Jeff Domagalski ’86
8:30 a.m. English composition class. Jeff Domagalski, a freshman at Olivet Nazarene University. “Our professor walks in and says, ‘Let’s begin with prayer,’ and then calls on the student right next to me to pray,” Jeff says. “He prays: ‘Dear Jesus, thank you. Amen.’ That’s how it all began for me at Olivet.”
God continues to amaze Jeff with the many connections and relationships that have grown out of his days as a student at ONU. “When I’m wearing the ONU logo, which is often, I almost always meet someone with a ONU connection,” he says.
“When my wife, Tiffany, and I moved from Bourbonnais to Ohio a few years ago, in one day we met three people with a ONU connection. Even our dog sitter is a ONU grad!”
Jeff’s personal connection with ONU began when he attended his sister’s graduation on campus in 1981. “I knew I wanted to go to a Christian school,” he says. “I didn’t know one person at ONU when I came here as a freshman. That was a little intimidating. People I met during my first week are still my dear friends.” Now, Jeff’s oldest son is a graduate, his middle son is a freshman, and his youngest son will enter as a freshman in fall 2022.
In 2001, Jeff joined the ONU team in the Office of University Relations and became the director of community relations. In 2012, he moved into the role of major gifts officer and also serves as senior development officer for athletics. He was instrumental in developing the University’s plan for adding club men’s ice hockey to the ONU Athletics program. This team will launch in fall 2022, and God is opening doors for reaching new potential students. Hockey players from across the country and Canada are expressing interest in attending Olivet to play for the Tigers.
Athletics has provided an entry point, a foundation and an area of service for Jeff. He began as a volunteer scorekeeper for ONU Tigers home basketball games, then worked as the sports information director for the men’s basketball team. He found out he was going to be a father for the first time while he was working at a Tigers basketball game. He continues to be one of the Tigers’ biggest fans and supporters, regardless of the sport.
One of his favorite ONU memories is the 17 years of Chicago Bears Training Camp on campus. Those special days when NFL Football energized Bourbonnais also gave Jeff many unexpected connections with alumni, local residents, students and the McCaskey family members who own the team.
Jeff enjoys connecting with alumni — whether they graduated last year or 50 years ago — and hearing their Olivet stories. He recalls one student who came to play soccer and accepted Christ along the way. After graduation, he worked in the Office of Admissions and became the football team’s chaplain. Today, he is the pastor of a church in Chicago.
“As Dr. John Bowling, our former University president, often said: ‘If you dust the world for fingerprints, you’ll see Olivet fingerprints everywhere,’” Jeff says. “In my current work, I have the privilege of meeting so many ONU alumni and hearing how they are being the hands and feet of Jesus.”
One of the peaks in Jeff’s ONU experience is the dedication of the Betty and Kenneth Hawkins Centennial Chapel in 2010. “After all the hard work in making the Chapel a reality, that day was amazing,” he says. “When I heard the pipe organ and saw the people gathered there, I truly felt that’s what heaven will be like.” That event continues to inspire him as he communicates with people about how they can use their gifts and talents to help the students and the University.
When Jeff was struggling with some life challenges at one point in his life, his friend and fellow ONU grad, also named Jeff, reminded him that God will take care of our every need. Our job is to trust in Him. “I am blessed beyond measure,” he says. “I’ve learned that life is very short. Don’t waste time on things that don’t matter. Don’t stress about things you have no control over. Trust God in all things. And some of those things will be amazing!”
To learn more about donating to Olivet Nazarene University, contact the Office of Development at development@olivet.edu or 815-939-5171.
