My First Months, of my First Year, of

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my First St. Pauls Outreach Internship

Thank You
October 4, 2015

What is SPO?
Saint Pauls Outreach actively invites college students to a life of Christian
discipleship. With Saint Paul as our example, we create vibrant, faith-filled
environments that challenge students to deepen their relationships with Christ
in the fullness of the Catholic Church. Mission Statement of SPO
Every member of SPO lives out the mission statement in his or her own way.
The different ways we do this is by leading small mens and womens groups,
hosting events, staffing retreats, and intentionally investing in other members
of the community

An End to Summer?
I cannot believe that it is already the second month of classes here at Ohio
State. It feels like yesterday that I was meeting with possible supporters over
the summer. Somehow I got here, writing this newsletter, sitting at my desk in
the St. Pauls Outreach mens household called Antioch. While the house was
remodel recently and is very nice for a college house that is not why its
amazing. This household is awesome because of the men that I have the
blessing to live with and the blessing of the community that this household is
a part of. That community is the Catholic Community here at Ohio State! How
did I get here?
This is my first year in Saint Pauls Outreachs household. I have been involved
in the Catholic Community since freshmen year, attending Bible Studies,
Eucharistic Ministering, and Mass Coordinating. During my first Spring
Semester I attended the Awakening retreat through the Newman Center. My
current roommate (Mitch Wilson) was one of the leaders of my small group.
My sophomore year at Ohio State I led a Bible Study with one of my current
brothers in House Hold, Brad Pierron. For a while we only had one guy
attending regularly Sam Jones. Sam and Brad are two of my closest friends
and recently we had a once in a lifetime opportunity. Youll have to continue
reading to for that story.

Thank you for your

support. Your support
makes my Student
Missionary Internship
(SMI) possible and
successful. I hope to be

sending out newsletters

as often as possible. This
is the first time I have
ever made a newsletter
so I have a lot to learn. I
know it is long but it has
been a busy start to
school here at Ohio State
so I had a lot to write
about.
Always feel free to
contact me by mail,
phone, email, or in
person. Enjoy!
Tony Losekamp

www.spoweb.org

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During sophomore year I got more

involved in the Catholic
Community and started hanging out with SPO more often. I had a sense that I
needed to do more than just hang out with them but I needed to live with them. I
needed the brotherhood that they had, both supporting each other and
challenging each other.
A quick end to a long story is that I applied and was accepted into the Saint
Pauls Outreach Household Program and now I am a Student Missionary Intern.

Student Missionary Internship.

What is a Student Missionary intern you may ask? Well Im glad you asked. As a
Student Missionary Intern (SMI) I will learn how to follow SPO's core
evangelization strategy to reach,
call, form, and send so that we
may be able to disciple, lead,
and grow in relationship with
students on campus. In other
words, SMIs start to take more
official roles in the community and
have responsibilities that affect
the Mission of SPO.
I took a

more official role by becoming

a member of Bible Study
Oversight Team which over
sees the many Bible Studies we have on campus. I think the last count for men
was 11 bible studies and 14 for women. My role is to support the individual
leaders of each study that I oversee investing in them, challenging them, and
helping in any way that I can.

The School of New Evangelization

Late this summer I had the opportunity to attend the School of New
Evangelization (SNE) in St. Paul Minnesota. I attended SNE with over 300 college
students from all over the country who gave up a one of the last weeks of their
summers in order to pray for the upcoming school year and to be trained in the

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methods of the New Evangelization. I gained so much knowledge about different
topics related to the Faith including, Ignatian Spiritual Warfare, how to lead an
Evangelistic Bible Study, how to identify the stages of Spiritual Growth, and so
much more. By the end of the week I was ready to go out on the Ohio States
campus to love each person I met, the way that Christ would love them.

The Start of Household.

When I got back to Columbus and my housemates and I were all moved
into Antioch, it was time to make the house into a household, and
housemates into brothers in Christ. On August 21st all 30 men from the 3
different SPO houses went camping together in southwest Ohio. We were
like an army on the move. It is not often that 30 men go camping together,
but we werent just camping. The point of the trip was to build the
brotherhood among all 30 men that we would be able to count on during

Prayer Intentions:
I ask that you continue to
support me and the ministry
with your prayers. Please add
these prayer intentions to your

Plans for the future:

daily prayer because the power
- On Oct 12th I will be a part of a panel discussion of Laudato Si at the Newman
Center
of prayer
is the greatest
st
nd
- Oct 31 - Nov 2 I will be involved in Cardinal Turksons visit to Ohio State since I am on the planning
weapon that we have:
committee.
This Summer I have been invited to World Youth Day in Poland! Its not -set in
but Iof
would
love to
Forstone
the unity
the Catholic
go.
Community so that there
the year. That weekend we put Christ at the command of our
brotherhood and with Christ as our commander, our brotherhood was
ready to mobilize and begin to claim OSUs campus for the Lord.

