Throughout Wednesday, thousands of Catholic students and community members flooded in to St. Thomas Aquinas Church to celebrate Ash Wednesday.

For many students, Ash Wednesday is a different experience than it was in high school. In high school, some may be more influenced by their parents, but in college, students may have more of a choice to attend church functions. 

David Pedersen, senior in supply chain management and accounting and president of the Catholic Student Community, said he fell out of touch with his faith for about two years before reconnecting. In his time in the church, Pedersen said he has seen many college students go through a similar process.

Ann McLoughlin, senior in mechanical engineering and a peer minister at St. Thomas Aquinas, agreed with Pedersen. She mostly sees freshmen and sophomores struggling to continue their faith while they are figuring out how to handle all of their new commitments. She sees many juniors and seniors coming back and expressing their faith because they’re ready, and this time, it is their choice.

Brian Odino, junior in animal science and a peer minister at St. Thomas Aquinas, grew up not going to church and having very little interest in his faith until his senior year of high school. He then started to commit himself and now sees this holiday as “something to use to dive deep in to my faith adventure. It is a sacrifice to really go in to.”

In addition to continuing her faith, one of McLoughlin’s favorite parts of Lent is the sense of unity it brings. Other students on campus wear ashes on their foreheads, have to abstain from meat on Fridays and either give up something as a sacrifice or do something for the betterment of themselves or the community.

“[Wearing ashes is] a silent way of professing your faith,” McLoughlin said.

Pedersen went further, saying it brought together practicing Catholics throughout the entire community of Ames.

“You’ll have people who are making a lot of money at some university job, and then you’ll have some people who are coming off the street, working a minimum wage job standing side by side and they’ll both receive the ashes because in God’s eyes, they’re equal,” Pedersen said.

After the buildup to Ash Wednesday, Pedersen also said that for many, the attention shifts to one-day holidays such as Easter and Christmas, but the 40-day challenge of Lent helps remind him that “our work is never really done.”

“It’s a time for true humility,” Odino said. “I go into it understanding that it is a time to grow and make the world better.”