I was raised in Wichita, Kansas as the youngest of four children and attended Catholic grade school and high school. I was first attracted to the priesthood shortly after being confirmed at age 16. Around this time, I also came to a deeper understanding of the Holy Eucharist. Once I understood that the Eucharist is Jesus Christ and that Jesus Christ is God, I wanted to be a part of the office that brings God to souls in such a direct way. This deeper understanding allowed me to experience God's love and mercy in a much more profound way and I began to pray regularly and frequent the sacraments. Once in college at Notre Dame, I was prompted to consider religious life as a Dominican friar by the witness of a holy Dominican (and fellow Kansan), Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P. Notre Dame was the perfect place for me to grow intellectually and spiritually and to discern a vocation with the constant support of many close friends. I graduated this spring with a degree in Classics and Philosophy.

While it is tempting for me to try to explain my inclination towards the Order of Preachers in a solely rational way, the Holy Spirit is the principal and only sufficient explanation. Just as it was the through the Holy Spirit that I came to a deeper understanding of the Blessed Sacrament, so too, through the Holy Spirit I have been drawn to the Order of Preachers and shown that the spiritual tradition of the order is the tradition most helpful for my salvation and the tradition by which I can be most useful for the salvation of others. God has revealed me to myself through the Order of Preachers and I know that he will continue to do so. In other words, with the Dominicans, I feel at home. I ardently desire that men know the Truth and it seems fitting that I have been led to the Order established for "preaching and the salvation of souls."

I look forward to someday offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and preaching in different settings such as retreats and missions. I would also like to teach philosophy or serve as a campus ministry chaplain or in a parish. In my free time, I like to read especially Plato, Greek Tragedy, and Hagiographies. I also play classical and jazz saxophone and flute.