Brittany's Franciscan Fund
Donation protected
Hello Friends and Family! Praise God! My name is Brittany Varsho, and as most of you may know, I recently was accepted to Franciscan University of Steubenville. I never thought that I would be applying to a private school and/or majoring in an area in which I never felt passionate about throughout my life. But here I am, a 19-year-old who is passionate about her faith and wants to pursue a BA degree in theology to teach others the “good news” in my future. Just as St. Francis of Assisi states, “Preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary use words!” Continuing further, I am currently a three-quarter time student (not yet full time) at the University of Akron and obtained a 4.0 GPA last semester. I am extremely dedicated to my studies and wish to pursue full time education at Franciscan University. My spiritual journey is quite interesting and to get to know why I desire to attend Franciscan, I will share it with you all.
To begin, my spiritual journey began during my freshman year in high school (St. Peter Chanel in Bedford, Ohio) where there I was introduced to Catholicism and most importantly, God. Moreover, I did not grow up in a Catholic home. With that said, I grew up fearing religion and God. I would occasionally pray here and there when I was little, but I did not know who He was and why He would help me out. Chanel impacted my life, especially my theology teacher at the time, Jill Zeszut, a FUS alumni. She was the first theology teacher I ever had, and this is where the journey began. Not only did she mentor me, she also showed me how to live with the passion and joy that comes from Christ Jesus. She inspires me with joy, and I want to bring this joy to others. After Chanel closed, I transferred to Walsh Jesuit where there I continued my journey and grew immensely in my faith. Additionally, during my sophomore year, I went through the RCIA process and became Catholic and this was the best decision I have ever made in my life. RCIA drastically changed my life. Being Catholic and receiving the Body of Christ is a desire I truly love. With this newly formed faith, I found a renewed interest in my theology class. My friends would get so annoyed because I loved theology class more than free time. Ever since my conversion, I have stepped out of my comfort zone and have been open to growth spiritually. I have gone on retreats such as Kairos, mission trips to Bethlehem Farm in West Virginia, and I even led a retreat, too. Furthermore, as a senior in high school last year in the spring, I applied to FUS but was not accepted. After a period of discernment, I made the difficult decision to attend a city college nearby rather than Franciscan. After my first semester at the University of Akron, I applied again in January to Franciscan and was accepted. I believe that God is still calling me to Franciscan and I want more than anything to answer the call and am trusting Him to make the means. Looking back on my journey of becoming Catholic, it has made me the individual I am today. I love being around a faith community and those that I can share my thoughts about God with. This is why I am called to attend Franciscan. After attending a Franciscan FOP (Festival of Praise), my heart felt at peace and the entire night that I was on campus, I felt like I was the holiest and most spiritual person I have ever been. For me, every time I come to visit Franciscan for FOP’s, the moment I pull up the hill of FUS, I am hit by the presence of the Holy Spirit and am instantly happy. Attending Franciscan University would mean the world to me. I have never encountered a place like FUS, it truly is a different, new world.
By creating this GoFundMe page, I am praying that this will help raise enough money to enroll at Franciscan University of Steubenville for the 2017 Fall semester. Money has been very tight, and without help, I don’t think that I will be able to attend. I had a plan to work so much during my days off from classes this semester within the week, and way more over the summer. Unfortunately, this plan is going downhill. As you may know, I had scoliosis surgery in 2013. I recently found out that I have pseudarthrosis, which is a failed spinal fusion, and physically, this has been causing me a lot of back pain since there are rods and screws misaligned in my back and a screw sticking out of my back. Therefore, I will most likely be getting another surgery to fix this problem… talk about bad luck. With being out 4-6 weeks in the summer and attempting to recover successfully, having a job to earn money for my tuition at FUS is overwhelmingly impossible. Though, nothing is impossible if I do not try. So, this is one of the ways that I am attempting to keep going with a positive mind set, and just keep praying.
Thank you for your time and generosity, and may God bless you always! :)
To begin, my spiritual journey began during my freshman year in high school (St. Peter Chanel in Bedford, Ohio) where there I was introduced to Catholicism and most importantly, God. Moreover, I did not grow up in a Catholic home. With that said, I grew up fearing religion and God. I would occasionally pray here and there when I was little, but I did not know who He was and why He would help me out. Chanel impacted my life, especially my theology teacher at the time, Jill Zeszut, a FUS alumni. She was the first theology teacher I ever had, and this is where the journey began. Not only did she mentor me, she also showed me how to live with the passion and joy that comes from Christ Jesus. She inspires me with joy, and I want to bring this joy to others. After Chanel closed, I transferred to Walsh Jesuit where there I continued my journey and grew immensely in my faith. Additionally, during my sophomore year, I went through the RCIA process and became Catholic and this was the best decision I have ever made in my life. RCIA drastically changed my life. Being Catholic and receiving the Body of Christ is a desire I truly love. With this newly formed faith, I found a renewed interest in my theology class. My friends would get so annoyed because I loved theology class more than free time. Ever since my conversion, I have stepped out of my comfort zone and have been open to growth spiritually. I have gone on retreats such as Kairos, mission trips to Bethlehem Farm in West Virginia, and I even led a retreat, too. Furthermore, as a senior in high school last year in the spring, I applied to FUS but was not accepted. After a period of discernment, I made the difficult decision to attend a city college nearby rather than Franciscan. After my first semester at the University of Akron, I applied again in January to Franciscan and was accepted. I believe that God is still calling me to Franciscan and I want more than anything to answer the call and am trusting Him to make the means. Looking back on my journey of becoming Catholic, it has made me the individual I am today. I love being around a faith community and those that I can share my thoughts about God with. This is why I am called to attend Franciscan. After attending a Franciscan FOP (Festival of Praise), my heart felt at peace and the entire night that I was on campus, I felt like I was the holiest and most spiritual person I have ever been. For me, every time I come to visit Franciscan for FOP’s, the moment I pull up the hill of FUS, I am hit by the presence of the Holy Spirit and am instantly happy. Attending Franciscan University would mean the world to me. I have never encountered a place like FUS, it truly is a different, new world.
By creating this GoFundMe page, I am praying that this will help raise enough money to enroll at Franciscan University of Steubenville for the 2017 Fall semester. Money has been very tight, and without help, I don’t think that I will be able to attend. I had a plan to work so much during my days off from classes this semester within the week, and way more over the summer. Unfortunately, this plan is going downhill. As you may know, I had scoliosis surgery in 2013. I recently found out that I have pseudarthrosis, which is a failed spinal fusion, and physically, this has been causing me a lot of back pain since there are rods and screws misaligned in my back and a screw sticking out of my back. Therefore, I will most likely be getting another surgery to fix this problem… talk about bad luck. With being out 4-6 weeks in the summer and attempting to recover successfully, having a job to earn money for my tuition at FUS is overwhelmingly impossible. Though, nothing is impossible if I do not try. So, this is one of the ways that I am attempting to keep going with a positive mind set, and just keep praying.
Thank you for your time and generosity, and may God bless you always! :)
Organizer
Brittany Varsho
Organizer
Bedford, OH
