Dear Family, Friends, and Supporters,

On August 4-16, 2024, 15 USC Trojan Catholics will be joining hundreds of thousands of Poles as they make their annual pilgrimage to Czestochowa, and we will also be participating in a walking pilgrimage to Auschwitz and attending a special Mass at Cell Block 11, in memory of the sacrifice made by St. Maximilian Kolbe and to remember and pray for those that died there. In attendance will be bishops, priests, delegates, and several hundred people.

When St. John Paul II celebrated Mass in Auschwitz in 1979, he began his homily by saying: "This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith" (1 Jn 5:4). Right now, with all that is going on in the world, we need to see this victory and remember it. That’s why this pilgrimage is important.

While the 20th century produced many horrific events that took place on Polish soil, it is precisely in that time and place that God raised up three of [arguably] the greatest saints of our modern era: Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Saint Faustina, and Saint John Paul II. Truly, in them we see how “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

Our pilgrimage is not a vacation; it is very much a retreat, a meditation – because today, more than ever, we need to pray and remember the light that God gave us through these Saints. Their confidence in God’s unfathomable mercy, their fight for Truth, and the offering they made of their lives for their fellow man – these are a testament that God was victorious in them, and that He can be victorious in us and through us, too.

We ask that you come with us on this pilgrimage by praying for us – that we may have powerful encounters with God, be more deeply converted, and be strengthened to live out our faith courageously and joyfully. In addition to coming with us spiritually through prayer, we ask that you would consider coming with us by financially sponsoring a [student] pilgrim or a spiritual guide.

Any amount that you can give will be truly appreciated, and there are no minimums or maximums!

Vital to our pilgrimage are our spiritual guides: our Franciscan priest-chaplain, Fr. Joe Kim, and a Father Kolbe Missionary of the Immaculata, Ann O’Donnell. In the interest of keeping costs low for our students, we have not included the price of their travel in the student price. Instead, we have included their costs in our fundraising goal.

The value of their role cannot be underestimated! Father, a Conventual Franciscan, like St. Kolbe, will celebrate Mass for us daily and serve as a spiritual director for our pilgrims. Ann has been a Kolbe Missionary for over 40 years, was a pioneer in opening the missionaries’ Kolbe Center close to Auschwitz, and has a way of bringing Kolbe to life.

We thank you for however you can support us – whether financially and/or spiritually – and we thank you for your time and consideration! Please know that we will be bringing your intentions with us and praying for you and your family - please click here to add your own intentions and/or become a spiritual sponsor!

Some places we will journey to and pray at:

-St. Faustina – Divine Mercy Shrine in Lagiewniki

-St John Paul II – Wadowice, Kalwaria Zebrzydowska

-Częstochowa, Queen of Poland

-St. Maximilian Kolbe – Birth place, baptismal font, family home, site of two crowns, Niepokalanów, Auschwitz, Sw. Maksymiliana Kolbe Centrum

-Warszaw, Kraków

We will have daily Mass, community prayer, and time for reflection.