WELCOME WEEK EDITION
(August 17-27, 2017)

The Catholic Student Organization (CSO) at Georgia Tech organized a fun week to welcome incoming freshmen and returning students. There were cook-outs, game nights, S'mores, praise and worship night, a day of service, field day, the highly acclaimed Family Feud night, and more. Students reunited with old friends and met new ones. Lots of freshmen joined in ready to get involved and become part of the Catholic community at GT. It was wonderful to see the Chapel filled with students once again at all the Masses. Read on for the week's highlights and our latest addition to the Catholic Center's staff.

Pictured below (l-r): Kirsten Chapman, Clay Newman, Owen McCarty, Drew Donovan, Aaron Renallo, Aljon Pineda.

Service Night

The GTCC community came together in service on Wednesday of Welcome Week. Students were able to rotate through a variety of stations, including sandwich-making for the homeless, canvas painting for the elderly and infirm, and rosary-making for future GTCC mission trips. The night also saw the introduction of a new ministry at the Catholic Center: the building of portable cots for the homeless. We are excited to see how this ministry can continue to grow!
Pictured top left (l-r): Building cots are JC Lawton, Tobin Abraham, Alberto Sainz de la Peña, Joseph Samo. Pictured top right (l-r): Painting canvases are Chris Larkins, Justin Kelley. Pictured bottom left (l-r): Making rosaries are Helen Beckert, Srishti Gupta, Justin Tamayo. Pictured bottom right (l-r): Making sandwiches are Noah Pilz, David Pharis.

Renew

The Catholic Center’s monthly praise and worship event kicked off with a community dinner after Daily Mass. Students enjoyed a delicious meal of lasagna and had the chance to catch up with old friends and make new ones. Once dinner was over, everyone headed to the Sanctuary where Fr. Tim Hepburn, the Vocations Director for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, talked about the meaning of renewal and emphasized the importance of silence in prayer. The students were then led into a prayerful hour of Eucharistic Adoration with praise and worship music by Patrick Williams, the GTCC’s new Campus Minister and Director of Music. During this time, students had the opportunity to go to Confession and to encounter Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.
Pictured top left: Fr. Tim Hepburn. Top Right: Fr. Tim addresses the students in CC Chapel.

Family Feud

Friday Evening the CSO had it's second annual Family Feud night, where Siblings in Christ were pit against each other for prizes. GTCC alum Alex Tatum returned to host this event making it a fun night full of laughter. Georgia Tech hats were won by some, but friendship was enjoyed by all!
Pictured top left (l-r): Tony D'Arienzo, Vincent Ceyssens, Valeska Lobo. Pictured top right: Alex Tatum, Kiersten Schutz, Joseph Colosimo, Helen Beckert, Erika Jensen, Clay Newman. Pictured bottom left (l-r): Rafael Murphy, Andrew Lewis, Joseph Samo, Steven Creech, Chris Larkins, Simon Cassar. Picured bottom right: Spectators enjoying Family Feud.

Field Day and
Music & Mocktails

On Saturday, the CSO took to SAC fields for pickup games of soccer, volleyball, and flag football. It was a great chance to have some fun with old friends and new. In the evening, everyone gathered again in the Catholic Center Plaza to dance and sing along to music by our own Patrick Williams, Director of Music and Campus Ministry. The CSO served several delicious Mocktails and hors d'ouvres. A great time was had by all!
Pictured above left: Matt Kinnison gets ready to catch a pass. Pictured above right (l-r): Sam Naab, Alberto Sainz de la Peña, Andres Rodriguez, Juliana Alfonso and others.
Pictured below, top left: Juliana Alfonso's ready for the ball. Pictured below, top right: Nick Korzik has the ball with Andrew Renuart and in the back Matt Kinisson, JC Lawton, Joseph Reifenberger.
Pictured below, bottom left: Fr. Josh talks to the students. Pictured below, bottom right (l-r): Swing dancing are Andrew Renuart with Brady Love, Erika Jensen with Tony D'Arienzo.

Meet GTCC's new
Director of Music/Campus Minister

~ Patrick Williams ~

I’m a local Georgian, born and raised in Stone Mountain and later moved to Lawrenceville. I graduated from Franciscan University of Steubenville in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Philosophy. Since college, I’ve been a missionary (or rather a musician-ary, hahah), a music minister and music teacher at St. Brigid Catholic Church in Johns Creek, a seminarian for the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, LA, and a full time freelance musician touring and recording across the U.S. On August 12 of this year (2017) I had the greatest honor of becoming the husband of my beautiful bride Emily. We celebrated our nuptial mass at St. Luke the evangelist in St. Louis, MO where she is from. She currently works at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Buckhead as the EDGE middle school youth minister.

I am very glad to be able to call the GTCC my new home and to invest in the good students here as we continue to develop our already thriving music and campus ministry endeavors.
Pictured below: Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Williams