathedral in Ottawa.

University of Ottawa

CCO co-founder André Regnier is a role model to young menin the movement. Here, he shares wisdom and laughter witha group of students from the University of Ottawa.

Queen’s University

Students at Queens University received a lesson in IrishDancing at CCO's coffeehouse. This campus event providedstudents with an opportunity to share their gifts and gather foran evening of fun and fellowship.

University of British Columbia

UBC is the newest chapter of CCO, shown here are twostudent leaders, at our Mardi Gras pancake dinner. It was thefirst event the organized by the local CCO student exec andwas a great success!

Meet the Movement

Many of CCO's regions host a "Meet the Movement" dinnerthat introduces people to the ministry and how it impactsstudents in that area. This year, Ottawa's MTM had FatherRaymond DeSouza, chaplain at Queen's Univeristy, as a guestspeaker. The event was also attended by Archbishop Ventura,Papal Nuncio, who is pictured above with CCO President JeffLockert and his wife Renée.

Celebrating 20 years!

All 60 CCO Missionaries will be in Saskatoon this summer andwe would like to invite you to join us in celebrating the last 20years of ministry in Canada. Join us for a BBQ Potluck dinnerand hear from guest speaker Fr. Thomas Rosica, CEO of Salt& Light Television. CCO will provide the burgers, hot dogs andbuns. Guests are asked to bring a side dish or a dessert,(anda picnic blanket!) There will be kids activities provided duringthe program.

CCO PotluckWednesday, July 8th at 6:00pm

St. Paul’s Cathedral, Saskatoon, SK

For more details contact impact@cco.ca

Carleton University

CCO’s popcorn surveys are infamous on our campuses! Theinticing smell draws students to the CCO table where they areinvited to fill out a short survey on faith. Each student wholeaves their contact information is followed up and invited totake a CCO Faith Study.

88

A L U M N I I N A C T I O N

In May of this year, Justin and I celebrateour 10th wedding anniversary. Wehave been blessed with three wonder-

ful children, Dina, Jonah, and Anna.Although life is often busy, we are enjoyingour married vocation to its fullest.

Ten years also marks the length of timewe have been involved with Catholic Chris-tian Outreach and these years are filled withmany great memories. Back then I was fin-ishing my music education degree at theUniversity of Regina and Justin & I werepreparing for marriage. We had spent theprevious four years getting to know eachother, largely through CCO events andactivities. Our involvement with CCOwould prove to be instrumental in helpingus develop solid and lasting faith formation.

During our time on campus we attendedfaith studies, talks, praise & worship, Mass-es, seminars, conferences, and social events.Although he studied at a different Institute,Justin was able to participate in many of theCCO activities. From the beginning of ourinvolvement with CCO we came to have aclear understanding of the Gospel message.We also realized the need to share this mes-sage and to continue working on our ownfaith lives. CCO took the time not only toevangelize us, but to give us formation andto build leadership skills in us and in otherstudents. The wonderful example of thecampus staff challenged us to grow in ourfaith and strive to become the people Godcalls us to be. Soon we were leading studies,giving our testimonies, and helping with

retreats. We were inviting friends andstrangers to faith studies and events, andmeeting early in the morning to walk allover campus to intercede for the studentsand staff of the University. These activitieswould never have crossed our minds with-out the presence of CCO on campus.

The formation that began through CCOhas stuck with us and helps us to continueto share our faith in our married life.Throughout our marriage we have had var-ious opportunities to share our faith throughinitiatives in our parish and have helpedwith retreats such as the Live-In and Life inthe Spirit seminars. We have also had theopportunity to participate, lead, and beginstudies about the Catholic faith. At presentwe are leading a study for couples about

marriage and family. Thesestudies draw us into a deeperrelationship with Christ, andfoster a greater love for theChurch. Those leadershipskills we learned in CCO areeven more relevant now as welead these studies and otherinitiatives in our parish. Theinfluence of CCO definitelylaid the foundation for us tobe active and involved in ourfaith. We are very grateful forthis amazing ministry and theimpact it has had on our lives.

