Some 100 students from the Diocese of Knoxville celebrate their faith at the event in Ohio
By Bee Goodman
Most people enjoy traveling, and among those many are young adults. Finally getting a taste of freedom, they enjoy taking a spring-break trip to Daytona or making their way to Disney World between semesters, but they usually don’t make plans to travel to Ohio on New Year’s Day.
But a very special group of more than 26,000 Catholic youth and young adults packed their bags for pilgrimages to Ohio, Colorado, and Texas.
Students from Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga pose with three Diocese of Knoxville seminarians. Those pictured were among more than 16,000 at the SEEK26 conference in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo Bee Goodman)
Each year, missionaries from the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) gather at the five-day SEEK conference for students. The conference invites bishops, Sisters, other clergy members, keynote speakers, merchants, and others to gather for a celebration of faith.
Students in the Diocese of Knoxville from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga, and East Tennessee State University in Johnson City attended the SEEK26 conference held in Columbus, Ohio, Jan. 1-5.
Along with the students, diocesan director of Youth, Young Adult, and Pastoral Juvenil Amanda Henderson traveled to the conference.
Ms. Henderson shared the importance of youth and young adults attending conferences like SEEK where she sees the impact on them upon their return.
“Students return more confident in their faith and more willing to engage with it intentionally,” she said. “SEEK helps young people realize they are not alone in seeking out their faith. Being surrounded by peers who are asking the same questions, praying together, and worshiping together creates a deep sense of solidarity. That experience often stays with them long after they return home.”
Ms. Henderson continued: “SEEK is an investment in the spiritual foundation of young people at a critical stage of life. These experiences often become moments of clarity and renewal that shape how students live their faith moving forward, influencing their choices, priorities, and involvement in the Church.”
With SEEK hosting more than 26,000 participants across the country, it’s easy to feel lost in the sea of college students. But among them are hundreds of bishops, priests, women religious, monks, and other clergy members. Their presence certainly has a place in Mass, but they have an importance beyond that, Ms. Henderson shared.
“The presence of bishops and priests at events like SEEK matters not only during the liturgy, but throughout the entire experience,” she said. “When students see bishops and priests and religious Brothers and Sisters attending talks, walking the conference floor, sharing meals, engaging in conversation, and simply being present, it communicates that they genuinely care about young people and their faith. That visible, relational presence sends a powerful message: young people matter, and the Church is walking with them.”
Three seminarians from the diocese also attended SEEK and took a moment to share a meal with Notre Dame High School students. During the meal, students conversed with the seminarians and learned what being a seminarian can entail.
“Having the chance to speak with seminarians makes vocational discernment feel real and approachable. Students can ask honest questions about prayer, fears, joys, and what it means to say ‘yes’ to God,” Ms. Henderson shared.
Mallory Louque, an Echo apprentice with the diocese, has attended SEEK numerous times, and she shared her excitement at seeing young adults attend this year’s conference.
“It is unique to have an opportunity to see the magnitude and universality of the Church,” she said. “There is something awe-inspiring about seeing so many Catholics from all over the United States in one place at one time.”
Ms. Louque also said meeting the diocese’s seminarians allowed the “young adults … to learn about how people in their own diocese have responded to God’s call for them to be priests. It helps to bring some of the information they are receiving at the conference to a more personal level by allowing them to have conversations with people who are familiar with the area and community they are a part of back in Tennessee.”
Bishop Bruce Lewandowski of Providence, R.I., celebrates Mass Jan. 4 at the SEEK26 conference in Columbus, Ohio. (OSV News photo/Margaret Murray)
The first day of SEEK in Ohio kicked off with an opening Mass celebrated by Bishop Earl K. Fernandes of the Diocese of Columbus, who introduced a special video message for conference attendees from Pope Leo XIV. The Holy Father welcomed the young-adult attendees and urged them to open their hearts and minds for the long weekend.
“Dear young people, as you draw close to Jesus through this weekend, through fellowship, the sacraments, and eucharistic adoration, do not be afraid to ask Him what he is calling you to,” the pope said. “Some of you, like Andrew and Simon Peter, may be called to the priesthood, to serve God’s people through the celebration of the sacraments, through preaching the word of God, walking with God’s people.”
“Others may be called to religious life, to give yourselves entirely to God; others still may be called to marriage and family life,” Pope Leo continued. “If you sense the Lord calling you, do not be afraid. Once again, let me emphasize that He alone knows the deepest, perhaps hidden, longings of your heart and the path that will lead you to true fulfillment. Let him lead and guide you!”
With three SEEK conferences happening concurrently in the country, the FOCUS ministries hosted more than 26,000 Catholics. Over 16,000 of those “SEEKers” found themselves in the land of Skyline Chili and Red Creme Soda in Columbus. The Fort Worth and Denver conferences had a combined total of about 10,000 attending.
SEEK 2026 used a theme following a favorite exhortation of the recently canonized St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, an avid mountaineer and patron of young adults. Featured around the conference halls were portraits of the young saint with his words, “To the Heights.”
The theme encourages Catholic young adults to do more with their faith than just follow Jesus: to become leaders of their own faith and hold responsibility for bringing others with them.
Keynote speaker Arthur Brooks on Jan. 4 said that the job of a Catholic is not to further divide the population. He stated that when young Catholics encounter a person who has different political views, they are not to turn away in avoidance or cite their differences as an excuse not to speak to someone. He also shared that the young people shouldn’t waste their opportunity to speak with someone by arguing over differences.
