In his letter, Archbishop Schnurr wrote:

“Radiate Christ. These two words summarize God the Father’s hope for humanity on this earth. The words contain both a reality and a mission: the reality of the person of Jesus Christ as the Savior of all people and the mission of each Christian to participate in the Son’s redemption of the world.”

These awards seek to recognize those who embody that mission—those who not only proclaim the Gospel but live it with conviction, joy, and love. Nominations are welcomed across five categories: Parish Evangelization, Marriage & Family Evangelization, Hispanic Evangelization, Young Adult Evangelization, and Evangelization in Communications.

This year’s nomination period for the 2026 Radiate Christ Awards opens August 15 and continues through September 30. If someone in your life has consistently radiated the love of Christ through their ministry or witness, we invite you to submit their name for consideration.

Honoring Tom and Kris Severyn

Tom and Kris Severyn of Dayton received the 2025 award in the Marriage & Family Evangelization category. Their decades-long ministry teaching Natural Family Planning (NFP) shaped the lives of hundreds of couples across the archdiocese—and continues to bear fruit today.

Since 1981, Tom and Kris have taught over 500 couples, trained numerous instructors, and served as a steady, faithful presence in the NFP community. Their work was deeply rooted in evangelization, not just in sharing Church teaching but in accompanying families and couples in discovering the beauty and wisdom of God’s plan for marriage.

Deacon David and Linda Ulmer met the Severyns in an NFP course at the University of Dayton in 1996. They were pro-life Baptists searching for answers about family planning and Christian marriage.

“Tom and Kris Severyn’s commitment to evangelization through Natural Family Planning has had a profound and lasting spiritual impact,” Deacon David said. “Their clear, passionate explanation of Church teaching on contraception and marriage introduced us—then pro-life Baptists—to a truth we had never encountered before. Their faithful witness, resources, and personal support not only helped us embrace NFP but ultimately led to our conversion to the Catholic Church. Their evangelization didn’t just inform us—it transformed us.”

Tom Severyn passed away from cancer just days before the 2025 CNE Banquet, when the winners of the Radiate Christ Awards were announced. Kris, surrounded by family, accepted the award.

In a November 2024 interview, Tom reflected on their journey, saying: “If you go seeking glory, it will be hard to find it. But if you work diligently on something that is in God’s plan, you’ll get the glory.”

Tom and Kris’ ministry is a powerful reminder that evangelization often happens quietly, consistently, and over time. Their legacy now lives on in the families they supported, the instructors they trained, and the lives they helped bring into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

Nominate Someone for 2026

The Radiate Christ Awards exist to celebrate evangelists like Tom and Kris—those whose mission is lived out daily in parishes, homes, and communities across the archdiocese. Their work often goes unseen but is no less powerful, and the CNE desires to honor this work. ✣

Jake     Emser     is     Director       of     Strategy      & Communications for the Center for the New Evangelization in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.