CRUSH Week in Full Swing.

One of the best things that happened during these first months of classes
is meeting my friend Alex. At the opening meeting of my honorary
fraternity, AZP, we were doing ice breakers to get to know the newest
class members. We started the meeting by talking about what we did over
the summer. The most interesting journey somebody went on was to
Nepal on a mission trip. The guy who went on it was on the other side of
the room, so I couldnt talk to him till after the meeting. I knew that the
trip had to be faith related because he said it was a mission trip. I knew
that it was incredibly likely that he was a devout Christian. I had such a
strong longing to talk to him, but we had a whole meeting to go through.
I prayed to God if He wanted me to meet this guy then give me a chance
to talk to him. As the meeting ended I helped clean up the dinner that
was at the meeting, almost everyone had left except the guy that I wanted
to meet.
Im sorry to say that I do not remember what the first thing I said to him
was. What I do remember is that his name was Alex and that he was my

may be no division in the

work that we do on the
campus of The Ohio State
University.
For my Bible Study and the
men in it that we may gain a
deeper understanding of the
Word of God and what it
means to be a Son of God.
For all the men of the
community discerning their
vocation especially myself,
that we may be open to
Gods Will for us.
For all the men on this
campus that I am unable to
meet and disciple, that they
may find Christ in what in
some aspect of their lives.

This is the greatest way to

support me. Your prayers for
me and the ministry are what I
need most of all!

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Little that I hadnt had the opportunity to meet yet. We connected almost
instantly and I asked to have lunch the next day at my house. He accepted and
the next day we started a friendship that I hold very close to my heart. He is a
true brother in Christ so we are able to share our faith and therefore a deeper
understanding of each other. Alex isnt Catholic. He is non-denominational but
we get to talk about the differences in our faith and why we believe in what we
believe.

Pilgrimage to See Pope Francis

A couple weeks ago I was approached by the Campus Minster from the Newman
Center about a possible free trip to see Pope Francis in Philly. The one catch was
that I would be in charge of keeping a whole bus of 50 people organized and on
time. I had been talking to my friends all summer about trying to go and see the
Holy Father but everything fell through. I definitely was interested and instead of
participating in the Buckeye Catholic event that night I sat outside the Newman
Center and called my parents.
I

thought that I was going to have to convince my parents that

it would be fine for me to skip classes in order to see Pope
Francis. My parents always seem to surprise me. After I told
them that I was invited to go and that I was
thinking about it they asked Youre doing it
right? I thought it was going to take more
convincing but thankfully it didnt. I went
straight in and told the Campus Minister that I
wanted to do it.

On Friday Sept. 25th I woke up at 4:45am and

headed to St. John Neumann in Sunbury Ohio
with Brad P. and Sam J.. I had the blessing to
help lead a pilgrimage with 2 of the guys that I
am closest with! It was one of the best things I
have ever done. To serve and care for people in
such a way was humbling. Both mornings Sam,
Brad,
and I did Morning Prayer to intercede for the
Pilgrims and our Holy Father. On the bus to and from downtown Philly we
prayed the Rosary and Divine Mercy Chaplet together as a bus. I am always
amazed at all quickly I get to know people on such a deep level going on retreats
and pilgrimages. I am so grateful for the people I was able to serve and get to
know!
To make the weekend even better I got to see Pope Francis as he paraded through
the streets of Philadelphia. I think I was within 30 ft of Pope Francis TWICE! It

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happened so quick that it was hard to believe that it happened. The more I think
about it the more my soul feels alive. It was an amazing experience.
On Sunday we got to experience the Papal Mass with a 1.5 million fellow
Catholics. It was one of the most beautiful masses I have experienced. So many
languages were spoken and sung that it showed that we truly are the Universal
Church. In his homily Pope Francis celebrated the family so to bring the World
Meeting of Families to a close. The whole experience definitely impacted my life
My household brothers and I
and hopefully give me a way to go to World Youth in Poland this summer. Stay
pray this scripture passage
tuned for that
every morning after breakfast,
THANKS FOR READING!!
St. Pauls Outreach
Tony Losekamp
65 E 13 Ave
th

Columbus, OH 43201
Losekamp.6@osu.edu

right before Morning Prayer. We

are dedicated to our brothers in
a way I am so grateful for.

12 This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.13 No one has greater love
than this, to lay down ones life for ones friends.14 You are my friends if you do what I
command you.15 I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his
master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have
heard from my Father.16 It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and
appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father
in my name he may give you.17 This I command you: love one another.
John 15:12-17