Young adults from throughout the diocese will converge on San Angelo on July 30 as part of a global observance of World Youth Day.

WYDUSA-San Angelo begins at 9:15 a.m. as the Pilgrim Cross, which has processed throughout the diocese since April 6, will be carried by young adults from Our Lady of Guadalupe in Eldorado. The procession begins at the intersection of Bell Street and Rio Concho Drive and proceeds to San Angelo’s McNease Convention Center, site of the WYDUSA-San Angelo event.

A daylong celebration of faith, featuring an address by Bishop Michael J. Sis, other presenters, workshops and opportunities for song, prayer, devotion and reconciliation will continue until the closing Mass at 4 p.m. presided over by Bishop Sis.

Roselva Ruiz, a parishioner at Holy Redeemer in Odessa, is chairing the committee of volunteers overseeing the coordination of WYDUSA-San Angelo which, despite its name, is not targeted for youth, but for young adults aged 18-39.

“Since last October we’ve been discussing our vision and what we actually are being asked to do, based on what the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops want us to focus on, and the call of Pope Francis that no young adult is to be excluded from having the opportunity to experience World Youth Day,” Ruiz said.

This year’s international World Youth Day celebration is in Krakow, Poland. The local celebrations around the world give young adults the chance to experience the global event in their communities if they are unable to attend the main event in Europe.

Eleven parishioners from the Diocese of San Angelo, however, will be making the trip to Krakow, and will, at one point during the WYDUSA-San Angelo event, communicate via video conference with those attending the local event.

Presenters at the San Angelo event include Dr. Robert O’Connor, of St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, who will speak on “Morality vs. Society”; Dr. James Sulliman, of Holy Family Parish in Abilene, who will present on “Finding the Divine in Relationships”; Bonnie LaMelle Abadie, of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, will address the young adults on prioritizing their life in a workshop entitled “Jesus Take the Wheel,” and Leota Roesch, MA, will present on “I Am Catholic!” The workshops begin at 11:05 a.m.

The afternoon is devoted to spiritual opportunities with the prayer of the Divine Mercy, Stations of the Cross, Sacred Space, Reconciliation and a Multi-Cultural Rosary all beginning at 2 p.m.

The event will also feature many different ethnic groups that are representative of the multi-ethnicity in the diocese.

“We are hoping to have people from different parishes representing the Nigerian community, India, the Matachines, Hispanics, Filipinos and other ethnic groups in their native dress and perhaps participate in dance during our lunchtime,” Ruiz said.