Cristina Catterton

Administrative Assistant

Phone: 703-841-2559
Email: cristina.catterton@arlingtondiocese.org

History/Resume
Active in youth ministry since: 2018

In this current position since: January 2022

Job description includes: I'm the first person you see when you walk into the office and usually the first person you talk to when you call the office! I maintain social media/web content and newsletters, as well as support and assisting OYCYAM staff in other events and projects. 

Favorites

Favorite Food(s):  Cinnamon rolls

Favorite Band:  Laufey :)

Favorite Pastime:  I love playing the piano/guitar/clarinet (really just anything with music), painting, reading, writing, but also I love spending time with and having good conversations with friends.

Favorite Saints:   Top 5 (in no particular order): St. Teresa of Avila, Our Lady, St. Faustina, JPII, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

Favorite Scripture:  "It was good for me to be afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes" (Psalm 119:71)

Favorite Book:  “Return of the Prodigal Son” by Henri Nouwen 

Why I work in Youth Ministry
I didn't actually have anything to do with youth ministry until I joined a Bible study in the spring of my freshman year of college! Once I had my own life-changing encounter with the Living Christ in the Eucharist that year, and in discerning whether I wanted to lead a bible study my sophomore year (spoiler alert: I did), I realized that my life's work was going to be to make sure other people knew how loved they are by the Lover of their souls. In college that meant leading a Bible study and the Works of Mercy ministry (specifically homeless/street ministry), and after I graduated in the spring I began volunteering with some youth ministries in Jacksonville, FL. It's so fulfilling to know that the work I do has a direct impact on the Church and Kingdom of God!

About Me:
I was born in the D.C. area and raised in the Catholic Diocese of Arlington. I went to Saint James through third grade and then Our Lady of Good Counsel through sixth, before switching to public schools. It was in public school that I fell in love with Beauty through music, not knowing that God was the Beauty I sought. From there, I went to George Mason University for a Bachelor of Music in Clarinet Performance. Spring of my freshman year I left the practice rooms for just an hour, had a life-changing encounter with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and fell in love with Love Himself. After that, I became incredibly active in the campus ministry, leading a Bible study, on retreat teams, and leading the Works of Mercy ministry. I graduated over the summer of 2021 and moved to Jacksonville with my family before finding my home back in the Diocese of Arlington. 

Birthdate: June 11