“Your job is not to win arguments, it’s to win souls,” Mr. Brooks said.
He also told of a time he and his wife, Ester, traveled to a retreat where the chapel greeted them with a sign above the door reading, “You are now entering mission territory.”
Mr. Brooks urged his audience: “As you leave this beautiful, beautiful gathering tomorrow, the signs on the door of your hotel or this conference facility, any place that you find yourself as you leave this city, and effectively for the last time tomorrow, are that you’re entering mission territory. Let’s set the world on fire together.”
The next day, FOCUS founder Curtis Martin shared a message with the Columbus audience through attention-grabbing analogies and memories of his time as a 20-something.
Mr. Martin pulled out a small cooking pot. Comparing the audience as individuals to the empty pot, he said Jesus comes into people’s hearts and gives them the ingredients to change, then warms them until they change into something good. With free will, Jesus allows them to use these gifts to create and share more of His grace and love, he added.
‘Space for deeper listening’
Sister Mary Grace of the Sisters of Life delivers a keynote address on Jan. 3 at the SEEK26 conference in Columbus. (OSV News photo/Margaret Murray)
SEEK conferences complement the local ministries such as those carried out by FOCUS missionaries on college campuses. FOCUS missionaries are present and active on the campuses at UTK, UTC, and ETSU. Students from these campuses and high schools within the Diocese of Knoxville typically make pilgrimages to every SEEK conference.
Ms. Henderson emphasized the relationship between local and national ministries.
“It’s important to have both local ministry and regional/national gatherings,” she said. “Regional and national gatherings without strong local ministry will eventually fall flat over time. Local ministry is where relationships are built and faith is lived out consistently, while gatherings like SEEK help students see the broader Church and their place within it. Stepping away from daily routines creates space for deeper listening and encounter, and celebrating Mass with more than 16,000 Catholic young adults powerfully shows them they are not alone in seeking out their faith. Together, local ministry and regional/national gatherings work hand in hand, strengthening solidarity and sending students home encouraged and ready to live their faith where they are planted.”
Catholic merchants also are on hand at the SEEK conferences to engage with students who may hope to lead a faith-based business someday.
One vendor in Columbus, Bee
Still, is run by faithful mother Holly “Holly Bee” Thomas. She graduated from Louisiana State University in 2010 with a degree in textile apparel, design, and merchandising and a minor in business.
The same year, Mrs. Thomas joined Theresians International, and she began to deepen her faith until, in 2017, she heard God’s call telling her to leave her job and combine her creative gifts with her Catholic faith. That is when she began her journey with BeeStill, a jewelry and art business rooted in devotion.
The brand name comes from her nickname of “Holly Bee” but also from her favorite Scripture verse: “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
“The honeybee holds a rich symbolism in Christianity and is associated with Jesus, so it instantly became the perfect emblem for my work,” she said.
The jewelry she creates often represents the four evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Her works range from crafted pieces of affordable, waterproof jewelry to home decor, handmade clay intaglios, and pressed floral pieces. Mrs. Thomas said that her business “has never been about business. This is about evangelizing and sharing peace, comfort, and hope to anyone who wears the jewelry.”
Conference attendees also had the opportunity to visit parish reliquaries. On the Ohio trip, some of the SEEKers went to Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center in Norwood, Ohio.
Greeting visitors upon entry are statues of Sts. Mary and Joseph. Inside, visitors can find their way to the reliquary room where they can view relics from all 12 of the Apostles, several popes, and many saints. Included among the relics are a zucchetto of Pope Pius XII and first-class relics of Pope St. Pius X and Pope St. Peter.
In addition to those of the Apostles and popes, the relics the center holds include those from St. Mary Magdalene, St. Catherine Labouré, and St. Thérèse of Lisieux.
Ready to live out their call
“Mission Way” booths are seen at the Greater Columbus Convention Center on Jan. 3 at the SEEK26 conference in Columbus, Ohio. (OSV News photo/Margaret Murray)
Conferences like SEEK offer youth and young adults more than inspiring speakers or large-scale adoration—they create moments of encounter that leave a lasting impact. Attending Mass alongside thousands of peers, engaging with bishops, priests, and seminarians, and sharing faith in community help young Catholics realize they are not alone in their search for meaning. These experiences strengthen confidence, foster belonging, and encourage many to return home inspired to live their faith more intentionally within their daily life and local community.
Pilgrimage and visits to reliquaries deepen this renewal by grounding faith in something tangible and historical. Standing before the relics of saints and Apostles invites reflection on lives marked by struggle, perseverance, and holiness—lives lived by people who were young, uncertain, and searching for themselves. Relics offer young adults a moment of stillness and hope, reminding them that sainthood is attainable and that faith endures across generations.
Experiences like SEEK, other pilgrimages, and encounters with relics demonstrate that the Church is living and relevant for youth and young adults today. By stepping away from daily routines and gathering in faith-filled communities, students are reminded that they are not alone in their questions, struggles, or hopes.
These moments of worship, reflection, and connection offer clarity and renewal, encouraging young Catholics to see holiness as attainable and purposeful in their own lives. Whether through shared prayer and adoration, meaningful conversations, or standing before the relics of saints who once faced the same uncertainties, young adults are inspired to return home rooted in hope, strengthened in faith, and ready to live out their call as witnesses to Christ in a world in need of light.