Foundation to Serve B y J o a n n e Tr e m b l a y

The Tremblay family.▲

99

Donations ofTime and Talent

We are very blessed to have a wonderful team of volunteers in theNational Headquarters of CCO. They willingly assist our organiza-tion in ways that are often not seen by those on the outside, but their workis invaluable to us. As a tribute we would like to feature three of them.

RITA HUDEC - Our Wise Office OrganizerRita was born in Fox Valley, Saskatchewan, the second youngest in a family of 11 children. After high school

she trained as a Medical Radiation Technologist at St. Pauls' Hospital. She worked in administration for theCanadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists for 33 years until her retirement in 2003.

In April, 2007, Rita became aware of the CCO organization in Ottawa through a copy of the Grapevine. Therewas a call for volunteers and she felt a connection with the organization that had started in Saskatoon. She says:“I am edified by the commitment of these young people. We pray that many more young people will committhemselves to working with CCO, so that the group may spread to many more campuses.”

Rita works tirelessly, patiently and provides wisdom to all of us. Recently we have been reorganizing our filing system and some daysyou can see her here quietly working behind stacks of hundreds of file folders. For your dedication and enduring patience Rita, we thankyou.

CYNTHIA MILLAN – Our Logical Thinkerand All-Around Helper

Cynthia was raised in Guelph,Ontario and met her husband whileattending university there. She andScott have been married for 16 yearsand have been blessed with 4 won-derful children; (Emily [12], Natalie[10], Julia [9] and Benjamin [7]). Cyn-thia has a PhD in Molecular Biologyand spent 8 years doing research at McMaster UniversityHospital in Hamilton, Ontario and the Ottawa Civic Hospi-tal. She then, in her words, embarked on the “much more dif-ficult but infinitely more fulfilling and rewarding task of rais-ing a family.”

Cynthia says: “Working at CCO humbles me. I get to workbeside young adults who amaze me with their level of faithand commitment. I am not equipped to do the important jobthat they do - but the little that I am able to help with in theoffice makes me feel that I can contribute to their ability to car-ry out their ministry.”

While working on our database, editing and other tasks,Cynthia sprinkles in discussion on subjects ranging frommedical ethics to the state of our political system. Bring up atopic and Cynthia has something to say about it! For yourcommitment and boundless enthusiasm Cynthia, we thankyou.

DICK FIALA – Our Laugh-MakerExtraordinaire and Numbers Man

Dick grew up in small town Alber-ta and later received a degree in Com-puting Science from the University ofAlberta in Edmonton. He then movedto Ottawa and met his French-Cana-dian wife, Louise. They have 5 chil-dren; 3 of their own and 2 nieceswhom they welcomed into their fam-ily 20 years ago. Dick and his wife have been very involvedin Worldwide Marriage Encounter for most of their marriedlives as well as numerous other ministries in the church.

Dick says: “After almost a year of volunteering I still lookforward to my Wednesdays at CCO - entering donations,updating databases and helping out in other areas whereneeded. Knowing that I’m not only giving back to society buthelping to strengthen the Catholic Church and particularlyyoung people gives me great satisfaction. I know that I amvalued and appreciated. Volunteering at CCO has given mea purpose that goes beyond me and has become one of thehighlights of my week.”

Dick brings his long experience with computers and num-bers to our finance team doing the work of two (while tellingsome great jokes at the same time). When we feel the work pil-ing up, his arrival is always a welcome sight. For your tirelessenergy and unerring insight, we thank you Dick.

1010

Igrew up in the Philippines so moving toCanada brought a lot of changes to mylife. One thing that did not change,

however was my faith. But although I prac-ticed it, my faith was mostly cultural andmy view of God was limited. As long as mylife felt good, I believed in Him. But if timesgot tough, I was not sure that I would relyon that belief.

In 1998 while at SFU I attended a Catholicyoung adults retreat. Although my inten-tions for going on the retreat were not thepurest, God used it as a catalyst to initiateevents that changed my life forever. One ofthese events was meeting a CCO staff mis-sionary named Brett Powell. He was aspeaker at a gathering I attended and Isensed something different about him that

I admired. I felt as if I wanted to be like him.Forget about Michael Jordan, I wanted to belike Brett! Little did I know that what I real-ly desired was something deeper.

