CHARLESTON—Another wave of young adults has come together to form the Diocesan Missionary Team, Part II.
This is the second year that the diocese has gathered a select group of people to evangelize and form new leaders within the Church through the power of retreats.
It began in 2016 when the diocesan Youth and Young Adults Ministry Office selected six young men and women from Life Teen — all college-age students with a year of formation and intensive training on evangelizing — to serve on the first missionary team. Over the course of the year, they gave 50 retreats at schools and parishes and reached out to almost 3,500 kids, said Deacon Jerry White, director.
The inaugural year was, by all accounts, an overall success.
Like their predecessors, the new group of six will live at the Drexel House and hold retreats at parishes and schools across the state.
Their inaugural visit is scheduled for Sept. 15-17 at Camp Kahdalea in Brevard, N.C., for youth from St. Mary Church in Greenville.
Deacon White said the goal of the missionary team each year is to help young people encounter Christ, noting that teenagers are most open to this life-changing event while on retreat, when they are away from the noise of the world and can embrace a level of quiet that opens the door to Christ.
For more information, call Mary Corder at 843-261-0443 or visit www.sccatholic.org/youth-ministry.
See the six new members of the Missionary Team below:
Nick Campos
Nick Campos, age 22, from Toledo, Ohio.
Nick was working at Life Teen’s Camp Covecrest in Tiger, Ga., along with Jorge Gamboa. Nick said he felt called to a more missionary form of service, and believes that the Diocese of Charleston will provide the type of useful experience that he can then take back to his own diocese.
He’s also looking forward to a year of formation and fellowship with his co-missionaries.
Jorge Gamboa
Jorge Gamboa, 22, from Los Angeles, Calif.
Jorge said he considered the DMT last year but had already committed to the Life Teen camp, so he prayed about it and ultimately felt drawn to the program this year, saying he feels there is a lot of potential for the team to tap into.
Outreach is close to his heart, Jorge said, so one element that he finds particularly appealing is the sense of being sent out, but also having a place to call home.
Angele Drouilhet
Angele Drouilhet, 24, from lots of cities in Pennsylvania.
Angele said she’s moved around so much, she’s not sure which city to call home. A recent graduate of Clemson University, she spent a lot of time volunteering with youth ministry at St. Andrew parish and serving with their CORE team. She accepted a job at St. Anne School in Rock Hill, but said she was having a hard time finding the balance between ministry and teaching. Angele said she looked at many options and prayed for guidance.
Ultimately, “this was the only one where I felt at peace,” she said, and felt she could serve the Church at a fuller capacity.
Molly Andorfer
Molly Andorfer, 22, from Greer, S.C.
Molly, who graduated from Winthrop University, also spent time as a classroom instructor before answering the call to the Missionary Team. She was interning as a choir teacher to elementary and middle school children but was struggling with that path.
When she heard about the Missionary Team, she felt directed, saying “I know this is where God was calling me.”
Her teammates said she will definitely be in charge of all things musical, as they joked about their eclectic mix of talents. Molly sings and plays guitar and piano, Matt sings and plays trumpet, Jorge plays trombone, and the rest are all learning, the group said.
Matt Schramm
Matt Schramm, 22, from Athens, Ga.
Matt recently graduated from the University of Georgia and wants to become a priest through the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, which is a national structure, similar to a diocese, created by the Vatican in 2012 for former Anglican communities and clergy.
He is taking a year for further discernment and said the time with the Missionary Team will help him become acquainted with the broader Church. He also hopes to open himself to become more personal with students.
AnneDee Edwards
AnneDee Edwards, 18, from Greenville, S.C.
The youngest member of the team, AnneDee recently graduated from high school and is taking a year to reflect and pray about the path God wants her to follow. She has felt called to mission work for a long time, and kept seeing signs pointing her in that direction, such as appearances by St. Kateri Tekakwitha. In particular, the DMT kept popping up and she felt it was definitely the first step she needed to take.
“I just want to do whatever God wants me to do,” she said.
Photo, Miscellany/Doug Deas: Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone welcomes the members of the Diocesan Missionary Team, (left to right) Nick Campos, Angele Drouilhet, AnneDee Edwards, Molly Andorfer, Matt Schramm and Jorge Gamboa.
