See updates on our fall 2021 plans at aquinas.edu/saintstogether.
Campus Ministry at Aquinas College
Campus Ministry: Staff
Fr. Stan Drongowski, O.P.
Chaplain
Phone: (616) 632-2491
E-mail: sad004@aquinas.edu
Office: Wege 211
Once upon a time, a LONG time ago, I was born to Grace and Stanley Drongowski. Much to what would become annoying confusion, I was named after my father with my middle name being after my grandfather Anthony. This stuck me with the initials SAD. (Remember that when it comes to naming your children.) Over the next 20 years I would become the eldest of eight children, six of whom were girls, which put a major crunch on bathroom time. All of us went to our local parish school for our elementary education followed by the local public high school. After high school I attended our local university (Kent State) where I began studying studio art and education. After three years I changed my major to English. It was through the English department that I met a Dominican sister who I found to be a brilliant scholar and teacher. My admiration for her was boundless. It was the early 1970s and for a Catholic religious to be teaching in a secular university was nothing short of missionary work. I greatly admired how she was serving God. Somewhere in the dark recesses of my mind I recalled that there was a men’s branch of this outfit so I began meeting with her for conversations about becoming a Dominican. Sr. Diana became my mentor in my vocational discernment process. I went through the admissions process, was accepted, and entered the novitiate in September of 1974. The next six years I spent studying philosophy, theology, and pastoral studies. All of this earned me a Master of Arts in Theology and a Master of Divinity.
As far as pastoral assignments go, I have worked in two regular parishes, a university parish, and a house of prayer. I also served as Novice Master (that’s the religious version of boot camp commander) for five years. To prepare for that ministry I had the opportunity to spend a year in Rome with 26 other Dominicans preparing for formation ministry. And now I find myself at Aquinas College. This is, for me, a perfect assignment for this time of my life. There is nothing about AQ that does not challenge, nourish, and challenge me. In my eight years here I have come to love it all!
Chaplain
E-mail: rk003@aquinas.edu
Fr. Bob is Minnesotan by birth, Dominican friar by profession, and southpaw by nature. Pharmacist for two years. Grad studies Sociology of Religion. Campus Ministry at Emory University, University of New Mexico (no passport needed!), Indiana University (Hoosier). Novice Master x 8 years. Newbie here at AQ in 2020. You can find Fr. Bob running (3 times a week), doing puzzles (jigsaw, crossword), golfing (very little), playing guitar (rarely, too), and singing whenever he can. His mentors are the Gospels, Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, NT Wright, and Nature. Praise God.
Theresa Marshall
Assistant Director of Campus Ministry/Liturgist
Phone: (616) 632-2492
E-mail: marshthe@aquinas.edu
Office: AB311
Terry has served the Aquinas College community as a member of the Aquinas College Campus Ministry team for 24 years. Terry grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, before taking residence in West Virginia and then Michigan. She is married to Dr. Dennis Marshall, Professor of Theology, at Aquinas. Both of their adult children and four grandchildren live in Grand Rapids. The Dominican Pillars of Prayer, Study, Community and Service are near and dear to her heart. She loves the Catholic Intellectual Tradition in its comprehensive view of the human person, created by God, to live a full human life in communion with the Holy Trinity and with all of God’s Creation. She is grateful to be in a position to accompany and to serve young adults in the life of faith and study at Aquinas College. It is a life full of promise for a future filled with hope. Terry is happy to live into this promise with a community of friends that God provides.
Student Peer Ministers 2021-2022
Peer Ministry Co-Team Lead: Marie Krueger
Email: mek007@aquinas.edu
Marie is a theology major and an avid Catholic card game player. Her hottest take is that dill pickles and vanilla ice cream is an incredible combo and she would probably fight to the death with anyone that disagrees with her. If her life had a gag reel, it would definitely have when she tripped and fell while trying to walk to class. She loves hammocking (pronounced ham-ocking), theology of the body, and swing dancing. She is so hyped to continue on the amazing adventure of drawing closer to Jesus with our students! Peer Ministry Co-Team Lead & Small Group Coordinator: Becca-Joy Root
Email: bjr002@aquinas.edu
Becca-Joy is from Minnesota and is a double major in theology and philosophy. She is a big fan of brunch, hammocking (pronounced ham-mocking) and walks in the snow. She is known amongst her friends for three things: her pronunciation of hammocking, bringing up Cal Newport, Balthasar, or a podcast in nearly every conversation and her deep love for Caribou Coffee. She is so excited to share Jesus with the students especially through small groups and fellowship! Mass and Worship Coordinator: Regina Bonifazi
Email: rab007@aquinas.edu
Regina is a mathematics major who loves coffee and regular Oreos (over double-stuffed). She also loves any type of games including board games, card games and video games! One of Regina’s funniest and most embarrassing moments is when she tripped over her gym bag in front of a bunch of upperclassmen, only to have her gym teacher say, "Regina, let me introduce you to who you just embarrassed yourself in front of." Regina is so excited to see everyone at Mass again this year!! Media Coordinator: Eliza Brown
Email: eab009@aquinas.edu
Eliza is a psychology major who is passionate about the Detroit Tigers actually being a good baseball team. You can find Eliza playing basketball, listening to music, or scheduling out her life on a real calendar. If her life had a gag reel, you would definitely watch her older brother scare her around the house … multiple times. Eliza is so excited to show every student they can get involved no matter who they are! Music Coordinator: Jordan Malone
Email: jjm014@aquinas.edu
Jordan is a liturgical music major who loves not only the organ but also relaxing in a body of water for hours. He believes that sometimes you gotta think outside the box and come up with something original like instead of ringing church bells, we should fire a cannon so everyone knows where the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is going down at! Jordan is a huge fan of improvising so as to never let an embarrassing moment get to him. One time he slept past his alarm and showed up to church during the petitions and played the rest of Mass like nothing happened. That, my friend, is improvising. He is hyped for Mass and to bang out on the keys and praise the Lord with a wonderful community! Retreat Coordinator: Jarrad Epkey
Email: jse001@aquinas.edu
Jarrad is a double major in secondary education and mathematics. He loves golden retrievers and is constantly reminded of God’s loyalty and faith to his people whenever he sees a golden. He also thinks that every single golden retriever has a piece of his soul within it, but we digress. Jarrad loves to write music and stories as well as play any games with people! He is pumped for our gnarly retreats!! Service Coordinator: Brianna Haarer
Email: bah004@aquinas
Bri, a community leadership and business communication dual major, is a fan of taking the first bite of a kit kat without breaking it. She’s known for having a laugh that sounds a bit like a cartoon hedgehog. Possibly inspired by this, if she owned a yacht, she would name it “Hardy Har Har.” Bri is a huge fan of drawing, reading and hiking! She is so excited to meet new students and collaborate with them to create fun and impactful service projects! Youth Ministry Coordinator: Judah Thomason
Email: jgt004@aquinas.edu
Judah is a secondary education and English literature major. Her favorite hot take is that manatees are super scary and that they are by no means cute. Some of Judah’s fondest memories are from Pine Hills camp where she is a counselor. Each year, all the women in her class dress up as bananas and only respond with the word banana. Judah also loves soccer, reading, ukulele, and hanging out with her siblings! She is so hyped to worship with our family here at AQ and serve the youth in GR together through AQ L.I.G.H.T! Judah is always willing to help you get involved, love the Lord, or just chat!