Steven Zichichi
Community:
Monte Sinai
Steven Zichichi is from Healdsburg, CA and received a B.A. degree from Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA in History (and minor in Economics & Business).
Why Steven chose RdC: I found Rostro de Cristo online actually, but after interviews with those on staff came to believe that it is an organization and community full of faith and love. RdC offers so many unique ways to learn and grow spiritually, emotionally, relationally, and physically. It enables people to escape their comfort zones and live among people of another culture while simultaneously growing closer to God and learning from different people created in His image. I look forward to living a life that is both more communal and less materialistic than life in the States. I hope to build life-long relationships, habits, and understandings of how the world really works. All of this really speaks to my desire to learn from the people who I will be serving and to learn about God through those very people.
Maggie Koch
Community:
Monte Sinai
Maggie is from Boyds, MD and received a degree in Leadership, Ethics, and Organizational Sustainability from Saint Joseph’s University.
Why Maggie chose RdC: I participated in immersions at SJU and they impacted me greatly. I have changed the way I love and learn because of the people I met and what I learned on the immersions. I want to continue to love and learn in this way that is rooted in Christ. Rostro’s mission stuck out to me when I was reviewing places to serve. I desire to form community with people and Rostro allows me to grow in spaces of community. I am excited to grow alongside my community mates and the Ecuadorian community.
Follow Maggie’s journey by reading her blog!
Nicole VanVoorhis
Community:
Monte Sinai
Nicole VanVoorhis is from Dayton, Ohio and attended the University of Dayton.
Why Nicole chose RdC: I knew I wanted to do a year of service post-grad and had heard about Rostro from a campus minister who did the program a few years ago. I really wanted to travel abroad, improve my Spanish skills, and immerse myself in a new culture all while living simply. I really liked the people I encountered when talking about RdC and the passion they had for the program. I knew that saying yes to this program would be an opportunity of a lifetime.
Mark Cheffers
Community:
Monte Sinai
Mark is from Worcester MA, and graduated from Catholic University of America in DC.
Why Mark chose RdC: I traveled to Ecuador with Rostro as a retreat participant when I was a senior in High School and fell in love with the people and the area. I want to go back so I can learn even more from the locals and grow from this experience.Four years after my trip down I felt God pulling me towards something different than most of my peers. I knew I loved Rostro’s mission and thought it could be a possibility. The combination of support from friends and family and the certainty that I will never regret it guided me to jump at the opportunity.
Lilly Williams
Community:
Monte Sinai
Lilly is from Louisville, KY and recently graduated from Saint Louis University with degrees in Spanish and Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences.
Why Lilly chose RdC: I‘ve been interested in doing a year of service since I was introduced to the idea early in college. Through my experiences with the Spring Break Immersion Program in SLU Campus Ministry, I’ve been inspired to continue engaging with issues of social justice through the lens of faith, solidarity, and relationship-building. I was drawn to RdC’s program because it values accompaniment, cultural humility, hospitality, and shared faith. I’m thrilled to have an opportunity to live and learn in community and be immersed in Ecuadorian culture.