SEEK26, a conference hosted by FOCUS that drew more than 16,000 people to Columbus at the beginning of the New Year, concluded Monday, Jan. 5.
A record of 26,000-plus attendees attended the conference held Jan. 1 to 5 in three cities: Denver; Fort Worth, Texas; and Columbus, Ohio, which served as the primary location and had 16,115 registered participants as of Jan. 2.
SEEK attracts thousands of college students, adults, parish leaders, clergy and missionaries annually.
This year’s theme, “To the Heights,” was inspired by St. Pier Giorgio Frassati. The young saint, who was canonized last September, lived a life of holiness before succumbing to an illness at age 24.
Various tracks were offered at SEEK, including a seminarian experience and Making Missionary Disciples track for leading individuals to Jesus and His Church, geared toward clergy, youth ministers and religious educators.
The conference included daily Mass celebrated by bishops of dioceses across the country.
Eucharistic Adoration was offered daily in a designated chapel set up at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. Attendees also had frequent opportunities to receive the sacrament of reconciliation.
A conference-wide Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament was held the evening of Saturday, Jan. 3. Approximately 17,000 individuals Adored the Lord, and 5,300 souls received the sacrament of reconciliation that evening.
The impactful event followed a keynote address by Father Mike Schmitz, host of Ascension’s Bible in a Year podcast, and Sister Mary Grace, S.V., of the Sisters of Life religious order, who resides with members of her community in Denver.
Two keynote addresses were held each evening of the conference and the morning of the concluding day.
The opening night of the conference on New Year’s Day featured Matt Fradd, a husband, father and host of the Pints with Aquinas podcast based in Florida, and Sister Josephine Garrett, CSFN, who resides in Texas and is consecrated in the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth religious order.
Speakers the second night of the conference included Edward Sri, senior vice president of apostolic outreach at FOCUS, and Father Chase Hilgenbrinck, vocations director for the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois.
The fourth night’s keynotes were delivered by Curtis Martin, founder of FOCUS, and Arthur Brooks, a New York Times bestselling author and professor at Harvard University.
SEEK26 concluded with keynotes from Lisa Cotter, a wife and mother of a FOCUS missionary family for 10-plus years, and Pete Burak, vice president at Renewal Ministries dedicated to renewal and evangelization in the Church, followed by a closing Mass.
Workshops and entertainment were also part of the conference, including a performance by musician Chris Renzema.
“Striking me the most is seeing how many Catholics can fit in one Greater (Columbus) Convention Center, … but also, all the messages. Those have been so good, and they really center into my heart. They’re really relatable,” said Jetzemany Rincon, 22, a member of the Columbus Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization bilingual parish.
She was gifted a SEEK26 conference experience by the Diocese of Columbus and came with members the parish’s Hispanic young adult group.
“I didn’t really have many expectations,” she said of the conference. “I think I was just coming in, … wanted it to be a surprise. I am super blessed to be here – I’m so happy to be here.”
According to FOCUS, 11,744 students from campuses staffed by its missionaries were registered at the three host locations and 2,752 students, an increase of 64 percent from last year, attended from non-FOCUS campuses.
There was a 43-percent increase in seminarians from 2025 who attended. More than 50 bishops were also estimated to be present at this year’s conference.
Bishop Earl Fernandes celebrated the opening Mass of the five-day event. Hundreds of priests, deacons, bishops and seminarians were present, including several from the Columbus diocese.
A notable highlight of the conference was a special blessing and message from Pope Leo XIV to SEEK26 participants. In a recorded video played after the opening Mass, drawing a thunderous applause from the audience, the Pope offered words of encouragement, prayer and hope.
“When I saw the Pope come on, I started crying because I realized that he has such a big Church … and he was able to center down,” Rincon reflected afterward.
The Holy Father asked attendees, “What do you seek?”, a question posed centuries earlier by Christ in the Gospel of John.
Pope Leo recognized that many young people traveled to SEEK, restless, perhaps, and searching for meaning, fulfillment and direction. He encouraged young adults to consider their vocation and be unafraid in answering Christ’s call.
In his homily, Bishop Fernandes pondered how God entered the world as a newborn child so all might be children of God.
The bishop also reflected on Christ’s mother, the Blessed Virgin, who gave her “yes” to God, carrying Him in her virginal womb. The opening day of SEEK26 on Jan. 1 coincided with the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.
Hundreds of booths were present in the conference’s Mission Way held at the convention center. The space included booths with SEEK sponsors, vendors and religious orders. Attendees could visit with consecrated religious and clergy, purchase souvenirs and learn about various Catholic organizations.
FOCUS was founded at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, in 1998, inspired by Pope St. John Paul II’s call to the New Evangelization. The Catholic organization has since expanded to 250+ college campuses and parish communities.
More than 1,000 FOCUS missionaries journey in faith with students and parishioners, equipping them for Christ-centered evangelization and discipleship. The organization reaches nearly 60,000 individuals annually.