Elliott DeRose
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
-Proverbs 3:5-6
God works not in what we think we need, but in what He knows we need. This statement is the cornerstone of my life. I wish I could say, like many of my peers, that I had always dreamt of coming to Canisius, but the truth is, I did not even know of the school’s existence until about the end of middle school. Being brutally honest, I did not even really care where I went to school – I went where my friends were going and did not expect, even at my orientation, to get anything out of it other than a diploma and some throwaway memories. Brothers, was I wrong.
As I tell many of my peers, God was working on me from the first day I stepped through the Blue Doors. At my first 7:45 a.m. Mass, Father Zanoni told this young freshman: “Elliott, you are always welcome in the house of God.”
Since that moment, my eyes opened in ways I cannot explain in such a short message. But what I can share with you now is the most important lesson I have learned over my four years – the true Canisius experience is working at all times to be a Man For and With Others, and God. This small message, which I have been taught to carry out every day, has changed my life profoundly. Canisius has allowed me every opportunity to learn this through immersion trips, retreats, community service, and so much more.
Nicholas, David, Matthew, Cole and Baron, I am honored and humbled to be nominated beside each of you, and to have taken this small yet profound journey in our lives together. God worked through each one of you to touch my soul in some way, shaping me into the man I am today, and I am forever grateful.
To the teachers and staff who have guided me in this journey from the beginning, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have changed my life, Canisius has changed my life, and has laid the foundation for me to confidently take the next step in my story for the greater glory of God.
AMDG
In Gratitude,
Elliott DeRose