Dear friends,

My name is Joe DeReuil. I am a 2024 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, and I intend to enter the postulancy for the Norbertines of St. Michael's Abbey in Silverado, CA this fall. I am writing to humbly ask for your financial assistance to make this possible.

I graduated from Notre Dame this May with a degree in philosophy and classics. During my studies, I planned to pursue a career in journalism. Beyond my coursework, I devoted much of my time to editing and writing for The Irish Rover, a student newspaper at the university committed to upholding and defending Notre Dame's Catholic character. 

This work consumed most of my time outside of schoolwork—reporting on campus news and politics and even defending the paper from a frivolous lawsuit brought against us by a pro-abortion professor after my writing about her actions was picked up in the national media. 

Despite the success and excitement of our journalistic work, I began to feel last fall that a career in journalism was not the path I should pursue after graduation—I began to think that perhaps God was calling me to something better. 

After a handful of encounters with the Norbertine's during their visits to Notre Dame, I opened my mind to the possibility of a religious vocation. I went on a Come and See visit to their Abbey in Silverado, CA after the fall semester of my senior year, last December. 

Through this visit—in addition to conversations with friends, mentors, and the priests and brothers in this community—I decided in January to apply to enter. I was accepted this March, and I intend to enter the community as a postulant in August. 

At this point, my only remaining hurdle to entering is financial. As a religious, I will, God willing, make a vow of poverty. But before I can enter formation to discern this, I must discharge all of my current debts. As a recent college graduate, I have accumulated student debt which, unfortunately, is beyond my abilities to pay off through working full time this summer. 

At this point, I am one month into working for the summer, and I have calculated that the remainder of the summer's work will leave me about $6,000 short of what I will need to pay off my debt. I humbly ask for any assistance you are able to offer in reaching this goal. After raising this amount and working for the remaining two months of the summer, I will be able to enter as a postulant on August 27 this year.

Thank you in advance for your support. Please keep me in your prayers— regardless of whether you are able to assist financially. 

Sincerely, 

Joe DeReuil