Northwestern University RUF International
Join us Thursdays 6:30 PM in TGS Commons!
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RUF International is a community of international scholars who want to build relationships, grow spiritually, and learn together. We want to offer you various cultural opportunities and give you a place to explore questions of faith and the Bible.
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Meet Our Team
John Matta
John Matta was born in Lake Forest, Illinois, to faithful Christian parents, and he trusted in Jesus from an early age. After growing up in downtown Chicago, John moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. There, he attended Bethlehem College & Seminary and was a student leader with RUF at the University of Minnesota. It was during this time that he first began to sense a call to ministry and decided to attend Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. After a two-year youth ministry internship in Bellingham, Washington, John completed his MDiv in 2024. He is excited to be back in his hometown to share the good news of Jesus Christ with international students at Northwestern University. In his free time, you can find John training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or practicing his French.
John and Karol have been married since November 2025. They enjoy good food, and visiting Karol's home (Lyon, France) whenever they can.
Mike Hernberg
Mike Hernberg was raised in the Boston, Massachusetts area and is a life-long Boston Red Sox fan. He has lived in Boston, Rochester, NY, Southern California and has resided in Wheaton, IL since 2013. He is married to Kathy and they share six children and seven grandchildren. Mike recently graduated from Wheaton College with an MA in Evangelism and Leadership. He also has an MBA in finance from the University of Rochester and received his BA in Economics from Bucknell University. He has over 20 years of campus ministry experience. He was a Certified Financial Planner® and has over twenty years of experience in finance and quantitative analysis in financial services and the profit and non-profit sectors.
Asa Lyvers
Asa is a proud Mountaineer, growing up in a PCA church and graduating from West Virginia University with a degree in hospitality & tourism management and a minor in Arabic studies. While at WVU, he was active in RUF, serving as president, worship team leader, and as a Bible study leader. He enjoys cooking (especially Thai), traveling, and skiing the West Virginia hills.
Asa is very excited to move to Chicago, meet the international students at Northwestern, and share with them the beautiful truth of the Gospel!