Hoping to bring Christ’s love into more lives, Catholic singer-songwriters Seph Schleuter and Aly Aleigha will perform July 10 at the Holy Family Catholic High School football stadium in Victoria at a concert billed as His Name Hallowed.
Dale and Karyn Willenbring, parishioners of St. Joseph in Waconia, were inspired to suggest and help drive the concert forward, along with a trove of volunteers. They hope to draw 2,500 people to the field from 4 to 10 p.m. with an event that will include Archbishop Bernard Hebda offering a brief address on the family and will close with Eucharistic adoration.
The sun will have set, and a spotlight will shine on a monstrance holding the Eucharist, “allowing people to take in the face of Jesus,” Dale Willenbring said. “We’ll invite people to adore the Lord.”
The Willenbrings credited help from media experts, a website builder, graphic artist and others in making the event happen. “If it weren’t for the team, we wouldn’t be where we are,” Karyn Willenbring said.
Teddy Colling, marketing and engagement manager at St. Joseph, thought of the name His Name Hallowed and has put in countless hours updating social media and establishing a following for the event, Dale Willenbring said.
Meghan Hathaway, director of communications for St. Hubert in Chanhassen, and Kirstin Bularzik, youth ministry and faith formation coordinator at St. Joseph, are among those on the planning team. The Willenbrings also credited a friend at St. Victoria in Victoria, Brenda Reddan, with spreading the word.
“The goal for the concert is to make it a big Catholic celebration,” Hathaway said. “One of those concerts that put people on fire with the faith and bring in non-Catholics, too.”
The Willenbrings said they were inspired by Bularzik kicking off school last year with a Sonar Worship concert and speaker for middle and high school students at St. Joseph Catholic School gym that included Eucharistic adoration.
“Karyn and I got to witness 200-plus kids in our gym, listening to music and dancing. Then they were on their knees looking at the face of Jesus” in the Eucharist, Dale Willenbring said. Bularzik said she plans to hold a similar event this fall, with the start of a new school year.
Schleuter has been part of Ohio-based Damascus Worship and its efforts to promote worship and revival in the Church. In 2024, he released the album, “Counting My Blessings” and was recognized as Christian Music Broadcaster’s Breakout Artist of 2024. He recently was named Billboard’s No. 2 New Christian Artist, according to his website.
Aleigha, a local indie-folk Catholic artist recently featured on the Hallow prayer app who has worked with Father Mike Schmitz of the Duluth diocese, among others, will open the concert.
“It was important to have Catholic artists, so it has that authenticity,” Dale Willenbring said.
During a break between the artists’ performances, Archbishop Hebda will talk about the importance of the family.
The concert is a response to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ efforts to bring to life the archbishop’s 2022 pastoral letter, “You Will Be My Witnesses: Gathered and Sent From the Upper Room,” said the Willenbrings, parishioners of St. Joseph for more than 20 years. The archbishop’s letter grew out of the Archdiocesan Synod 2022 Assembly and the Willenbrings are involved in St. Joseph’s efforts to carry out initiatives inspired by the letter.
Year three of implementing the letter focuses on forming parents as primary educators of their children in the ways of the faith, which goes to the heart of every family, Dale Willenbring said.
In addition, Dale Willenbring said, he feels a groundswell of interest in the Catholic Church, particularly among youth, young adults and families.
“I just get that sense, seeing these young families in Mass,” he said. “You get this sense of a desire (among) young families to have faith again. You see guys sitting in Mass together, these young kids.”
Support for the concert has been strong from pastors and others at St. Joseph and nearby parishes, and volunteers continue to help, including 80 people who will assist at the stadium, the Willenbrings said.
Posters about the concert have been distributed to 20 parishes, social media efforts to promote the event are increasing, and radio advertisements are set to begin, with the hope that people will fill the stadium. The Willenbrings have decided, with the help of about a half-dozen volunteers, to call each of the archdiocese’s 185 parishes to tell them about the concert.
From there, the plan is to hold annual concerts that allow the event to grow and catch on in the region, Karyn Willenbring said. “It’s just an idea that God put in our hearts.”
Tickets for the event are available at hisnamehallowed.com. Individuals or groups unable to afford the concert can send an email for assistance to tickets@hisnamehallowed.com. At the same email address, Minneapolis-based Catholic Schools Center of Excellence has offered to cover the ticket costs of any Catholic school that would like to send a group of students to the event.
