PHOTOS | Fiat Fest 2025: Where Faith, Family and Fun Fuel the Catholic Mission in the Rockies
- Guest Contributor
- 3 hours ago
- 5 min read
From running trails to reaching hearts, Fiat Fest fuels the year-round missionary work of Annunciation Heights.
By Joe Donelson
On a sunny summer day in Estes Park, excitement filled the air as the community of Annunciation Heights, the archdiocesan camp, gathered at the starting line of a challenging three-mile obstacle course. With the blast of the starting horn, they surged forward, marking the kickoff of the 6th annual Fiat Fest. This vibrant event celebrated not only their community spirit but also the year’s Altum Institute missionaries.
“Fiat Fest is a day where we invite all of our friends, and everybody who loves camp — and even people who don’t know us — to come up and participate in an adventure race,” said Father Ryan O’Neill, chaplain of Annunciation Heights. “We also invite them to consider supporting our missionary program, the Altum Institute Missionaries. It’s similar to what FOCUS does, but it’s focused — excuse the pun — on serving the programs of this camp.”
For fifteen months, missionaries with the Altum Institute commit to living in and serving the camp, especially by evangelizing the thousands of young souls that come to Annunciation Heights throughout the year. They also assist with camp upkeep, promotion and organization.
For Giovanni Ramirez, an alumnus of the Altum Institute missionary program, the young adults serving as missionaries are the caretakers of Annunciation Heights.
“They are the core of the camp; they’re the ones who are responsible for keeping it running. Like, ‘Hey, we have this pipe out back and we need to dig it out of the ground,’ and also, ‘We have this group of kids coming in and they might struggle in one way or another.’ The missionaries are at the core of everything. We can’t do this alone, though,” he told the Denver Catholic.
(Photos by Joe Donelson)
To drum up support for the missionaries and the Altum Institute missionary program, Annunciation Heights hosts Fiat Fest each summer. The event is a fun means to encourage the continuation of the program’s outreach, and to honor the monumental impact the program has and continues to have on the families, visitors and staff at the archdiocesan camp.
“These missionaries are formed in the pillars of wonder, trust and self-gift. I’ve been blessed with time as a missionary here, so it’s really special to be able to give back in this way,” said Callie Gubera, the camp’s director of mission advancement and a missionary alumna. “We’re looking to raise funds for things like pilgrimage, programming costs, travel costs, and Bible study materials. There’s a lot that goes into forming these young adults. This is what it’s all about.”
“So many can’t give fifteen months of their lives to serve in that front-line way, but Fiat Fest gives people the opportunity to join in the mission monetarily, presence-wise at this fest and just to share the joy of what it means to live a life with Christ,” added William Muraski, Annunciation Heights’ director of youth and family programs and a missionary alumnus.
A life with Christ indeed constitutes great joy, and the power of a community focused on him amplifies its reach. As those participating in the race run, they smile and laugh through the ten faith-themed obstacles placed along the course. The wind blows, knocking festivity preparations over left and right, but still, the community soars with joy.
And at the core of it all is prayer. Even as they play well, they make sure to pray well, too.
“We’re always striving for the will of the Lord,” Muraski continued. “Recently, we have really doubled down on what it means to be people of prayer. From the way we do meetings to the way we operate programming, everything comes back to not bringing our will to the Lord, but rather going to prayer and asking, ‘Lord, what is your will?’ and then hearing that and executing it.”
Among the missionaries, too, a spirit of prayer is vital for a strong community, added Josh Dalton, a newly minted missionary alumnus.
“One of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had is the beauty of brotherhood and sisterhood,” he said, reflecting on his time as a missionary now coming to an end. “Just living with people that are striving for the faith as much as I want to, and having that support and love from the community is so amazing. It’s inspired me to go on and find that community in other places and live rooted in prayer.”
Not only has Josh expanded his community and understanding of his faith, but he and his fellow missionaries have also personally impacted the lives of over 2,500 souls in the past year.
“We’ve done that as a team, all working in our own different areas of expertise. It’s taught me a lot about humility; we’re always seeking to care for one another before we care for ourselves, no matter how hard the week was,” he explained.
This sense of community and support not only defines their mission work but also pervades the annual Fiat Fest event. Following the fun adventure race, the families, friends and missionaries gathered at Annunciation Heights came together for fellowship, complete with live music and great food. It’s a time of celebration for the missionaries, summer staff, alumni and community, as they give thanks for all the good that God brings about through Annunciation Heights.
“We spend our whole summer with kids and families, just doing our best to facilitate encounter with God here,” said Lauren Munn, one of the summer staff. “That can be tiring as staff, and it’s tempting to just want to rest these last few days, but then we give it one more go and we pour out once again — in such a fun way — to fundraise so that this can happen time and time again. It’s a day of remembering the summer, but it’s also a day to look at what we get to do in the future.”
And there is definitely a lot to look forward to, especially as the camp successfully reached its fundraising goal of $20,000. As the milestone was reached and announced, riotous cheering rose from the families and missionaries present.
The prize for reaching the final goal? Father Ryan O’Neill had to bleach his hair.
As Father O’Neill’s newly bleached hair dried, he led the camp in prayer, thanking God for Annunciation Heights, Fiat Fest and the Altum Missionaries, as well as those who fund the camp and missionary program.
“But also,” he concluded, “we just want our friends to come and hang out and enjoy camp with us, just to experience the beauty and adventure of what we have here.”
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For more information about Annunciation Heights, their mission and their programs, visit https://www.annunciationheights.org/.
