Buckeye Catholic numbers soar after school kickoff

Buckeye Catholic ministry at the Ohio State University has seen an increase in student attendance at the St. Thomas More student center in Columbus. On Aug. 23, the first Sunday of the school year, 1,405 students attended Mass, while 1,613 students attended Masses the following weekend.

The student center offers daily Masses, with morning services averaging between 25 and 50 attendees and evening services averaging between 75 and 100. The ministry also provides 50 hours of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament each week and offers daily confession, including four hours of reconciliation on Sundays.

Andrew Kebe, the director of ministry at Buckeye Catholic, noted that many students attending Mass have not participated in the liturgy since grade school or Confirmation. Kebe also reported that non-Catholic students have been attending services. Additionally, the ministry's Instagram page gained more than 800 new followers and reached over 500,000 views during the last month.