By Samantha Bronson

Growing up, Mark Ohlstrom knew a little about the Society of Jesus-his older brother attended Seattle Preparatory School-but it wasn't until Mr. Ohlstrom was a student there himself that he saw how important the Jesuits' philosophy would be to him. Mr. Ohlstrom immediately connected with the Society's approach to education, to faith, to life.

"Once I experienced the Jesuit approach, it just resonated with me," he said. "It was such a wonderful experience in terms of what they taught, how they taught, the principles they instilled in us. I appreciated the concept of critical thinking, reasoning, logic, and being able to look at both sides of an issue, being able to understand what's going on, and learning how to incorporate that and form your own beliefs."

That initial connection was just the beginning of what would become a lifelong relationship with the Jesuits, with the Society serving as a guidepost for Mr. Ohlstrom over the years.

For college, Mr. Ohlstrom hadn't initially planned to continue his Jesuit education. But at the suggestion of Seattle Prep's campus ministry, he visited Gonzaga University to check out its engineering program. "I visited it and fell in love," he said. "It felt like home."

He loved everything about his experience at Gonzaga, from the small class sizes in the engineering program to the faith community and campus ministry to the liberal arts requirements of taking classes in critical thinking and logic. Mr. Ohlstrom, who describes himself as "120% introverted," even enjoyed the speech class he had to take and the professor who encouraged him to join the speech and debate team. That experience, he said, helped bring him out of his shell and learn how to express himself more effectively.

After college, Mr. Ohlstrom began his career as a civil engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and settled into the southern part of Seattle. He joined the local Catholic parish and soon started its young adult group, where he met the woman he would eventually marry, Cathy.

Originally from a small town in North Dakota, Ms. Ohlstrom had moved to the Seattle area to work as a registered nurse. She'd grown up Catholic and leaned heavily into her faith after losing her mother at age 11. Her father had died when she was just 4 years old.

"I decided that if Catholicism was important to them, then it was going to be important to me as well," said Ms. Ohlstrom, who later became very involved with her college's Newman Center.

She wasn't familiar with the Jesuits until after joining the church where she met Mr. Ohlstrom. While not a Jesuit parish, the church had a Jesuit associate priest, Father Tom Garvin, SJ. The couple struck up a rapport with him, finding him both highly educated and easy to talk with. They bonded over shared interests in the outdoors and in Fr. Garvin's Irish background; Ms. Ohlstrom is of Irish and Scottish heritage.

Once their children became school-aged, the couple moved to a parish that had a school associated with it. That church also had a Jesuit priest, Father Bob Spitzer, SJ, who would visit once a month for Mass.

"We connected with him through his intellect, his speaking," Mr. Ohlstrom said. "His homilies were marvelous."

Fr. Spitzer also served as a guide to Mr. Ohlstrom when he found himself in his mid-thirties and struggling with finding meaning in his job and life in general. Fr. Spitzer suggested Mr. Ohlstrom seek counseling advice from a priest in Seattle, Father John Murphy, SJ. Fr. Murphy was instrumental, Mr. Ohlstrom said, in helping him through that challenging time.

"He really helped me understand and accept that things don't always work out the way I want to and there's nothing I can do about that," Mr. Ohlstrom said. "The only thing you can control is yourself. It was so beneficial to me for him to put it on the whiteboard, draw it out and help me make those connections."

The Jesuit connection has continued with the Ohlstroms' grown children. Two of the couple's three kids attended Gonzaga-the youngest wanted a chance to not follow her older siblings so she attended the University of Portland. During college, their son completed a portion of El Camino de Santiago and had asked Mr. Ohlstrom over the years to do the Camino with him.

When Mr. Ohlstrom received an issue of the Jesuits West newsletter that mentioned an upcoming trip to do the Ignatian Camino, he immediately called his son. "We thought it would be a tremendous opportunity to further engage with the Jesuits," Mr. Ohlstrom said. "And an excellent time for reexamining life, deepening our faith and putting into perspective what's important."

The group of 17 hiked about 100 miles over the course of 10 days, with some steep uphill sections. Everyone bonded quickly despite not having met before and developed a camaraderie that Mr. Ohlstrom describes as exemplifying the values of the Jesuits: "You find commonality, treat each other respectfully and learn from each other."

During their trip to Spain, Mr. Ohlstrom and his son also visited Pamplona, where St. Ignatius suffered the wound that ultimately led to his conversion. Pamplona, of course, is also home to the famous "Running of the Bulls" and the father and son bonded further over their staging of photos on a set in town. Mr. Ohlstrom said he and his wife have always sought to find humor in life to help put things into perspective.

With so many connections to the Jesuits over the years, Mr. and Ms. Ohlstrom found it natural to support the Society with a planned gift. They haven't specified how it should be used-they trust the Society to determine the best use-but the gift is a public acknowledgement of the Jesuits' importance in their lives.

"The Jesuits truly are different," Mr. Ohlstrom said. "They're unique, they're special. Taking time to understand the Jesuit philosophies-whether at retreats, from people who have been exposed to the philosophies, or from the Jesuits themselves-is very important from our standpoint. Life is going to be challenging, but faith and family have been my strengths, and the Jesuits have been a critical part of my faith journey and who I am as a Catholic."