Meet Our 2023 WYD Scholarship Recipient
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The Eparchy of Parma is pleased to announce Gina DeFilippo as this year’s World Youth Day Scholarship Recipient.
Gina has been a member of St. Nicholas Byzantine Parish in Barberton for almost 3 years. She has over eight years of experience as a professional artist, skilled in music production, singing, songwriting, music, photography, videography, and graphic design. Gina has been taking pictures of the Divine Liturgy at St. Nick’s, especially on different feast days, capturing the beauty of the Byzantine Catholic faith. She is currently on the Gala Committee for the Chesterton Academy of Akron, a Catholic Apostolate High School that aims to provide an affordable classical education in the Catholic tradition and in the process of creating a song for a charitable foundation, Charlotte's Hope Foundation.
When asked what attending World Youth Day would mean to her, Gina said, “Meeting others who love Christ and His Church would be a blessing, along with learning how to better evangelize through our God-given gifts.” When asked about her faith and why it is important to her, Gina replied, “Byzantine spirituality has not only given me so much hope, but it has profoundly impacted my way of understanding how to live life as a Christian.” We highly appreciate Gina’s work with St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic Parish and Father Miron Keruľ-Kmec and look forward to her representing the Eparchy in Lisbon, Portugal from August 1-6, 2023, during this year’s Evening of Hope, and within our Horizons magazine. We are thrilled to help support her spiritual and international experience!
To see more of Gina's work, click here.
About the Eparchy’s 2023 World Youth Day Scholarship
The Eparchy of Parma will sponsor an all-expenses paid pilgrimage for 1 young adult member of our Eparchy to attend the World Youth Day Pilgrimage to Lisbon. They will enjoy a European road trip with fellow Byzantine Catholics from Slovakia and the US, stopping in Venice, Lourdes, and Fatima, before arriving to Lisbon to participate in the World Youth Days from August 1-6, 2023. In turn, the recipient will photograph and film their experience, capture testimonials from fellow participants, speak at the Eparchy's Annual Evening of Hope Gala, and provide an article of reflection for Horizons. Footage will be used in future Eparchy marketing and communication campaigns and potentially by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
