Service, Singing, and Cultural Celebrations

A Graduating Senior Looks Back on Four Years of Catholic Life at Georgetown*

By: Jennon Bell Hoffmann

For many graduating seniors, the final weeks on the Hilltop can be hectic and bittersweet. But for Emilio Cazares Borbon (C’26), a graduating senior studying computer science and neurobiology, he approaches his final weeks at Georgetown with the same mindset as when he first stepped foot on campus: Be open, you don’t know what could happen.

That openness and willingness to be surprised have served Emilio through four years as a Hoya, and he doesn’t see a reason to change that now.

When Emilio first visited Georgetown through a summer high school program, the campus itself became part of the draw. Asked what ultimately convinced him to choose Georgetown over the University of Denver, Emilio laughed before admitting the simple truth: “It looked like Hogwarts.”

But beneath the humor was something deeper. Georgetown’s smaller, close-knit environment felt right to him. He wanted a campus where relationships could grow naturally, where community could feel personal rather than overwhelming. Over four years, he found exactly that—especially through Catholic Ministry.

Finding Community Through Choir

Before arriving at Georgetown, he already considered himself a practicing Catholic, with regular attendance at Mass on Sundays. At first, Georgetown felt spiritually familiar, but soon, Emilio discovered that Catholic life at Georgetown offered something different from the parish experience he knew growing up in Arizona.

“Catholic life [at Georgetown] is a global space—there are people from all over, and every Sunday, it might be a new set of people. But then you start seeing other regulars, and we start to chat, meet up after Mass,” says Emilio. “Georgetown showed me that we can really be a community in the Catholic space, where we can all be together.”

That sense of belonging deepened during the spring semester of his freshman year when he and a friend wandered past the choir table at a campus club fair and decided to join Georgetown’s contemporary choir.

“We were already going to church anyway,” he laughs. “So we might as well do something else too.”

That desire to deepen his involvement opened the doors to more fulfilling, enriching opportunities. Along with choir, Emilio became involved in Georgetown’s Spanish-speaking Catholic community.

As a freshman, he began attending the university’s Spanish Mass at Dahlgren Chapel. Because the liturgies were smaller and less frequent, the community of regulars who attended naturally became close-knit.

“I had a smaller subcommittee, or community of just Spanish speakers who went to Spanish mass,” says Emilio. “And fortunately, because there was basically one Mass a month in Spanish, we also always got food after Mass. So, there was more fellowship there. too.”

Seeing how much he was enjoying his time within the Catholic community on campus, Emilio reached out to Owen Ruggiero, Georgetown’s associate director for Catholic life and director of the contemporary choir, to ask how he could become more involved. He trained as an altar server and quickly became a dependable presence at Spanish liturgies.

“So much so that they don’t even ask me anymore,” he jokes. “They just tell me I’m serving.”

Over time, his role expanded beyond weekly ministry. Emilio became part of Georgetown’s Catholic First Fellows pilot program, an initiative designed to strengthen Catholic student engagement and gather student perspectives before planning ministry events.

“There were only four of us in the initial group, but now it’s around 10 or 12 Catholic Fellows,” he says. “Our role was to share what students actually want and see on campus, to get and use feedback from students so we can plan events and offerings geared to them, what they want.” 

For Emilio, Catholic Ministry and cultural identity are integral aspects of his life, and he credits it for creating a space where he can fully participate in both. 

“I feel like Georgetown really tries to build community,” he says. “Not just with Catholics, but with students of all faiths. It’s what sets our school apart, being open to all.”

That commitment, he believes, is visible in Catholic Ministry’s efforts to expand culturally inclusive liturgies and programming. During his time on campus, Spanish-language ministry steadily grew more organized and visible.

“Now we’re singing songs in Spanish during bilingual Masses,” Emilio said. “And people who might not expect it just encounter it naturally. They want everyone to feel this sense of community in their own faith.” 

Faith and Culture Intertwined

As operations director of Ballet Folklórico Mexicano de Georgetown (BFMG) and president of MEChA, a Mexican and Hispanic student organization, he helped organize events that blend faith, tradition, and community celebration.

One of the largest is Posada, the annual cultural showcase inspired by the traditional reenactment of Mary and Joseph searching for shelter before the birth of Christ. Students process across campus before gathering in Gaston Hall for dance performances and celebration.

The event is a collaboration between student cultural organizations and Georgetown’s Spanish Catholic ministry, Ministerio Católico. After the performance, community members gather for food, revelry, and fellowship.

“Every year we try to do more and more. And it’s by word of mouth, people keep bringing friends,” says Emilio. “When I was a sophomore, we had about 200 people show up. This year, a few weeks ago, we had nearly 500 people—Gaston Hall was packed.” 

Leadership in Service

Emilio’s leadership extends beyond ministry and cultural organizations. He also served as president of Hoya Taxa, Georgetown’s volunteer tax assistance organization, where students help prepare taxes for community members across Washington, D.C., and as a catechist teaching eighth graders preparing for Confirmation.

“I think that was a major highlight for me,” he said.

Whether singing in choir, serving at the altar, organizing cultural celebrations, or teaching catechism, Emilio consistently found ways to build community through service. His liturgical service also expanded in remarkable ways. Over the years, Emilio served as an altar server for bishops, cardinals, and visiting clergy, including the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States. He participated in liturgies connected to Spanish-speaking Catholic communities, Masses for Life, outreach events for LGBTQ Catholics, and other major university celebrations. He also became a fourth-degree Knight of Columbus. 

As graduation approaches, being so busy means that the ending still feels somewhat unreal to him. 

“I haven’t had time to really think, ‘Oh, this is the end,’ because it feels like the end of a normal semester, because it is. This weekend, we had a little get-together with my roommates and friends, and one of my roommates asked, ‘How was your last Georgetown day?’ And I was like, ‘Oh, that was my last Georgetown day!’”

Yet the deeper realization—leaving behind the communities that shaped him—is arriving more slowly. From his dorm room desk, Emilio could see Dahlgren Chapel while working on coding assignments late into the night.

“Whenever I was frustrated because my code wasn’t working, I’d look outside and see Jesus staring at me,” he joked, before adding, “I think that’s a good way to explain my experience here. I’m doing normal stuff — school, coding, hanging out with friends — but there’s always a presence near me, seeing me through.”

For Emilio, Georgetown became far more than the Hogwarts campus that first caught his eye years ago. Through Catholic Ministry, cultural leadership, and service, it became a home.

* This interview was conducted before commencement ceremonies. We wish Emilio and the Class of 2026 the best of luck as they begin their lives as Georgetown alumni.

Jennon Bell Hoffmann is a freelance writer and editor living in Chicago.