Walking around the halls of Gonzaga, one will notice a person with a welcoming smile and a cart of food. The cart of food is for those at the McKenna Center, and the smile is for anyone who passes her. This person is Ms. Danielle Flood, assistant director of campus ministry.
Ms. Flood started working at Gonzaga after completing her master’s degree in social work at the Catholic University of America. In college, she spent hours working in the campus ministry office at CUA to get a little more money and wound up loving the work. When she found an opening at Gonzaga, she jumped at the opportunity to be a campus minister here. Ever since taking the job, she has loved every minute of working at Gonzaga.
Ms. Flood started working at Gonzaga during the summer of 2017, the year the class of 2021 started. Ms. Flood’s job as assistant director of campus ministry is a busy one; she is in charge of immersion trips, the freshman retreat, the sophomore retreats and Kairos. Ms. Flood was enamored with the closeness and the brotherhood of Gonzaga after attending her first freshman retreat.
When asked about the best part of her job, Ms. Flood said, “It’s the kind of environment where students just feel comfortable pulling up a chair and hanging out and growing in community with each other.”
On any given day, the campus ministry office can be home to freshmen looking for Kohlmann Hall, sophomores and juniors dropping donations off or seniors going in to hang out and chat with the campus ministry gang. The campus ministry office offers students a relaxing atmosphere where they can feel comfortable to hang out and speak freely about their faith with one another.
In the world of COVID-19, campus ministry has had to change the layout of its retreats and programs dramatically. Immersion trips had to be cancelled for the spring and summer, retreats were broken down into cohorts and simple service opportunities became a zoom link away. As for finding faith in times of COVID-19, Ms. Flood answers that she finds God in the little things.
“If you’re on the lookout for where love is alive, you’re going to find God,” Ms. Flood said.
Ms. Flood explains she has been able to find God in the little things during COVID-19, including kids stopping by the office to hang out; she says if that is where love is then that is where God is.
Carol Corgan • Feb 25, 2021 at 8:39 am
Mak–I love this article on Ms. Flood. You capture her enthusiasm and generosity perfectly!