BCYC Drew Her, But Scholarships Launched Her

Her life was transformed first by BCYC summer camps, then by scholarships and the mission of Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas.

Hannah Rose Morais, a junior from Chattanooga, Tennessee, is majoring in Theology and Evangelization and Catechesis at Benedictine College with a focus on Youth Ministry and a  minor in Spanish.

“My academic and voice scholarships have enabled me to take voice lessons, which has been a great gift since being here,” she said. “I know that if I wasn’t given these scholarships, it would be very difficult for me to come to Benedictine, so I’m very grateful for God’s provision through them.”

Coming to Benedictine College was a dream come true for the student who first encountered the school through its BCYC summer youth camps.

Now Morais is an Angelico Fellow who has served as an RA, led a mission trip in Detroit and performed in Godspell with the college’s theater department.

She combines all aspects of the college’s mission of community, faith, and scholarship, in the leadership opportunities she pursues at Benedictine College.

“On campus, I’m involved in Angelico Fellows, I’m an RA for the on-campus houses, I’m in St. Scholastica Singers, and I take voice lessons. I also lead a FOCUS Bible study and walk with some girls in discipleship. I’ve previously been involved in Mass choirs, BCYC, Koinonia, and was an OCIA mentor last year.”

For Morais, the intersection of all aspects of the mission has been transformative.

“My favorite thing about Benedictine is the people and the beautiful community, the availability of the sacraments,” she said. “The professors are wonderful, too, and the classes I’ve taken have been so formative for me.”

She said being a part of Angelico Fellows has enhanced her academic experience at Benedictine College.

“My first semester of freshman year, I took the class Experience of Beauty, and that was very formative for me. We focused on pursuing what’s real and pursuing the truth, beauty and goodness, which is ultimately God himself,” she said.

“Beauty goes much deeper than just looking at something and thinking, ‘Oh, that’s so pretty.’ It goes way deeper, and I think we can ultimately see that in our Lord, in Jesus and His Passion, Death and Resurrection. His cross was beautiful, even though to the world it looked horrific, ugly and terrifying. Learning the deeper meaning of beauty has made me more sensitive to the ways I experience beauty, which is God, in my own life.”

Morais said, “I think what Angelico Fellows is striving to do for Benedictine is open its eyes to where the culture is at and how we can be transformers of culture by bringing true beauty into the world.”

“Benedictine has helped me realize that I need community. I need people in my life, and I need to give and to receive.

She thanks God that her mother discovered Benedictine while living in Tennessee.

She said her mother first heard about Benedictine College in a Catholic women’s group in Tennessee. BCYC was “an incredible experience for me. For a long time, I referred to BCYC as the best week of my life because it was such a beautiful experience.”

Two Eucharistic encounters with Jesus changed her trajectory.

“One day during Mass, the first time I went to BCYC, I kind of perceived the Lord’s voice saying, ‘This is your home,’ which was a very powerful experience for me.”

But that wasn’t all. “I also had a very powerful encounter with Jesus in adoration that first summer. I felt really loved and very seen. It was something I had never experienced before and my first encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist,” she said.

When she returned to BCYC two summers later, she met her future freshman roommate. “We had the best time together, and I got to experience a taste of the Benedictine community again,” she said.

Now, she wants to give back.

“This past summer, I was a BCYC missionary, and it was the best summer of my life,” she said. “I think what sets BCYC apart from other missionary organizations or things you can do with your summer is that you’re really pouring back into the school. I felt so loved my first two years here, so being able to give back in that way was really special and powerful.”

By Editorial Staff