Zip Rzeppa is an acclaimed motivational speaker, author, broadcaster, and evangelist. He works to dynamically lead as many as possible to grow in knowledge of, love for, and service to, the Lord and His Catholic Church.
Zip earned his colorful nickname as a strong-armed quarterback at Detroit’s legendary football power, Brother Rice High School. He played college basketball as a walk-on at Boston University where he studied journalism and broadcasting. Among his classmates were Howard Stern, Bill O’Reilly, and Eli Gold, the voice of Alabama Crimson Tide football.
As a wild and crazy TV sportscaster, Zip worked his way up from TV stations in Fort Wayne, Indiana and Saginaw, Michigan to the major league markets of Cincinnati, Boston, and St. Louis. Widely recognized as the wackiest local TV sportscaster in America, he became the highest-paid local TV personality in the history of St. Louis.
After a 19-year career, Zip decided to leave the bright lights of television. He created, produced, hosted, and financed the Great American Sports Trivia Show, a nationally-syndicated radio program heard in 57 American cities. But the program failed financially, and Zip lost all the money he had. At the same time, he was dis-engaged from his fiancée, and his dad was stricken with Alzheimer’s disease.
After stripping Zip of his position, fame, money, fiancée, and healthy father, the Lord called Zip to an amazing spiritual path he never dreamed of, and certainly did not ask for.
For four years, he did door-to-door evangelization of the Catholic Faith in the most crime-ridden, drug-infested, dangerous inner-city neighborhoods of St. Louis. He worked full-time with people with extreme mental and physical disabilities, helping them find jobs. He oversaw the charitable work of 3,000 volunteers serving in more than 140 parishes. He established homes for foster children who were being torn apart from their siblings.
In 2012, he founded the Catholic apostolate of Mater Media, whose mission is to write, print, publish, and distribute books, CDs, downloads, and podcasts, to evangelize the Catholic Faith.
His 2014 cutting-edge, Catholic novel, My Rock & Salvation, has been distributed to 20,000 teens to encourage them to receive the Sacraments and learn and practice the Theology of the Body.
His 2015 autobiography, For A Greater Purpose, is an acclaimed, no-holds-barred, soul-baring account of Zip’s amazing life. Through world-wide distribution, it has influenced countless people, particularly men, to examine and re-direct their lives.
Zip’s 6 CD and Download Set, Living the Joy, released in December 2017, includes more than 5 hours of instructional, humor-filled, inspirational storytelling at its very best. The CD titles include How to Live for a Greater Purpose, How to Bring Your Loved Ones Back to the Catholic Faith, How to Follow the Saints on the Road to Sanctity, How to Grow in the Knowledge of the Love of God, How to Overcome the Darkness of Addictions, and How to Live the Joy of the Gospel in a World Filled with Chaos.
As a dynamic, hilarious, and energetic speaker and emcee, Zip has raised millions of dollars for dozens of charitable organizations.
He currently specializes in powerful, three-night missions built around the themes of Overcoming the Darkness and Living the Joy of the Gospel.
