Loving Glow
For Matt, Jacksonville Campus Ministry isn’t just an organization he supports. It’s a thread that has run through his adult life: first as a student, then as campus minister, and now as board president.
As an undergraduate at the University of North Florida, campus ministry was present, but Matt didn’t fully realize what it could offer. Instead, he became involved in a different ministry setting where he couldn’t be fully himself.
His theology was monitored. His inclusivity was questioned. He even lost a friendship because he was “too” welcoming. Looking back, he says, “I wish I had known I could be part of a campus ministry that deeply nourished my passion for justice.” That longing eventually shaped his calling.
Years later, Matt returned to UNF, this time as the campus minister at Jacksonville Campus Ministry. And what stands out most vividly from that season isn’t a particular program or event. It’s a table.
“I always remember the warm feeling of being around the table together, week after week,” he reflects. “As a campus minister, you want to offer something of value to students, but you are receiving just as much from the loving glow of that community.” That table became sacred space.
“One of the biggest surprises,” Matt shares, “was the students who would show up not for any particular attraction to ministry, but who would become backbones of the community.”
Even during difficult seasons, including a time almost a decade ago when the ministry nearly folded, that same student ownership endured. With renewed vision from leadership and strong support from the board, JCM not only survived but adapted. It learned how to move with cultural shifts and meet the next generation exactly where they are.
Today, Matt is struck by how much has stayed the same in spirit, even as the opportunities have expanded dramatically. International travel. Service experiences. Retreats. Residential ministry. Interfaith engagement. All enriching the already rich rhythm of the weekly community. What remains constant is that students lead. Students cultivate. Students discern where love and creativity are calling them. And in this particular cultural moment, Matt believes that campus ministry matters more than ever.
“Who would have thought organized religion would become a bastion for diversity?” he says. “While malicious actors attack diversity, campus ministry says, ‘your identity is welcome here. Celebrated. Spoken, not silenced. A light out in the open, not under a bushel basket.’”
He sees JCM stepping into the gap as diversity support has been reduced on campus, offering students something many of them desperately need: a place where they do not have to prove themselves to belong. When students find this community, something shifts.
“They experience a prism,” Matt says, “seeing different angles of truth and love and beauty and justice through each other’s eyes. They enter into a rhythm of community and affirmation of their souls.” Some discern calls to ordained ministry. All discern a call to participate in a more just and loving world.
“I want students to have the opportunities I missed in college,” he says. “I want them to know how fully loved they are, as they are, and let that good news ring out on campus.” So he keeps saying yes.
“Jesus keeps bothering me,” he laughs. “It’s annoying, really. I can’t get him out of my head. And the more I listen, the more it makes sense. The yes always comes. It’s too compelling.”
As board president, Matt now helps steward the future of the very ministry that once shaped him. What excites him most is simple: the students who will walk through the door next.
“To keep this ministry sustained, strong, healthy, so another student can find their way, and find a new way for their life, that’s the dream.” And because of the generosity and prayers of this community, that dream is alive.