Joe Toomey graduated from Saint Louis University with a Bachelor’s degree in History. He was a member of the Chicago community and served at St. Rita of Cascia High School splitting his time between the activities department and the campus ministry.

When I was in high school, I had the privilege of attending two Kairos retreats – one as a junior retreatant, the second as a senior leader. Kairos was one of the more meaningful experiences I had up to that point. It gave my peers and me the opportunity to truly reflect on our faith. When we returned home, we all had the “Kai-high,” an overwhelmingly good feeling. Unfortunately, the Kai-high has a tendency to disappear.

So when I was placed in Chicago at St. Rita High School, I was thrilled when I learned that the students attended Kairos. But maybe on a selfish level, I was probably more thrilled that I was going on Kairos again.

Without giving too much away, the most important aspect of the retreat is the “Fourth Day.” The Fourth Day challenges the retreatant to continue to love, to grow, to be open, to do what is right. In fact, one of my friends from high school still closes every email with “Live the Fourth!”

The question remains, “How am I living the Fourth everyday?” I don’t know if I can talk about one huge moment this year that I saw my faith in action. However, there were little moments.

Every week, a group of students from St. Rita goes to a local soup kitchen called P.A.D.S. (Public Action to Deliver Shelter). This was an especially brutal winter. St. Rita even had a day off because it was too cold outside! The need for places like P.A.D.S. is great, but the need for volunteers to run it is even greater. Whenever it was my turn to chaperone, I never looked forward to it. But once I was actually there, I enjoyed helping out, serving meals, and especially talking to the guests.

I’ve tried to live the Fourth by going to Mass on Sundays. That might not sound like much, but going to Mass can be tough for me. Many times, I don’t enjoy it; I feel like I am there because it is an obligation. But I am trying to make the effort. Dr. Leo Marvin said it best, “Baby steps.”

However I will always remember the relationships that I formed with the students at St. Rita. One student stopped in my office every day at lunch just to say hi. Another, who was a swimmer that I coached, decided to go to college instead of joining the firefighters right away. And there are three special guys that are going to Saint Louis University next year, all of whom I am so proud! There are too many of these guys to name. But most importantly, all these bonds formed on Kairos. I continued to live the Fourth by following up with them, making sure they were making responsible decisions, and simply being there for them. Maybe there were no remarkable breakthroughs, but that’s not always how God works. This year I’ve found that it’s the little things that really matter.