Our Mission + History
Mission
City on a Hill’s mission is to be the community that inspires and forms the young adult generation to be saints!
City on a Hill fulfills this vision through four core values:
Radical
Hospitality
City on a Hill seeks to cultivate an atmosphere of radical hospitality for the community of young adults in Kansas City, where each person is welcomed and loved in Christ.
The Primacy
of Holiness
City on a Hill aims to inspire young adults to order their lives around fulfilling their primary vocation of holiness.
Formation for Personal Apostolate
City on a Hill strives to form young adults to embrace their call as lay faithful to be Christ in the middle of the world; be it among friends and family, or in the workplace and neighborhood.
A Ground-Up Leadership Model
Though City on a Hill staff provides young adult leaders with formation, accountability, support, and guidance, leaders maintain freedom to shape their initiatives.
See our mission and core values in action!
Check out the most recent issue of our biannual community magazine, The Ascent.
Our History
City on a Hill was founded in 2006 as a ministry of the Diocese of Kansas City - St. Joseph. The community grew organically for 15 years, before branching off as an independent, lay apostolate in 2021. City on a Hill's new status as a nonprofit allows the community to better embody its existing charism: to empower young adults aged 21-39 to live as lay apostles in the midst of the world.
We are honored to be welcomed and supported by Archbishop Naumann (Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas) and Bishop Johnston (Diocese of Kansas City - St. Joseph). Stay tuned—City on a Hill is planning to expand to more cities in the near future!
Our Patron Saints
S.D. Chiara
Corbella Petrillo
Servant of God Chiara Corbella Petrillo (1984–2012) married at 24 and died at 28. She and her husband lost two newborns to terminal illnesses but embraced each life with love. While pregnant with their third child, Chiara was diagnosed with cancer but delayed treatment to protect him, passing away a year after his birth.
She is a model within City on a Hill of lay holiness, of the sacrificial love required in the married vocation, of the value of every human life, and of radical trust in God’s mysterious, and sometimes painful, plan for our lives.
Blessed Pier
Giorgio Frassati
Blessed Pier Giorgio (1901-1925) was a daily Mass-goer, avid mountain climber, pipe smoker, lover of the poor, and practical jokester. Although he died young at 24 years old, thousands attended his funeral in his hometown of Turin, Italy.
He is a patron of City on a Hill because he is an example of lay holiness. We ask his intercession to help the young adults of City on a Hill to become lay saints and to transform the society around them from within, planting Truth, Goodness, and Beauty within their homes, neighborhoods, and workplaces, sanctifying those places from the inside out.
Saint Augustine
of Hippo
St. Augustine (356-430 AD) lived a worldly life driven by lust and pride, including illicit relationships and a son out of wedlock. At 19, Augustine had a conversion to wisdom after reading Cicero, beginning a decade-long search for the Truth that led him to Christianity at the age of 31.
Augustine’s struggles with the virtue of purity and his pursuit of the Truth are why he is a patron of City on a Hill. We ask him to intercede for all young adults caught in sins of lust, and for those searching for the Truth, that he might guide them to Jesus Christ and His Church.
Saint John Paul
the Great
Pope St. John Paul II (1921-2005) finished seminary “underground” in Nazi-occupied Poland, helped bring down the Iron Curtain, was seen in-person by more people than anyone else in human history, wrote profoundly about the human person and married love, and had a great love for young people. What didn’t he do?
He is our principal patron in City on a Hill (aside from the Blessed Mother), and we look for his guidance particularly when it comes to leading young adults to the Truth, Goodness, and Beauty of the human person as male and female, and that of marriage and family life.
Testimonials
“From our earliest days in Kansas City, City on a Hill has been an integral part of our life, allowing us to grow in our faith, meet friends who share the same zeal for Christ, as well as bring us together.
- Sam & Adrienne Volkmer
“We give to City on a Hill in thanksgiving for all that City on a Hill has given to us: many true Christ centered friendships, good prayer habits, a desire for service, years of fun, and our own personal vocations (we met through involvement in City on a Hill).”
- John & Alexi Heilman