Who we are - Net Canada

Many young people lose their faith by the time they leave high school. We send teams of young adults to share their faith in schools and churches so youth are transformed and re-engaged in their Catholic faith.

Mission statement

To challenge young catholics to love Christ and embrace the life of the Church

It is accomplished by:

Proclaiming the Gospel of
Christ through a personal
witness of faith

Inviting young people
to live for Christ

Forming young people in Christian character through the study and practice of our faith

Equipping youth workers and young adults with the ministry skills needed for evangelization

Missionaries

2022-2023 NET Teams

Leamington, ON Discipleship Team
Lethbridge, AB Discipleship Team
Traveling Retreat Team

See All Missionaries

Staff

Anthony Beltrame

Team Supervisor

Christina Dunn

Media Assistant

Elizabeth Giguère

Administration Coordinator

Emma O’Reilly

Media Assistant

Fernanda Cano

Team Coordinator

Garth Pereira

Program Director

Support a Staff Member

Board of Directors

Archbishop Marcel Damphousse

Chairman; Catholic Archbishop of Ottawa-Cornwall

Bishop Christian Riesbeck

Director, Bishop of Saint John

Bonnie Annicchiarico

Director

James Mikulasik

Director

Jim Meuse

Vice-Chair, Finance Committee

JoAnne Christie

Director

Lisa Polk

Director, Finance Committee

Co-missionaries

NET’s mission is made possible by the many people who give of their time, their talents, their treasures and their hearts. Anyone who helps out by donating, volunteering or hosting our missionaries is a co-missionary.

Interested in becoming a co-missionary? Here are some ways you can help!

Host Missionaries

Provide NET Missionaries with meals and a place to sleep while they are in your town

Donate

Give financially to support the work of NET Missionaries sharing the Gospel with young people across Canada.

Donate

Volunteer

Lend your time and talent to fill the many support roles that make NET’s mission possible.

More info

OUR STORY

NET (National Evangelization Teams) Ministries officially began in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1982. After a team of young adults spent a few weeks conducting retreats in local high schools, high demand for these retreats developed and NET Ministries was born. In 1994, James Mikulasik and Tiffany Scott, two Canadians who were missionaries in Minnesota, responded to an invitation from Archbishop Emeritus Marcel Gervais, to come to Ottawa and NET Canada was born.

NET Canada began as one travelling retreat team, but quickly expanded with the addition of more teams. Soon, parishes began requesting more follow-up to NET retreats and parish ministry teams were born. Over the years, NET Canada has sent teams to Ireland and multiple french communities in Canada, as well to northern Indigenous communities in the Diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith and the Archdiocese of Keewatin-La Pas. NET has also expanded with the addition of a western office in Vancouver, BC.

Since the founding of NET Canada, over 700 young adults have served as NET missionaries and over 300,000 young people have heard the Gospel through an encounter with a NET team. Young people’s lives are being transformed through an encounter with Jesus Christ, and we hope to continue bringing hope and re-engaging youth in their Catholic faith for years to come!