Thoughts on Priesthood:

Jesus comes directly to His people through the sacraments at the hands of a priest. Nowhere else in the world can human beings find more direct access to the Holy Trinity, most especially in His True Presence in the Eucharist, than in the Catholic Church. A priest leads God's people to the beautiful truth of Jesus and away from the darkness so present in our world today. He is to be another Christ and bring God's healing and mercy to those who are wounded and suffering. Most of all, he is to be a man of prayer who serves others by striving to do the will of the Heavenly Father.

Why I want to be a Priest:

My whole life I have been searching for what would fulfill and satisfy the longing in my heart. I tried with academics, money, engineering, and farming, but found that God is the only one who could fill the void. It was after God helped me to see this that a sense of a calling from Jesus to the priesthood became clearer. My hope in following this calling is that God can touch and heal other hearts, as He has mine, through the sacraments of His Church and eventually lead them to eternal union with Him in heaven.

Hobbies & Interests:

Computer programming, GIS/GPS mapping, basketball; God and His Church, agriculture, economics, America's founding documents

Tell us about your family as you grew up and when you started thinking about being a priest:

I grew up on a farm near Glidden with a younger brother and younger sister. My father farms with his brother and my mother teaches 7th grade in Carroll. Our free time was spent playing sports, watching television, and playing video games. We always prayed before family meals and occasionally for good weather for the crops, but beyond that we did not talk about the faith much. I did not give the priesthood serious thought until many years later after I had graduated from college and had been working for a year.

What inspires you about the priesthood?

The opportunity to be close to God and help bring others to His love, peace, and joy through the sacraments of His Church. Fighting against the many evils present in our current culture with the truth revealed to us through the Catholic Church by the Holy Trinity.

Who have been your hero's and what has been your influences?

While growing up my heroes were sports figures and my father. While in college it shifted to people were successful in business and people on television and radio who fought for our country to return to its founding principles. Only in the last few years has this began to shift to Jesus and the saints.

Influence:

Jesus' Real Presence in the Eucharist, Mother Angelica, EWTN, priests who have served my parish in Glidden, priests in the Dubuque area, seminary staff and classmates in Denver