By Luis Chacon, Coordinator of the Salesian Missionary Volunteer Program

(Los Angeles, California) – As the Salesian Family gathers for SEEK, one of the largest Catholic conferences for young adults in North America, we do so under this year’s theme: “SEEK in the Heights.” Inspired by the witness of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, the conference invites young people to lift their eyes upward and rediscover that holiness is not distant or unattainable, but concrete, joyful, and deeply rooted in everyday life.

This year, SEEK is taking place simultaneously in multiple locations, including Denver, Colorado, and Texas, allowing the Salesian Family to extend its presence and accompaniment to young people across different regions.

Day Zero: Presence Before Programs

Our journey at SEEK began even before the official opening of the conference. Day Zero was marked by arrival, preparation, fraternity, and prayer. As Salesians of Don Bosco, Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, and committed lay collaborators, we came together with a clear intention: to be present.

Before booths, conversations, or schedules, we rooted ourselves in the Salesian spirit of accompaniment. SEEK is not first about numbers, but about encounters. From the very beginning, our mission was simple and profoundly Salesian: to listen, to welcome, and to create spaces where young people can speak freely about their lives, their questions, their wounds, and their dreams.

Day One: Listening, Accompanying, and Inviting

The first official day of SEEK gave us the opportunity to engage with dozens of young people. Throughout the day, our Salesian presence focused on promoting the mission of Don Bosco through genuine conversations: listening to young people’s concerns, learning about their dreams, and helping them reflect on their desire to serve and give meaning to their lives.

While we do not yet know how many young people will actively pursue vocational discernment or concrete involvement after the conference, we continue to patiently build relationships and a growing database of contacts—trusting that vocation is born through time, accompaniment, and grace.

The day concluded with the celebration of the Eucharist, reminding us that all vocational ministry flows from Christ and returns to Him.

Representatives of the Province of the West at SEEK – Denver

The Salesian Province of the West is actively present at SEEK in Denver through a team representing key areas of provincial mission:

• Juan Carlos Montenegro, Delegate for Missionary Animation
• Fr. Fabián Cárdenas, SDB, Delegate for Youth Ministry
• Fr. Itchan Lago, SDB, Delegate for Formation
• Luis Chacón, Coordinator of the Salesian Missionary Volunteer Program

Together, they are accompanying young people through presence, dialogue, vocational conversations, and the promotion of concrete opportunities to serve within the Salesian mission.

A United Salesian Presence Across Locations

Alongside the presence in Denver, the Salesian Province of the West is also accompanying young people at SEEK in Texas. The Salesians serving at that location are Br. Reegan Ledet, SDB, and Fr. Marcos Castillo, SDB, who are actively engaged in vocational outreach, accompaniment, and discernment with young adults in that region.

These coordinated efforts reflect a shared provincial commitment to walk with young people wherever they are, offering spaces of listening, encounter, and vocational discernment in the spirit of Don Bosco.

A Call to the Salesian Family: Pray With Us

SEEK continues through January 5, and these remaining days remain a privileged time of grace and vocational discernment. We humbly ask the entire Salesian Family—Salesians, Salesian Sisters, lay collaborators, alumni, benefactors, and friends—to accompany this mission with their prayers.

In a special way, we ask for prayers for new vocations within the Salesian Family, particularly to the consecrated religious life of the Salesians of Don Bosco. In a world searching for meaning, we trust that God continues to call generous hearts to serve young people with joy, courage, and hope.

May Don Bosco, Mary Help of Christians, and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati intercede for us, so that many young people may discover that they are not called merely to exist—but to live fully, by looking to the heights where God awaits them.