This article is original published in EWTN Great Britain, you can read the original article by clicking here.
My name is Chavez Poon, and I’m from Hong Kong. In December 2025, after a period of discernment, I made my way to Walsingham to take up a position at the National Catholic Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham. I find myself on a journey and am currently discerning a vocation to the priesthood. During my time in Walsingham, I became good friends with the team at EWTN Great Britain, whose production studio is based there. As a result, over the Corpus Christi weekend, I volunteered to film the annual Corpus Christi Procession from Warwick Street to Spanish Place in London, as I already had plans to attend the Youth Mass at St George’s Cathedral, Southwark.
I was happy to help, as I have a keen interest in sharing Catholic stories and evangelising through social media. The project was a great success and, to my surprise, I was put forward as a candidate for the EWTN Summer Academy in Rome, representing EWTN Great Britain.
Time was short, and I immediately began preparing for the trip, which I was incredibly excited about. I arrived at Ciampino Airport and made my way to CIAM, situated at the Pontifical Urban University in the heart of Rome. Any feelings of uncertainty soon disappeared as I met the other candidates from across the world. I immediately sensed that this was going to be an experience I would never forget.
The Summer Academy runs over ten days in June and is organised by the EWTN Vatican Office. It brings together young Catholic journalists, content creators and influencers from a wide variety of countries and backgrounds. The programme serves as an introduction to Catholic media, with the aim of broadening participants’ understanding of media evangelisation through the lens of EWTN.
The programme combines lectures from media professionals with extensive group work. Together, these sessions culminate in the production of a final project, with candidates working in teams on assigned topics. I was part of a group with participants from EWTN Australia, Poland, the Philippines and Vietnam. Our tutor was Luca Galovics, a producer with EWTN Hungary. She was incredibly friendly and supportive, not only to me but to the entire team. She exemplified professionalism rooted in a living faith, which I found truly inspiring. Although we faced many challenges, the friendships we formed helped us achieve our goal of producing a short film exploring the merits of veiling at Mass.
I learned an enormous amount through the experience and would wholeheartedly recommend the Summer Academy to other young Catholics working in, or aspiring to work in, the media. The technical training in filming, editing, presenting and scriptwriting was invaluable. However, if I had to choose the aspect I appreciated most, it would undoubtedly be the friendships that grew from our shared faith. Alongside the lectures and practical assignments, we had the opportunity to attend the General Audience with the Holy Father. This was my first General Audience, and it was a moving experience to be in the presence of Pope Leo XIV. It brought home to me the universality of the Church and, in particular, the importance of remaining in communion with the Holy Father. It made me feel proud to be a young Catholic in today’s world.
It was not all work and no play. During one of our excursions, we visited two of the papal basilicas: St Paul Outside the Walls and St John Lateran. While there, I had the privilege of serving Mass for Fr Michael Baggot, who was the Spiritual Director of the Summer Academy. The programme also had a deeply spiritual dimension, with daily Mass, prayer, and many rich conversations about the faith among the candidates.
I left Rome with a gift that I feel called to share with other young Catholics through the medium of new media evangelisation. I hope that, alongside my own witness through Catholic media, I may have the opportunity to continue serving within the EWTN family, whose mission I have grown to love.
My introduction to Mother Angelica and the global network she built has left me in no doubt that one day she will be recognised as the saint I believe she is, in recognition of her extraordinary contribution to Catholic media and the evangelisation of the world.
