Ryan Penney

Ryan Penney was on a Performing Arts scholarship at Samford University (@samfordu) and a week before his first professional acting job when a beautiful summer day at the lake led to a traumatic injury that made the doctors say he would never walk again. Raised Catholic with 8 years of Catholic elementary school behind him, he had joined the ranks of the “fallen away” millennials. But the intense suffering from his injury led Ryan to cry out to God in a way he never needed to before. And in those moments, he experienced God’s presence, love and peace in way he had never known. While recovering miraculously over many months of intense physical training and encouragement from his friends at school, the greatest miracle Ryan received was reconciliation with Our Lord and His Church. Instead of pursuing a career in New York or Los Angeles, he committed his life to using his talents for the Kingdom. A former FOCUS (@focuscatholic) missionary, Ryan now manages @ewtnmedia’s YouTube channel and Video OnDemand as the Digital Media Specialist in TV Production, is a host of the show The Catholic Sphere, a singer in the schola for EWTN’s televised liturgies, Youth Minister at the Cathedral of St. Paul (@stpaulsbhm), a Captain and Knight in Fraternus, and the inaugural President of the new Young Catholic Professionals (@youngcatholicprofessionals) Chapter in Birmingham, AL.