Father Rick Ganz, S.J., has taken over as director of University Ministry. Father Ganz ('78) says his top priority will be helping the University "win its mission" as a Catholic and Jesuit institution.

By Dale Goodwin

Father Rick Ganz, S.J., has adventure in his soul. So enduring 17 interviews in three days to become Gonzaga's new director of University Ministry didn't phase him.

After all, this is a man who navigated the white water rapids of the Colorado River, going 110 miles in eight days. He also navigated the Futaleufu River in Patagonia, Chile. And he hiked a 400-mile stretch of the Pacific Trail in Northern California over a 36-day period.

Those who know Fr. Ganz are never surprised by his adventurous undertakings. And Fr. Ganz was not surprised at the great degree of conviction of Gonzaga's faculty and staff to the ideals of Jesuit, Catholic education.

"It makes sense that an institution so complex as Gonzaga wants this unifying element," Fr. Ganz said. "University Ministry is about building unity, about weaving people and their convictions in a way that increases vividness among all rather than reducing all to a bland, generalized neutrality which respects nothing except mediocrity.

"The most obvious and consoling thing I found here was the spirit," he said. "Not just the Holy Spirit, but a distinctive Gonzaga spirit. I was amazed how often I heard faculty members say, 'We really like and rely on each other here.' That speaks volumes of the connection and spirit here. University Ministry will draw upon that, and get in touch with that deeper unity that has its roots in the friendships between faculty and staff."

His top priority will be helping the University "win its mission" as a Catholic and Jesuit institution. His first love is working with students, helping them to realize their own spirituality in whatever form that takes.

The selection of Fr. Ganz to replace John Freeh, who left a year ago, means a homecoming for Fr. Ganz. He graduated from Gonzaga Prep in 1972, and from GU in 1978. He still practices the yoga he learned from Father Tony Lehmann, S.J., 32 years ago. He returned to GU in 1991-92 to serve as a lecturer in Classics, and then again in 1996-97 to continue his theological research for his doctoral program in early Christian theology at the University of Toronto's Regis College.

He is writing a book on friendship and how it serves as the best way to track the Trinity. "It's all about the relationships we build. That's where God's grace comes through," Fr. Ganz said.

He most recently spent a six-year stint at Jesuit High in Portland, where he served as teacher, administrator, trustee and campus ministry team member.

"It's nice to be back among old friends," he said.