East Tennessee missionaries join FOCUS ministry’s campus outreach

The Fellowship of Catholic University Students, a national organization of Catholic missionaries that evangelizes to students on college campuses across the country, has again reached into the Diocese of Knoxville for assistance.

Megan Ferowich, a Knoxville Catholic High School graduate who just completed studies at the University of Notre Dame, has been accepted onto the FOCUS staff and has been assigned to the University of Texas campus at Austin. She reported to Austin last month.

Joining her on the FOCUS team is Kirsten Chapman, a graduate of Farragut High School and Auburn University, who reported for service last month at Washington State University.

They join Claire Hendee, who is in her second year as a FOCUS missionary and is serving at the University of South Alabama, and Deidre Merrill, who is in her third year as a missionary at Georgia Tech.

Ms. Chapman, whose home parish is St. John Neumann in Farragut, said she could feel God calling her to be a FOCUS missionary.

“My junior year of college, I decided to transfer to Auburn University. Looking back now, I know exactly why God called me there. He was calling me to FOCUS. The FOCUS missionaries were some of the first people I met on campus, and it was game over from there on,” Ms. Chapman said.

The FOCUS organization, established in 1998 by Curtis Martin, has missionary teams on campuses across the United States, including at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Vanderbilt, and the University of Memphis.

“It took just a few people investing in me for me to realize the true love and forgiveness that Jesus has for His people, and I started running to Him like never before. God transformed my life and opened my eyes to His beauty in my everyday life, and I have the FOCUS missionaries at Auburn to thank for that.” Ms. Chapman said.

Ms. Ferowich said being a part of FOCUS fulfills her desire to serve Christ.

Although Notre Dame did not have a FOCUS missionaries presence on its campus, Ms. Ferowich participated in FOCUS mission trips and conferences, which fed her desire to join the organization.

“I had a desire to grow my faith and share it with others. I remembered what Pope Francis said: ‘When you experience the love of Jesus Christ, you have to share it with others.’ And that’s what I felt and wanted to do,” Ms. Ferowich said

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