Speakers

Keynotes

Sr. Meredith Boquiren, OCD

Sister Meredith, O.C.D. is a Carmelite Sister of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles.  She was raised in Los Angeles, CA and attended the University of California, San Diego where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies and Planning.  She worked in the Environmental Consulting industry for five years before venturing off to start her own clothing business with her sister and college friends.  She was involved in all facets of a start-up business, including sales, design, and manufacturing both domestic and abroad.  Sister Meredith discerned a call to religious life and entered Carmel in 2008.  She has served as an administrative assistant at Santa Teresita, a healthcare facility, and a teacher in Denver, Colorado, in her congregation’s Office of Mission Advancement, and as Novitiate Directress.  Sister Meredith made her final profession in July of 2018 and currently serves as the Retreat Directress for Sacred Heart Retreat House in Los Angeles.  She is grateful to God for calling her to religious life and desires nothing more than to love God and to help others encounter His unconditional love for them! 

Fr. Patrick Schultz

Fr. Patrick Schultz was ordained for service to the Diocese of Cleveland in 2016.  He serves as parochial vicar at Sacred Heart of Jesus parish in Wadsworth, OH.   He speaks regularly at youth and young adult retreats and events, with a special interest in promoting Pope St. John Paul II’s teaching on the Theology of the Body, as well as themes in apologetics and spirituality.  He has served as chaplain for the Theology of the Body Institute, both for courses and pilgrimages.  He serves as chaplain for the Cleveland chapter of Legatus, and can be heard on the podcast: Slaking Thirsts.  

breakout speakers

Brad Pierron (EMCEE)

Brad Pierron is an Ohio State University alum and missionary program director at Damascus Catholic Mission Campus. As a missionary, he is passionate about spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to young adults today, and as a southern Ohio guy, he loves sports, sweet tea, pizza and ice cream.

Fr. Steve Dos Santos, C.PP.S.

Fr. Steve grew up in Alameda, California where he met the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. His undergraduate degree is in Economics from UC Berkeley, and he worked as a restaurant manager before beginning formation.

Fr. Steve was temporarily incorporated into the Missionaries in 2003 and definitively incorporated in 2004. Ordained a priest in 2006, he has served in parish ministry, provincial administration, and as the Vocations Director for his community. He currently serves as the pastor of St. James the Less here in Columbus.

In 2016 he was named a Missionary of Mercy by Pope Francis. He continues to enjoy special faculties to remit certain canonical penalties on behalf of the Holy Father. Hearing Confessions is one of the two best things he gets to do as a priest. He loves being the instrument of God’s mercy for His people.

Mr. Jason Spoolstra, MA

Mr. Jason Spoolstra, MA serves as the Associate Director for the office of Marriage and Family in the Department of Evangelization for the Diocese of Columbus.

His professional career spans over sixteen years having served as a full-time parish Director of Youth Ministry, High School formation and Confirmation Coordinator, Diocesan Director of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry, and Interim Director for the Department of Evangelization and Catechesis for the Diocese of Fort Worth. Before coming to the Diocese of Columbus, Jason served as the Director of Pilgrimage for the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine.

He is a graduate of the University of North Texas with a BA in History and an MA in Catechetics and the New Evangelization from the Franciscan University of Steubenville.

In his spare time Mr. Spoolstra is the author of the YouTube channel Light and Heavy which chronicles Catholic Pilgrimages he has directed over the yeas and is the founder of Linked to Liturgy which is a parish resource devoted to the Sacred Liturgy.

Mr. Spoolstra has been married for over fifteen years and is the father of 7 children (three daughters and a son as well as three in heaven due to miscarriage).

Noah Gilcrest

Noah is a missionary and ministry leader at Damascus. In his junior year of High School, Noah encountered Jesus and His Church in a powerful way at the March for Life and has never turned back. Since 2014, Noah has spoken to thousands of youth through serving with NET Ministries for one year and now Damascus for eight years. Noah’s greatest passion is to see the Church place relationship with Jesus at the forefront through making prayer her number one priority.

Kris Frank

With over 15 years of experience in parish and non-profit work, Kris Frank serves as the Vice President of Growth and Marketing for the National Eucharistic Congress, Inc. He has also been privileged to travel around the country, sharing the Gospel with teens and adults at retreats, camps, conferences, and parish missions. He has also contributed to various evangelical and catechetical writing projects and publications over the years. In 2020, Kris published his first book, Hope Always: An Anchor for Life’s Storms. He now lives in Steubenville, Ohio, with his wife, Grace, and their six children.