Erick Josué Villegas Correa is a seminarian from the diocese of Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico.
"My parents instilled Christian and human values in me since I was a child, I completed my basic education in a Catholic school, and we participated in mass on Sundays, so the figure of the priest always represented for me something worthy of respect and admiration; that was motivating in me a desire to serve others in a similar way, and the desire for a priestly vocation began to grow within me.
In 2010 I entered the seminary, in the minor seminary stage, where from that moment on I have been growing and maturing this response to this vocation, with the help of my formators, companions, friends, my parents, etc.
Finishing my first year of theology in my diocese, in 2018, my formators asked me to continue my theological studies at the University of Navarra, residing at the International Ecclesiastical College Bidasoa, where I am currently, with the intention of continuing my formation in this vocational process.
Arriving here in Pamplona, at the University of Navarra, and in Bidasoa, has been a great experience for me; it has been the first time I have left my country, and being able to share with many people from other countries has really marked me and reaffirmed my desire to serve souls, and has helped me to realize the universality of the Church.
My stay here has also been marked by a painful experience: the loss of my mother, on July 24, 2019, when I was on summer pastoral care in Santiago de Compostela; it was a very painful experience, being far from home, but full of faith, and hope that God wants something from me, and that I know that she from heaven accompanies me in my vocation, as she did in life."
"DI want to thank you for the financial support I have received during these years of my formation, and even more so in the midst of this pandemic that has affected us all in the last year.
In view of this support, in which many people are behind, one way to show my gratitude is in this achievement, which is verified in my grades, which I can say have been satisfactorily approved; although I will continue to strive to improve them even more.
I hope that God will continue to bless your work, your dedication and your service to the Church and to your priests and seminarians, and that he will reward one hundredfold what you do for us, and I reiterate my most sincere thanks, hoping that the Virgin Mary will continue to protect this good work.
