Student Profile: Victoria Olabintan, Finding Community Through Faith
By Maggie Carder
On the very last day of her junior year of high school, Victoria Olabintan ’27 received a call from Destiny, a Saint Mary’s admission counselor, who encouraged her to check out the College. Olabintan, who came from a large high school of nearly 5,000 students, had never heard of Saint Mary’s, but she thought, “Because they took the time to call me, I will look into it and apply.” She eventually met Destiny and attended a preview day. Olabintan was so impressed that she began to fully immerse herself in the campus culture and what would end up being her Saint Mary’s destiny.
The St. John (IN) native expressed her love for Saint Mary's size and how personal it feels to be in touch with her professors. “They know my name, my struggles, and how to help me.” As a first-year student, it took Olabintan a second to find her footing, and because of her connection with her professors, she found The Center for Faith, Action, and Ministry (CFAM). “I learned how many nursing majors are also involved with CFAM and how it could help me socially.” This was the beginning of Olabintan’s dive into her faith exploration at Saint Mary’s. She began attending CFAM’s Monday night small groups and even went on a spring retreat, where she met some of her best friends. “These experiences helped me to build community faith-wise, in my major, and in my life,” Olabintan said
Her faith now plays a strong role in her life at Saint Mary’s. “This was a new environment that I've never been in before, and it felt like a lot of change,” Olabintan said that CFAM’S yearly spring retreat: Resplendent at Camp Ray Bird allowed her to reflect and learn about ways to find God in the new, complex, or changing moments in life, even when it's not evident at the forefront. This realization led her to become a ministry assistant. Ministry assistants are trained to serve their fellow students as leaders of faith and role models, on and off campus. They lead small groups, prayer experiences, and retreats, offer hospitality to students, and connect them to opportunities in CFAM. Structured as a parallel position to resident assistants (RAs), ministry assistants live in the residence halls and serve as a dedicated spiritual resource for the hall. Olabintan explains: “We're in charge of caring for the chapels and the spiritual aspects of the dorm, and the campus as a whole. We act as sacristans, assisting in preparing the church for Mass, and we host small groups and events relating to the Mass. “Anything involving spiritual light on campus, usually, we have some hand in it,” She said
Olabintan shares her knowledge wherever she can with others. “I always say, all roads lead back to CFAM.” There's some way that I can incorporate what I have learned into the work that I do as a ministry assistant and bring that out to other people,” She said. Olabintan credits her service work for shaping her time at Saint Mary’s. She presents this as a “way of worship” and “serving God on her own accord.” One of those experiences was heading to New York to help those experiencing homelessness. “We would go out every day into the city and do service with other groups at a retreat center, and serve food to the guests. We did five weeks of preparation beforehand, then another five weeks of reflection afterward,” she said. “I think we really got involved in what it means to serve. Not just giving of yourself, but also opening up your mind to what other people are experiencing.”
“I think the best way I can think about that experience is to answer the questions: ‘Who is your neighbor?’ and 'How can I serve my neighbor?’ It was totally life-changing.” This led her to begin serving closer to home. Olabintan started volunteering at Our Lady of the Road and at the College’s Sustainable Farm.
Olabintan sees community in all her service, whether it is on campus at CFAM or her work as a ministry assistant, or off campus, within the people she meets through her volunteer work. She especially sees it here at the College, and that is her favorite. “That's the beauty of this campus; people want to get to know you and be a part of it. I just don't know that I would find that anywhere else.”
December 5, 2025