The Family Room (The Quest)
Join co-hosts Mari Cleveland from St. Jude the Apostle and John Gordon and Craig Wesemeyer from St. Peter Chanel as they speak with authors, theologians, and local priests and lay leaders to provide your family encouragement, resources, and hope. Enjoy heartfelt stories and engaging conversations with Catholics who are excited to share their life experiences and acquired wisdom to help your family continue to live out your faith with joy.
May 14, 2025
Millennials Seek Authentic Friendships
Paul and Ashlyn McNeil, Life Teen Missionaries
When text messages replaced face-to-face meetings, it created a vortex few saw coming. Was this new way of communicating an exciting prelude to the future or an ominous sign we were losing authentic relationships?
As millennials, Paul and Ashlyn McNeil carried cell phones everywhere. It was part of who they were, and yet there was an invisible barrier they couldn’t predict. Paul talks about how his job left him restless and unhappy. As a couple, they began seeking God in a deeper way and, after they married, Paul enrolled in a Master’s degree program in Denver. There they found a community who offered something new and unique. Their friends back home were great fun, but this new group cared about their souls. They wanted to help them become saints, calling them to holiness in ways Paul describes as the “launchpad of their marriage.” Even their professors lived lives of powerful witness.
This left them longing to imitate them, leading to the mission field. First they joined FOCUS, which is a ministry aimed at college students. Now Paul is the Director of Life Teen’s Hidden Lake campground, which focuses on bringing teenagers to Christ. Living on campus and learning to build an authentic Catholic community now fulfills a dream Paul and Ashlyn can proudly pass on to their own children.
Bio: Paul grew up Catholic, attending Catholic schools, but he admits never paying much attention to the details. Ashlyn’s mom converted to Catholicism when she was in kindergarten, but her dad never went to church. They met in high school where Ashlyn became enamored when Paul spent spring break on a mission trip, and her friends went to the beach. They began dating in high school and the rest, as they say, is history! Paul is now the Director at Life Teen’s Hidden Lake Campground in Dahlonega, Georgia, and they have four young children.
Resources:
When text messages replaced face-to-face meetings, it created a vortex few saw coming. Was this new way of communicating an exciting prelude to the future or an ominous sign we were losing authentic relationships?
As millennials, Paul and Ashlyn McNeil carried cell phones everywhere. It was part of who they were, and yet there was an invisible barrier they couldn’t predict. Paul talks about how his job left him restless and unhappy. As a couple, they began seeking God in a deeper way and, after they married, Paul enrolled in a Master’s degree program in Denver. There they found a community who offered something new and unique. Their friends back home were great fun, but this new group cared about their souls. They wanted to help them become saints, calling them to holiness in ways Paul describes as the “launchpad of their marriage.” Even their professors lived lives of powerful witness.
This left them longing to imitate them, leading to the mission field. First they joined FOCUS, which is a ministry aimed at college students. Now Paul is the Director of Life Teen’s Hidden Lake campground, which focuses on bringing teenagers to Christ. Living on campus and learning to build an authentic Catholic community now fulfills a dream Paul and Ashlyn can proudly pass on to their own children.
Bio: Paul grew up Catholic, attending Catholic schools, but he admits never paying much attention to the details. Ashlyn’s mom converted to Catholicism when she was in kindergarten, but her dad never went to church. They met in high school where Ashlyn became enamored when Paul spent spring break on a mission trip, and her friends went to the beach. They began dating in high school and the rest, as they say, is history! Paul is now the Director at Life Teen’s Hidden Lake Campground in Dahlonega, Georgia, and they have four young children.
Resources:
- FOCUS Missionaries - Fellowship of Catholic University Students
- Life Teen – Leading Teens Closer to Christ
- Life Teen Hidden Lake
- Augustine Institute
- Song: “Promises” by Maverick City
