Sixth hour in the campus ministry room has a certain buzz these days. In fact, one would be pressed to find an open seat as a bevy of giggling freshmen fill the tight room to its brim. They’re here to talk to BSM’s newest intern, Mr. Sawyer Phillips.

Phillips, a senior at the University of St. Thomas, comes to BSM every Tuesday and Thursday as a part of his internship at BSM. “As I’ve grown up in college, I’ve developed my relationship with the Lord a lot through being in campus ministry at school. I had the opportunity to come here, and I thought it would be a great way to minister to high school students as well,” Phillips said.

His work goes far past secretarial office task. Phillips has brought life into campus ministry with his lunchtime talks  “Lunchtime talks basically is allowing people to get together to have lunch in a more relaxed space than the lunch room. Typically I pose questions. For example, [we talk about] what ways you have focused on trust this week. Also, we talk about life events like the freshmen retreat,” Phillips said.

The effect that these personal talks have had on those who sat in on them is shown by the sheer number of giddy freshmen who pack into the confined space. As a graduate of Andover high school, Phillips was a four sport athlete. He has extended his vigor to his college studies, where he is pursuing a double major in Spanish and justice and peace studies.

Phillips does not know what his future holds, but hopes to make good use of his double major. “Graduating in December, I have nine months of school left and one week of finals, and that’s it. I’m not sure with what God is going to do with that, but right now my plan is to trust Him and be open to opportunities to teach after or do mission work,” Phillips said.

Phillips brings a burst of youth and energy into Campus Ministry while having collegiate level education in the fields of social justice. Whether Phillips brings his talent and experiences to BSM in the future or to another valiant career, his time at BSM has affected Campus Ministry.