Ikigai

Michael first met Rev. Katie Gooch while he was a PhD student at VCU in 2017, studying Nuclear Engineering. “I wasn't quite the lonely, lost freshman,” he said. Michael had been at VCU for two years. He was on the rowing team and was friendly with students in his department. Then one day, he noticed the Pace Center from across Monroe Park. “I grew up Methodist and I was curious about Pace.” 

Katie, new in her role as campus minister, was interviewing students about the kind of community they wanted at VCU. “Katie and I just started talking and she told me about asset-based community development.” The concept reminded Michael of ikigai—finding the intersection of what you’re good at, what the world needs, and what fulfills you. “For me, it was cooking for a bunch of people.” 

From this, Community Café - Pace’s first community meal - was formed. At first, Michael was the only cook, but after a few weeks, the event had a following. “Duke and his friend, Kofi, would cook Ghanaian food and Miroslava cooked Slovakian.” Through Pace, students were able to form a community outside of school and work. “I was able to invite people from my program in the engineering school. Pace is really where we got to become friends outside of our classes.” 

Michael and his classmates weren’t the only students who benefitted from the new community that formed. “Shy students would show up to help cook. Over time, they started to come out of their shells and became part of the team. That sense of belonging kept them returning.”

Now supervising a team of eleven at Idaho National Lab, Michael uses the asset‑based skills he learned at Pace to manage: he matches tasks to strengths and listens before assigning roles. “You can build a stronger community when you ask people to use their assets and what they’re good at.”

Michael graduated in 2019 and is now a donor to Pace. “I give because I believe in what Pace does. I want Pace to continue creating opportunities for students to grow and build better communities. That’s something I believe in.”

Thank you - to Michael and all our donors - for making it possible for students to build community at Pace and beyond.