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Lauren Fabich

fabich_l.jpg“My involvement in the CCO’s ministry gave me a good grasp on how to share my faith with people,” says Lauren Fabich. “I draw on what I learned through the ministry every time I get to spend time with the youth from church, and I live it out through being a parent, a wife, a student, a youth leader, a teacher—everything.”

When Lauren arrived for her freshman year at Waynesburg University, it was a top priority for her to connect to other Christians on campus. She is thankful that her Resident Director, CCO staff member Kelly Van Zomeren, sought her out. “I started hanging out with other Christian students. Kelly recruited me to the leadership team of the fellowship, and by my senior year, I was helping to run things—leading Bible studies, going to Jubilee, and so on.”

Jubilee was an annual event for Lauren throughout her years at Waynesburg, and she continued to attend even after graduating. “Jubilee was a great re-energizer,” she says. “It made me think about my faith and how to apply it in everyday experiences, and how to reach out to other students. I really looked forward to getting pumped back up about my job as a student.”

Today, Lauren lives in Erie, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Ron, and their two children. She is grateful for the privilege of being a stay-at-home mom, and she’s points back to the foundation set for her in college for how to pursue the important work of making a home.

“It’s been a commitment and a sacrifice financially, but it’s worth it to be at home with my kids,” says Lauren, who earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s in education and reading. She plans to return to teaching once her children are older. Meanwhile, she is grateful that she was given tools as a college student to make decisions based on her faith about how to best live her life. “Because of the way my faith was strengthened in college, I choose to teach my children about Christ, to be involved at church, to stay at home with my kids. Ron and I seek God’s wisdom in what we needed to do as parents. Do I work and pay for daycare, or do I stay home? My faith informed that decision.”

Lauren and Ron are active members of First Presbyterian Church of the Covenant, where Lauren volunteers as a youth leader, a Sunday school teacher, and with the Mom’s Bible study. She has also participated on mission trips and various committees. As she looks back to her college days, Lauren is grateful for a CCO ministry which kept her accountable to reading God’s Word and encouraged her to become a competent, positive leader.

“Because living out my faith was so new to me when I got to college, I can’t imagine how it would have been without the CCO ministry. My college experience wouldn’t have been the same, and I think I would have floundered in my faith,” Lauren says. “Because of what I experienced then, I continue to seek that kind of fellowship now. I know I need fellow Christians to keep me accountable and consistent. When you’re around good people like that, you don’t want to not be around good people.”