A few months later, Brett started a CCODiscovery Faith Study which I joined. Aswe got deeper into the study I began touncover the person of Jesus Christ. What Ihad always heard during Mass and learnedduring Sunday school while growing upgradually started to come alive. Mostimportantly, I began to truly understand inmy heart what Jesus went through and howmuch He loved me; that He would carry across and die for me. And I came to realizethat it was not Brett, but Christ “in” Brettwhom I admired. Jesus offered me fullnessof life and I wanted it! I wanted to be like

JESUS! I decided to follow and commit mylife to Christ.

After this decision I had a growing desireto serve Christ. I joined the very first CCOIMPACT mission project in Ottawa in 1999.Then I served as music ministry leader forCCO’s Summit event. Through IMPACTand Summit, my love for Christ grew deep-er and deeper. It felt good to be a Christian!

I was involved with CCO as a studentuntil 2005. My love for Christ continuedwithin my family life and I felt very blessed.Last year, however, tragedy struck; my sonpassed away. My heart was in turmoil, I wasbeset by grief, and my emotions ceased to bethe voice of my heart. I did not feel that Iwanted to follow Christ anymore. But Godin His infinite wisdom had somehow pre-pared me even for this. My service andinvolvement with CCO had left in my heartan unshakeable imprint of God and theknowledge that He can make somethinggood out of even desperate situations. Andit is only by God’s grace that I’m able to saynow, despite my grief, “Yes Lord, I will car-ry my cross and carry on. Where else can Igo; you have the words of eternal life.”

Am I still a committed Christian after thistragedy? Very much so. Do I still have ques-tions? Always. Is it easy to follow Christ?Easy? No. But worth it? Absolutely! AndI no longer let my emotions dictate my faith.Instead, my faith is guided by a heart that isaimed towards loving God. I am verythankful that I went to those CCO FaithStudies and that I went on a CCO IMPACTMission – they were spiritual greenhouseswhich helped my faith grow and mature.These are CCO’s legacies in my life. Godused them to prepare me so I can continueto carry my cross and follow Him evenwhen I don’t feel like doing so. God callseach one of you to a more mature faith aswell. Will you carry your cross and followhim? ◆

Deeper FaithB y A r n e l P e n a s o

A L U M N I T E S T I M O N Y

Arnel and his wife Brenda with their son Joshua.▲

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Yes!I want to supportthe work ofCatholic ChristianOutreach

■■■■ I want to support on a monthly basis in the amount of: ■■■■ $500 ■■■■ $300 ■■■■ $200 ■■■■ $100 ■■■■ $50 ■■■■ $25 ■■■■ Other: $_________________

I hereby authorize Catholic Christian Outreach to arrange automatic deductions from my bankaccount or credit card on the:

■■■■ 1st or the ■■■■ 16th of each month for payments of my monthly support:

Commencing __________________________ __________________________________MONTH STAFF MEMBER, SPECIFIC PROJECT, OR CCO GENERAL

Signed ________________________________ Date __________________________________________SIGNATURE

MONTHLY GIVING PLAN OPTIONS■■■■ Pre-Authorized Bank Payments

(Please enclose a sample cheque marked “VOID”.The sample cheque will provide us with the infor-mation necessary to begin automatic deductions.)

■■■■ 12 post-dated cheques, which I haveenclosed. (Please make cheques payable to CatholicChristian Outreach.)

■■■■ Visa ■■■■ MasterCard

Card #

Expiry Date: /

Billing Address: (Information required for authorization)

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forming futureleaders today

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CCO would like to invite you to join us in the New Evangelization throughmonthly financial support. Monthly donations provide CCO missionaries withstable finances, allowing them to focus more time on campus evangelization.

Please consider giving – we cannot do it without you!

Build the Kingdom

I would like mygift to be used in

the ministry of:

Is God calling you to use your spe-cialized skills to reach souls for Christ?Here is your opportunity! CCO is cur-rently offering a variety of missionarypositions in our headquarters.

