by Marc and Julie Anderson
mjanderson@theleaven.org
TOPEKA — “An Evening of Hope.”
That’s the name of the first fundraiser in the history of Cor Christi Catholic Center in Topeka. Located across from Washburn University’s campus, the center (under different names) has served Catholic students attending Washburn since 1948.
The evening will be held Oct. 18 and starts with 5 p.m. Mass celebrated by Archbishop Shawn McKnight at Mater Dei-Holy Name Church in Topeka. The gala will be held at the Mater Dei Event Center and includes a social hour, dinner and a program.
Jessica Hammer, Cor Christi’s director, has served in the role since the summer of 2022 and has been praying about a fundraiser for months.
In 2023, she was among those who attended SEEK, an annual Catholic conference for young adults organized by the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS).
Hammer learned more there about FOCUS missionaries who reach out to students on college campuses wherever they are — the baseball field, the student union, the dorms, etc. — to help them to grow in relationship with Christ and the Catholic campus community.
When Hammer started, only a handful of students were involved at Cor Christi including two student leaders. Since then, the number of registered members has increased to nearly 60, but Hammer believes the center can reach many more.
“I just believe in my heart there are many more students that we could be reaching if we were able to eventually have FOCUS missionaries like all of the other campus centers,” she said.
Father George Rhodes, Cor Christi’s chaplain, agreed.
“We have big dreams for the center, which is why we are putting so much effort into investing into Cor Christi’s future both with this to-be-annual event of ‘Evening of Hope’ and with other efforts, such as hoping to hire a development director,” he said.
“Ultimately, though,” he added, “our biggest goals will always tend towards fulfilling our mission to minister to the spiritual needs of the Washburn University community.”
Ministering to that community, said Father Rhodes, means helping students grow closer to the heart of Christ, a goal reflected by the center’s name change in 2024 from the Catholic Campus Center at Washburn University to Cor Christi Catholic Center. The name is Latin for “heart of Christ.”
“[The new name] gives a particular image for us, which fosters devotion — and a particularly eucharistic image, at that. We desire to minister from the merciful heart of Our Lord and to bring those to whom we minister closer to that same heart,” Father Rhodes said.
Ministering to others is what the student officers say they enjoy.
Joshua Lambert, a third-year law student from Houston, said he found the center in August 2023 quite by accident and now wants others to discover the same love he’s found in Christ and his Catholic faith.
“Law school is kind of an arduous study. It’s one of the more difficult things I’ve ever done, and kind of toward the beginning of my time in that fall of 2023, I was really struggling spiritually, mentally and physically with the amount of work and everything,” he said.
At the time, Lambert hadn’t attended Mass in years.
One day, Lambert looked up the nearest Catholic church. Finding Cor Christi, he headed directly there, not even sure it was open.
After being greeted by Hammer, he asked if confession was available. He felt his soul needed some healing.
About to start a weekly student meeting, Hammer took Father Rhodes aside. Father Rhodes agreed to hear Lambert’s confession, and Lambert’s been with Cor Christi ever since.
“It has given me that spiritual guidance necessary to really succeed in law school,” he said.
Like Lambert, vice president Alli Mead didn’t plan on going to Cor Christi either.
Originally from Lakin, Mead was raised Catholic, but never felt comfortable at her home parish.
At new student orientation in 2024, she met representatives from Cor Christi and decided to give Mass one more try. If she didn’t feel comfortable, she was never going to “attend a church anywhere across the world.”
Her first Mass was last year’s kickoff Mass followed by food and fellowship.
“I met these amazing people who were so welcoming and kind,” she said, adding that the center has been helping her grow in her faith and serve others.
“It’s been a great way to really come back to the church,” Mead added.
When current president Jude Gallegos, originally from Topeka, moved on campus as a freshman, he decided to attend the kickoff Mass at Cor Christi. Like Mead, he felt at home instantly.
College, Gallegos said, can be tough for Catholic students as professors can present ideas contrary to Catholic teaching. Cor Christi, he said, has helped him navigate some of those challenging situations. In between or after classes, Gallegos said he often heads to Cor Christi to talk with and seek the counsel of Hammer, Father Rhodes and other students.
“A lot of my close friends are from the center,” he said, adding he’d like the center to serve more students, a goal shared by Father Rhodes and Hammer.
“We want to continue to grow. These students are our future, and we need to invest in them,” Hammer said.
Learn more
For more information about Cor Christi, visit the website at: wucatholic.com.
For more information about the Evening of Hope fundraiser, go online to: wucatholic.com/cor-christi-2025-evening-of-hope.
If you cannot make the gala
Both Father Rhodes and Hammer said there are many ways archdiocesan Catholics, especially Washburn alumni, can get involved with Cor Christi and support its mission:
• Make a financial contribution to the gala or Cor Christi itself. Cor Christi has a unique opportunity to raise funds through an anonymous donor who agreed to match financial contributions up to $25,000.
• If you know a Catholic student attending Washburn University, tell them about Cor Christi.
• Pray regularly for the students, especially during finals.
• Offer to provide a meal for the Sunday suppers after Mass by providing a monetary donation or preparing a light meal for the center.
• Assist with daily cleaning or deep cleaning efforts, such as washing windows or painting the center. Or, offer to help with grounds upkeep and maintenance efforts.
• Donate snacks, bottled water, sodas and juices. College students, Hammer said, are always hungry.
• Drop by Cor Christi and spend time getting to know some students.
