NORWALK—A chance meeting followed by an unexpected lunch date in college led Mariana Martins to refocus on her faith. “This is what I’ve been meant to do,” said Martins, who also spearheads efforts for the Young Adult Ministry at St. Edward the Confessor in New Fairfield. Martins is a social worker for a non-profit organization in Fairfield County.
“I want to build something here,” said the recent college graduate with a master’s degree from Sacred Heart University. Martins said she wants to help grow the faithful young adult community where she lives and works in Fairfield County. Although her faith journey reads like a roadmap with many detours, each turn was directing her home to the Church.
Martins, whose family is from Portugal, said she was brought up in a very Catholic household where prayer, confession and praying the Rosary were as much a part of life as any other routine daily activity. She said college life changed that.
“When I went to college, I was still practicing but not to the degree I was before,” she said, noting demands of daily college life including an expanding social calendar and other obligations left little time for her to focus on her faith. “I got distracted; I became worried about other things. I was not practicing as much,” she admits.
Martins joined a sorority in her sophomore year at Western Connecticut State University and saw her campus involvement and activities increase. The following year she met missionaries from Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) who participated in a meet and greet at the university. After speaking with a female missionary of her own age, she learned about the Newman Center. The two exchanged numbers and Martins was invited to join a bible study hosted by the group.
“For a month and a half, I said, ‘I’m busy,’” but persistence from her new friend paid off. “I finally decided to go one night, and it was completely eye opening. It was the sower and the seed story. Are you in the rich soil or on the rocks?” “That day I was like, “Wow! I’m really not where I need to be in my faith.” She decided to stick around and learn more.
Sometime later, “I was having a rough day and getting lunch when who did I see, the missionaries and people from the Newman Center. They invited me back to the Newman Center to have lunch with them and we talked for a bit.” That conversation led to another invite, this time to a trip to Indianapolis, Indiana for a conference. Martins, leaped at the chance to travel with her new friends. “I thought this would be a great opportunity to see another state.”
After registering, and in preparation for the conference, she started attending bible study more regularly. “It completely changed my life,” she said. “At that time, I really hadn’t encountered young adults that were practicing the faith and out doing other things too,” she said. “The way they were living out their faith, was very attractive to me.”
Martins was so moved by the experience she decided to merge her two worlds and started her own bible study specifically for Greek life members. During her senior year at university, she also became the president of the Newman Center. “Everything fell into place because I believe God wanted me to have all of that,” she said, adding that other members had similar experiences. “We don’t want to leave the world. We want to live in it, and practice our faith,” she said.
She witnessed how her openness about her faith made others more comfortable to do the same. “They would talk about bible study at Greek life events, prioritize praying more often and participate in adoration.”
Graduation in 2020, amidst a pandemic, perplexed her with a question about purpose. As the baton was passed for leading the Newman Center and career choices were looming, she decided to pursue a master’s degree in social work at Sacred Heart University. Martins made it her mission to find other people her own age that were practicing their faith and living it out.
She turned to her foundation and her home parish, St. Edward the Confessor, and reconnecting with Father Nick Cirillo, pastor, who she also knew from her days at the Newman Center, opened the doors to getting to know Father Tim Iannacone and Father Robert Wolfe as more than just parish priests. A meaningful friendship in faith was born. “I never really had a conversation with them until that day,” she said. “They are like the coolest priests ever!”
Through the guidance of the two young priests, the young adult ministry at the parish, which focuses on addressing the needs of those between the ages of 18-35, has grown. There are more than a dozen active young adult ministries throughout the diocese. These programs are made possible and supported by the entire Diocese of Bridgeport through the support of the Bishop’s Appeal.
The theme for the appeal this year is “A Bridge Home,” highlighting hope, renewal and evangelization throughout the diocese. The Appeal invests in services that continue to engage those in their faith and build a strong bridge to many who are struggling.
“Mariana is a prime example of someone who has found a ministry and taken on a leadership role in that ministry,” said Father Iannacone. He said her work with the core team of people organizing the events has helped increase awareness and attendance at the group’s activities and in the parish.
“Parishioners have seen all the good work coming from this ministry and all the young adults coming to Mass,” Father Iannacone said. “They can see their money at work,” he said referencing how, “the Bishop’s Appeal not only helps the diocese, but it in turn, helps the young adult ministry as well.”
Iannacone said contributions from the Bishop’s Appeal and organizations such as Foundations in Faith have helped the Young Adult Ministry at St. Edwards meet the needs of the young community and foster growth. The group has many opportunities for fellowship with a spiritual component, with unique themed gatherings such as Hawaiian night, trivia night and an upcoming karaoke night. Those types of activities have a strong appeal for the younger generation emerging from college life, where organizations such as the Newman Center at Western Connecticut State University help build a bridge to a faith-filled future.
“We are welcoming people into a place where Christ is dwelling in fellowship with one another,” said Angelica Bakhos, program coordinator for the Offices of Campus Ministry and Vocations.
The Newman Center, named after its patron John Cardinal Newman and supported by the Diocese of Bridgeport through the Bishop’s Appeal, seeks to help recognize, develop and cultivate the gifts of all God’s people at the Danbury campus by creating a space where the “why” questions of life can be explored and answered more fully.
Bakhos said weekly dinners hosted at the center are open to faculty and students to help encourage fellowship. Plans for a talk series and other social events are in the works. “The funding from the diocese really helps us accomplish the unity and mission within the diocese and within Fairfield County,” Bakhos said. Some of the funding helps support efforts to provide everyday items such as toothbrushes, deodorant or tissues to help students feel more comfortable, she said. Funding also helps provide for food pantry bags for students on the go looking for a quick meal.
Good conversations fostered by fellowship help connect people to their desires for God whether they realize they have a need for him or not, Bahkos said. “We want the Newman Center to be their home away from home,” she said.