Finance Department • Positions are still open for those who

have a background or training in busi-ness/accounting. Experienced applicantswill assist the national movement in:budgeting & monitoring nationalaccounts, not-for-profit tax, internal con-trols, accounts payable, accounts receiv-able, and payroll.

• Entry level positions are also open fordata entry clerks.

Information Technology Working in the field of information tech-

nology, you will help maintain and grow thetechnical backbone of our national move-ment through: internal networking, webdevelopment, software programming, devel-opment of internet evangelization opportu-nities, and technical troubleshooting. Existingknowledge and training in the areas of net-working, software development and/or webdevelopment would be strong assets.

**One can join HQ staff with either a one-year com-mitment (HQ VINE program) or a 3-year commit-ment (HQ Internship). HQ Interns receive a partialstipend to assist them in their first year of fundrais-ing. All CCO staff on campus and in our HQ liveby providence and are trained in effective supportteam development in order to raise their own salary.

Immediate Positions Available at CCO

National Headquarters

Communications Department There are many new positions in this department. CCO is looking for qualified applicants

who would be able to give their expertise to opening up these areas in our movement's grow-ing organizational structure:

• Corporate Fundraising • Graphic Design and Multi Media • CCO Store Merchandise: • Publications and Editing

Sales & Promotional Activity • Journalism - Media/Public Relations • Alumni Development

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R e t u r n u n d e l i v e r a b l e C a n a d i a n a d d r e s s e s t o :

C a t h o l i c C h r i s t i a n O u t r e a c h C a n a d a • 12 47 K i l b o r n P l . , O t t a w a , O N K 1 H 6 K 9 C a n a d a Telephone: (613) 736-1999 • Fax: (613) 736-1800 • Emai l : hq@cco.ca • Web Si te: www.cco.ca

C A T H O L I C C H R I S T I A N O U T R E A C H C A N A D A

Catholic Christian Outreach is a university student movement dedicated toevangelization. We challenge young adults to live in the fullness of the Catholicfaith, with a strong emphasis on becoming leaders in the renewal of the world.

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O ne Sunday morning in the summer of 2007, a young man spokeafter Mass at Holy Cross Parish in Ottawa. It was a compellingtalk about something called Catholic Christian Outreach. The

speaker told us about reaching out to students at Canada’s universities and colleges withthe Good News of Jesus Christ.

I was listening to the formidable Lee Leonard - then a Missionary at Queen’s Univer-sity in Kingston, presently an operative at IMPACT! 2009 in Saskatoon, and recentlyassigned to Carleton University in Ottawa. Soon after that talk, I signed up as a sup-porter – and have since increased my monthly donation twice.

The idea of laypersons being 21st century missionaries, of following the example ofthe 1st Century disciples who set out on the road to Emmaus (and many, many otherplaces) resonated powerfully with my own vision for today’s Church. More than 20 yearsago, André and Angèle Regnier had a vision - a strategic vision - of what we could do,and should do, but were not doing. Yet. Reginald Bibby, a leading authority on religioustrends in Canada, saw the result of that vision at Rise Up 2007 in Calgary. He saw youngmen and women who were “talented, energetic, intelligent humorous, attractive, pas-sionate about the Christian faith - precisely the kind of people who are so badly neededat this time.” (R.A. Bibby. CCO and the Canadian Religious Renaissance. Grapevine, Fall 2008). His thoughts,based on his extensive studies, as he looked out at that crowd: “There is at least a part ofthe Catholic Church in Canada that is very alive and very well; CCO might be part ofsomething big … used by God to help invigorate the Catholic Church, growing andexpanding … into all of Canada.”

As CCO reaches out to future leaders today, we can see the excitement, the renaissance,the reform, the renewal of our Church – and by extension, the Canada of the 21st Century.

For many adult supporters of CCO, our main chance to make a difference and ourmain time to toil in the vineyard, are fading into history. To you, Lee, and to all our mis-sionaries, we pass the torch. The torch that is the inspired, the extraordinary, the ridicu-lously ambitious, not to say foolish, vision of the Regniers 20 years ago. They were – andare – Fools for Christ. May we all be Fools for Christ. ◆

M E E T A S U P P O R T E R

Fool for ChristB y G a r r e t t P a t t e r s o n