The SBI and Hope Catholic’s annual Beach Night was a blast! Many thanks to our local Knights of Columbus for providing the delicious food. We are grateful to you.
To learn more about the Knights of Columbus, St. John Neumann Council 7115, visit https://kofc7115.org/home-2. Thanks again, Knights!
Photos by Adam Vander Kooy and Karen Nimtz.
Welcome to the 2025-2026 school year and SBI’s eleventh year of ministry to Hope College! Thanks be to God, the year is off to an amazing start.
About twenty-five students participated in SBI’s third annual student leader retreat, which occurred right before the official start of the semester. The leadership team of the Hope Catholics student group, Genesis and Exodus leaders, as well as FOCUS Bible study leaders were invited to participate. You Have Only One Problem, a new book of short meditations by Connor Gallagher of TAN Books, served as the basis for the group discussions. It focused on the central idea of surrendering to God’s will as the center of Christian life from which all ministry flows.
Nearly one hundred incoming Catholic freshmen along with their parents joined the Saint Benedict Institute in the A. Paul Schaap Science Center atrium for a meet-and-greet on move-in day. We began with fellowship and greetings from our executive director, Dr. Jared Ortiz, before we introduced our new team of FOCUS missionaries, who whisked the students away for an icebreaker. (Rumor has it that root beer floats were involved.) The parents remained to listen to SBI’s chaplain, Fr. Nick Monco, O.P., who gave an overview of SBI’s spiritual formation offerings. Then Deacon Brian Piecuch, SBI’s development director, spoke on donations, while Anthony Schena, a parent of three Hope College Catholic students, encouraged parents to tithe to SBI so that their children can have a vibrant church experience during their college years. The gathering ended with Q&A.
Our FOCUS missionaries and Hope Catholics organized a slew of first week activities, including an ice cream sundae party, First Day of School pictures, games, runs to Culvers and Goodtime Donuts, pickup pickleball, and (of course) Mass.
Finally, we are happy to report that Winants Auditorium was packed for our first on-campus Sunday Mass. Deo gratias!
Community members: Please join us for Mass! You can find our schedule of services here. Please note that Mass is cancelled when Hope College is on break. You can find Hope’s academic calendar at https://hope.edu/catalog/info/academic-calendar/.
2025-2026 FOCUS Missionaries to Hope College: Nicholas Fornarotto (Team Director), Katie Pattee, Katy Genna, and Patrick McCoy. Not pictured: Lily-Kate Prichard.
In the fall of 2023, the Saint Benedict Institute began a partnership with the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS), bringing FOCUS campus missionaries to Hope College.
The mission of FOCUS is “to know Christ Jesus and fulfill his Great Commission.” FOCUS does this by inviting college students into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and his Church, inspiring and equipping them for a lifetime of Christ-centered evangelization, discipleship, and friendship in which they lead others to do the same.
In the short time FOCUS has been on campus, hundreds of Hope students have attended their Bible studies as well as the annual FOCUS SEEK conference. We are grateful for their ministry!
Nicholas Fornarotto grew up in Pocatello, Idaho. He graduated from Hope College in 2022 with a degree in mechanical engineering. During his time at Hope, Nicholas encountered Christ in the Eucharist through a friend. He went on to join the Catholic Church his senior year. After experiencing the love of God in the Church, he had a desire to share this love with others. With some prompting from friends, Nicholas looked into FOCUS and went on to become a missionary. He served his first year at Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and is now in his second year at Hope College. He can be reached at nicholas.fornarotto@focus.org.
Patrick McCoy grew up in Gonzales, Louisiana. He graduated from Louisiana Tech University in 2025 with a degree in computer science and a minor in secondary education. Patrick grew up in a Catholic household, but did not take the faith seriously until his sophomore year at Louisiana Tech, when his best friend invited him to a Thursday night Bible Study. During his junior year he got involved in a FOCUS Bible Study and discipleship, which taught him the importance of prayer and the sacraments. After really understanding the love of God in the church, he had a desire to share this love with others. After a few mission trips, retreats, and having FOCUS on campus, he looked into FOCUS and became a missionary to share the love that Christ has in him to the students at Hope College. Patrick can be reached at patrick.mccoy@focus.org.
Katie Pattee is from Lakeville, MN and graduated from South Dakota State University, where she earned a degree in mechanical engineering and competed on the swim team. During her time at SDSU, she came to recognize the love God has for His children and the need to share that with others. After graduating, she made the decision to become a missionary and is in her first year at Hope College. Katie can be reached at kathleen.pattee@focus.org.
Katy Genna grew up in Boise, Idaho. She graduated from Benedictine College in the spring of 2023 with a degree in Theology and Evangelization. While in college, she had a powerful encounter with Jesus on a mission trip her junior year which made her fall in love with Jesus and mission. After that mission trip, she then pursued FOCUS and became a missionary. She served her first two years with FOCUS at Dickinson State University in North Dakota and is now in her third year at Hope College. She can be reached at katelyn.genna@focus.org.
Lily-Kate Pritchard is originally from Orlando, Florida and Madison, Wisconsin. She is a December Grad at Hope College studying History Secondary Education and will complete her student teaching at Grand Rapids Catholic Central high school this fall. Lily-Kate grew up Catholic, but never practiced more than the “bare minimum.” Thanks to two Hope Catholic students–and later, a FOCUS missionary–Lily-Kate came to realize the depth of the Catholic faith and what it means to have a relationship with the Lord in prayer. Now, she hopes to share the life-changing truth of the love of God with other college students as a FOCUS missionary! She can be reached at lily.pritchard@focus.org
