Jaime Barta
Episode 69
25 MAY 2020
A junior at Syracuse University where she plays on the softball team after having played at a different school each of the previous two years. In high school she had been a four-time all-state selection and set six school records. Her faith walk includes work that she did for a refugee family, which she mentions in this interview. Her father is a longtime baseball coach and her mother played college softball.
Notable guest quotes:
“Growing up we didn’t have a ton of friends from a young age, so, we grew close as a family and bonded over a lot of things like sports and obviously our faith.”
“(her dad) has had a huge impact on me. He was a devout Catholic and shared that with us and really led our family in that spiritual aspect of how important your faith is in your life. And it was non-negotiable. We were going to Mass every Sunday wherever we were. Whether we were at a tournament or we were scouting with him, we always found a church to go to Mass.”
“In seventh grade when I started Confirmation prep, something just changed, something clicked, just spiritually my faith became my own. It wasn’t my parents taking me to Mass, it was me feeling that presence.”
“Faith isn’t about feelings, but, when you have that and you’re on fire for it, it’s a big time in your life.”
“Throughout my life I just really felt a connection to (Joan of Arc) and she’s just been really important in my faith life for me.”
“The Catholic high school was pretty expensive in town and I begged my parents to go, and, knowing it would be a financial burden, but I just really wanted that opportunity to grow in my faith every day at a school like that. So, they made the sacrifices to send me there and I’m so thankful still.”
“In my freshman year on a retreat… I kind of discovered Adoration and just fell in love with it and then throughout my four years of high school I would go to Adoration daily during lunch, in our chapel… And it was just really transformative for my faith.”
“When I first got to college that was the first real test of my faith and my conviction… (but) …we had a really strong Neuman Center, which was really helpful for me and I had a teammate who was also Catholic, so that helped immensely just having that, kind of, accountability partner. We would go to Mass every Sunday.”
“Get to know (teammates) and let them get to know you and… I want them to know, like, I’m not judging them. I’m just here to love them and be their teammate. So, just getting to know the person in their heart and showing them the love of Christ through that relationship and just how you treat them every day.”
Related link:
Jaime’s bio on Syracuse University website
