Seeing the Face of Christ: Terry King's Mission of Service in Northern Colorado

From Biblical School to home visits, Terry King's life of service reflects a deep commitment to human dignity and the Gospel.

When Terry King heard Cardinal Dolan tell a story on the radio about his father secretly bringing Christmas gifts to a family in need, introducing himself as simply delivering an "order" so the father could keep his pride, something stirred inside her. She had heard of the St. Vincent de Paul Society before, but that story grabbed her and inspired her to found a St. Vincent de Paul conference at her home parish at the time, St. John the Evangelist in Loveland.

"It's just really fun to be living out your faith with other people who want to do it too," she said.

That spirit has shaped nearly every chapter of King's life of service. From launching a single-parent ministry to now working to establish a new St. Vincent de Paul conference at her new home parish of St. Francis of Assisi in Longmont, her work has consistently centered on meeting people where they are.

The spark was lit at Biblical School through St. John Vianney Seminary Lay Division. When her youngest daughter left for college, King seized the opportunity to enroll in night classes while working full-time. What she found there set her faith ablaze.

"Every time I went, I learned something new, and it just kept growing inside of me," she recalled. "After a couple of years, I realized I needed to do something with this."

Drawing on her own experience as a single mother, she launched a single-parent ministry at St. John the Evangelist, expecting to reach young mothers in the thick of it. Instead, she was met by women closer to her own age, whose children were grown but whose need for community and belonging was just as real.

"They're the ones that needed it," King said. Several of those women remain among her closest friends today.

With support from mentor parishes and friends in Denver, she built the St. Vincent de Paul conference at St. John the Evangelist from the ground up and served as its president for six years.

At the heart of St. Vincent de Paul's work are home visits — Vincentians sitting with neighbors in their own homes, listening to their stories and offering help through a difficult stretch.

"Our motto is to see the face of Christ in the people you serve, and be the face of Christ to them," King said.

Even after moving to Firestone to be closer to family and look toward retirement, King continued making the drive north to Loveland each month to complete her home visits.

"There's never ever been a time that I regretted it. Every meeting is so incredible with these people. You can't imagine what they're going through, and you just see such strength and resilience in them."

But even amid all her outreach work, King rarely feels burned out, something she credits to daily prayer. She has a prayer room in her home and starts every morning there. She also credits her faith community — faithful friends, regular Mass at St. Francis and twice-monthly St. Vincent de Paul meetings where members share, encourage one another and stay grounded together.

“I had a spiritual director tell me a long time ago that I needed community. At that point, I had none,” she said. “After getting involved in the single-parent ministry, St. Vincent de Paul and St. Francis of Assisi’s Welcome ministry, I have so much community! At St. John the Evangelist, I felt like I went from knowing nobody to knowing most of the parish in four years.”

Now, as she works to establish a new conference at St. Francis of Assisi, King hopes others will discover what she has: that St. Vincent de Paul offers something rare — a concrete, structured way to live out a faith that can otherwise feel hard to put into action.

"St. Vincent de Paul gives you the perfect opportunity to live out your faith," she said.

Congratulations, Terry, for being named the Archbishop's Catholic Appeal Disciple of the Month!