By More than 100 Carroll College students and staff kicked off 2025 at the Seek Conference in Salt Lake City, from Jan. 1-5.
The convention, hosted by Focus Ministries, drew more than 17,000 participants from the western United States. The Montana contingent was substantial, with students from Montana State University, University of Montana, Montana Technical Institute, Helena College, Montana Western and Carroll.
Ryan Frampton, a senior Catholic studies and philosophy double major from Whitefish, Montana, said it was a fulfilling conference.
“Seek was a memorable experience and a great opportunity to grow in fellowship with great friends, as well as grow more deeply in the faith through the sacraments and talks,” Frampton said.
The five-day conference was loaded with opportunities to experience the Catholic faith. Popular Catholic speakers gave keynotes talks and offered break-out sessions. Students had the opportunity to attend daily Mass, Adoration, and Confession, as well as a country swing dance and Forrest Frank concert. Almost 300 sponsors had booths in the career fair for students to visit.
The Diocese of Helena was represented not only by students, but by Bishop Vetter, Rev. Tyler Frohlich, Rev. Christopher Lebsock, seminarians, and community members. The Diocese hosted a dinner for Montana schools, and Bishop Vetter was the main celebrant for daily mass on Saturday, Jan. 4. If interested, you can find Bishop Vetter’s homily and many of the other talks for free at seekreplay.com.
While Seek occurs every year, Carroll Campus Ministry typically sponsors attendance every other year to allow time for fundraising to cover lodging and travel for more attendees.
This year, the annual conference was held in Salt Lake City for more western states, and Washington D.C. for those farther east. In addition to this, Focus also hosted a small conference in Cologne, Germany. Washington, D.C. registered 3,355 people, and Cologne, Germany had 486. Salt Lake City topped them all, with more than 17,000 participants.
Focus is a Catholic missionary organization with teams in 255 locations and more than 1,000 missionaries. Carroll College, Montana State University, and the University of Montana, all host Focus Missionary teams. Carroll’s team includes Anna Rodriguez, Shane Cunningham, Dylan Heggedal, and team director Allie Freisen. The biggest event Focus holds each year is the Seek conference.
“It was a beautiful reminder of the Church alive in 17,000 college students and, because of that experience, my faith has been strengthened in ways I never thought possible,” said Julian Betz, a senior accelerated nursing student from Spokane, Washington.
