Miles for Ministry slated for Saturday, August 19, 2023

The U.P. Catholic

Dedicated runners and bikers are once again preparing to set out on a 31-mile trek in the name of supporting Catholic Campus Ministry (CCM) at Northern Michigan University (NMU) during their fundraising event, Miles for Ministry, and will start at St. Joseph in Ishpeming and end their race at St. Michael and CCM in Marquette.

In 2016, CCM held its first ever Miles for Ministry campaign when Father Brandon Oman, previous chaplain of CCM and an avid biker, armed with a team of CCM alumni and students, hit the streets (and trails) to raise funds for CCM by biking the famous “Ore to Shore,” which is a 48-mile bike race that starts in Negaunee and follows the Iron Ore Heritage trail all the way to the shoreline of Lake Superior in Marquette. In 2019, Fr. Oman ran the Marquette Half Marathon, preparing to hand off the torch to the next campus minister.

In 2020, CCM had to get creative due to COVID and the cancellation of the Marquette Half Marathon. Their solution was to invent their own 31-mile relay race from one Catholic parish to the next. The race starts in Ishpeming and runs through all six Catholic parishes in the greater Marquette area and has since become a recurring event year after year to support CCM.
“I support CCM because it is the best way for a student at Northern to encounter the love of Jesus Christ through the Eucharist, Scripture, and a vibrant community striving for sainthood together which will shape the future of our church,” said seminarian Zack Mazurek, of St. Sebastian in Bessemer.

Father Dustin Larson, the current chaplain of CCM, has been running or biking various legs of this relay ever since, joined by a growing number of students, alumni, and friends of CCM, and 2023’s relay race will be no different.

Among the six priests of the diocese running in the 2023 race is Father Tom Merkel, pastor of St. Louis the King parish in Harvey. Fr. Merkel is an alumnus of NMU, as well as CCM, and said “I believe supporting CCM is one of the most important ministries in our diocese. CCM played an important part in my vocational discernment.”

The 2023 race will be held on Saturday Aug. 19. The relay will be shared on CCM’s Facebook page, including a livestream of the event starting at 8:30 a.m. until the relay is finished. CCM’s 2023 goal is $31,000 for the 31 miles in the relay, and they have a dollar-for-dollar match of $15,000.

Fr. Larson said “I love being the Chaplain at Catholic Campus Ministry at NMU! It is truly a place where our young adults are formed to be the future of our Church. If you are worried about our “young people”, know that they are at CCM, strengthening one another in the faith and growing in their friendship with Jesus.” He also said in a letter in the Miles for Ministry Appeal, “Our Miles for Ministry 2023 appeal will once again be facilitating the behind the scenes nuts and bolts that make CCM possible. The beginning of the semester is the most crucial time for CCM students to meet new NMU students, and I want to ensure our students have all the resources they need to become the most effective student leaders.”

If you are interested in becoming a monthly donor, your first full year of donations will count toward the match grant. To donate to Miles for Ministry, visit nmucatholic.org/M4M or to donate monthly, visit nmucatholic.org/LFS.

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