Know
Rome
MEET JOHN & ASHLEY NORONHA
We're Americans living and loving "la dolce vita" in Rome, Italy.
We love Rome and moved to the Eternal City to do our advanced studies, right after we walked down the aisle in 2008, in John's hometown of Bangalore, India.
We love our faith and sharing it, and do that as speakers, media personalities, and university professors. We were honored with the Springtime Award for Outstanding Service in the New Evangelization and love to work for the renewal of faith and culture through the 501(c)3 non-profit we started, The Truth & Beauty Project.
We so enjoy breaking open Rome and its beauty for visitors of all ages. For those who can't come to Rome, we shared a little taste of it in a different way, when we hosted episodes of the EWTN television series, Art & Faith.
Fun fact: John was formerly a professional tap dancer and we just love to cut a rug and dance together - our favorites are ballroom, swing and Latin!
We invite you to enjoy a taste of the wonderful Eternal City with us.
JOHN
As a hardcore engineer, I never imagined that one day I'd fall in love with art and beauty, and actually teach university students how to peel back the layers in order to allow those things to transform their lives.
But sure enough, I've gone from the lab to the classroom to the streets of Rome, where I teach Sacred Art & Architecture and Theology at various universities. But since you can't 'take the engineer out of the man,' I also enjoy teaching Technology at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.
My educational background is "diverse" with Master's
degrees in Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering,
Theology, Philosophy, the Thought of Ratzinger, Augustinian
Studies, and in Computer Engineering and Information
Systems. On the side, I'm a Doctoral candidate in Bioethics.
Many years ago I felt God calling me to leave my dream job.
After reaching the highest level of technology as a corporate
executive with Verizon Global Telecommunications. I felt God
calling me to pursue Philosophy and Theology. And I haven't looked back since. In fact, it's been a joy to integrate all of my fields together. It was also fun to get to use my technology background as the Producer for the television show, "Voice of the Vatican."
I serve as a consultant in various capacities, including for the
Vatican when the Pope appointed me to the Papal Reform
Commission, with the task of investigating the Holy See’s need for organizational, financial, and strategic reform of the Vatican.
God sure comes up with interesting and delightful plans that
we could never imagine, and we've been enjoying the adventure.
ASHLEY
Each week since 2012, I imagine inviting listeners to "visit" Rome, via the gift of the airwaves, as the Rome Correspondent for the Relevant Radio Network. It's a joy to share this amazing city and the heart of the Church across the many miles with listeners all over the world.
I have also enjoyed working in television, commercials, voice-over narration, and as the host and anchor of the weekly television news show "Voice of the Vatican."
Believe it or not, my two most interesting bosses ... were Popes! That's when I was a Vatican Official at the Pontifical Council for Social Communications in the Holy See and worked under Pope Benedict XVI and then Pope Francis.
Teaching is near and dear to my heart and since 2013 I've
been a Professor at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross
here in Rome. I formerly taught "The Art of Leadership & Communication" at the European University in Rome. In 2010, I created a course called "Media Training for Priests" and since then have been teaching it at the NAC and to priests and seminarians all over the world.
My areas of academic expertise are Conflict Resolution, Crisis
Communications, Public Speaking, and Media Training and I
consult and coach for organizations and for religious leaders on four continents.
Before I did my Masters in Theology and STL in Communications, I was an executive in lifestyle marketing for Kraft Foods, Discover Card, JCPenney, 3Com and Universal Pictures.
It's been quite a journey covering a lot of miles and I like looking at life as a great big adventure of Providence.
