Youth Find Faith, Friendship and Growth at 2025 Asia International FSY Conference

When Sarah Olson twisted a ligament in her knee during a variety show practice and found herself on crutches at the For the Strength of Youth (FSY) conference, the idea of going home to rest never crossed her mind.

“I love FSY so much that I just want to be here, where I can meet new friends from all over the world, feel the spirit, learn, grow and have fun together,” she said.

The 16-year-old was among 139 youth participating in the international FSY conference in Thailand, held from July 31 to August 5, 2025. Many attendees, like Olson, were returning participants excited to engage in the event once again.

FSY, organized by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aims to strengthen and empower young members aged 14 to 18 through a five-day event. It seeks to help youth build a firm foundation in their faith in Jesus Christ, cultivate friendships, and engage in meaningful activities such as devotionals, workshops, interactive classes, service projects, dances and games.

This year’s worldwide theme is “Look Unto Christ” (D&C 6:36) with a primary focus to help the youth build a personal relationship with the Savior. Everything that is taught at the conference has a spiritual purpose to increase their understanding of God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ and the restoration of the gospel. In this international FSY conference, youth also learned the importance of temples and temple attendance, as well as how to prepare for a mission, receive personal revelation, ask gospel questions and know where to find answers.

Typically, FSY conferences are held locally in participants' native languages. However, in the Asia Area of the Church, which spans 22 countries and territories, many youths are unable to attend their local FSY due to language barriers. They come from diverse backgrounds and live in Asia because of their parents’ work assignments. To accommodate them, an international FSY conference was organized in English. Like Olson, originally from Canada and now living in Thailand, this year’s 139 participants represent 15 nationalities across 13 nations.

“I love FSY because of the unity among so many young people of my faith,” said Evelyn Cheong, 18, a recent convert from Singapore. “There’s only one stake in Singapore, and not enough youth for our own FSY. I had never met so many Church members of my age until I arrived here. The large group makes the experience very powerful.”

Crista Li, 17, comes from Malaysia, where the Church’s presence is also small, with only two youth in her unit. She echoed Evelyn’s sentiments, noting that the diverse and dynamic atmosphere at FSY made the experience truly unique and memorable. “Although the schedule is intense with packed activities every day, I appreciate how everything here encourages me to prioritize spiritual things, and it’s so much easier to do it together with a group of people,” she shared.

For Adia Wong, 17, from Hong Kong, scripture study took on new meaning after she was taught to ask a question before reading. As she embraced this approach, she pondered, “How can I be a better person? Am I serving enough? What can I do to become more like Jesus?” Through her study of Alma 18, a chapter from The Book of Mormon, she found clarity and direction. “It worked!” she said with a smile, having experienced the results of applying what she learned.

Similar to these young women, many young members said they would be more intentional with their gospel studies upon returning home from the conference. Some called FSY a “transformative” experience because it changes the way the youth think and act as disciples of Jesus Christ. As they learn to apply the gospel to all aspects of their lives, they experience spiritual, social and personal growth.

Caleb Jeter, 17, originally from USA, now resides in India. He describes himself as a shy person who rarely talked to strangers before attending FSY last year. However, the experience increased his self-confidence. This year, he even found the courage to ask girls to slow dance.

Liam Lam (Arnar), 16, half Chinese half Swedish, currently living in Hong Kong, said the testimony meetings meant a lot to him. “The heartfelt testimonies (I heard) have boosted my spirituality,” he said. “Moving forward, I want to treat everyone equally, with kindness and respect regardless of where they come from.”

Matohi Bybee, 18, half American half Tahitian, currently living in Bali, said the conference has taught him the importance of companionship and empathy. He felt completely at ease associating with other Latter-day Saints from other parts of the world. “They helped me see who I am, and I can just be myself here.”

He decided to attend the temple weekly when he starts school at Brigham Young University-Hawaii (BYU-Hawaii), while Daut da silva, 17, from Timor Leste, said FSY helped him determine to serve a mission.

At the conference, the youth learn to “discover” areas in need of personal improvement, “plan” actionable steps, and then “act” on those plans and be accountable for it. As they “reflect” on their experiences, they ultimately “grow.” This process of self-discovery and development, as emphasized throughout the FSY curriculum, is instrumental in helping the youth remain faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ and become more like Him.

Orchestrating an event of this scale and impact requires months of dedicated effort from a committed team. This year’s organizing committee included Area Advisors Elder Paul and Sister Grace Peterson, Session Directing Couple David and Teri Boland, two coordinators, nine assistant coordinators, 17 young single adult (YSA) counselors, and many others.

All the youth were grouped into “companies,” each with a mix of ages and genders, led by two YSA counselors. Throughout the conference, they studied, ate, and played together, quickly forming close bonds and learning to work with others, serve and lead.

Prayusak Gharti Chetri, 14, from Nepal, was one of the youngest participants. She shared that she was initially nervous about meeting new people, but her company was so welcoming that she quickly felt at ease. “Our company and counselors feel like family to me… like I’m at home,” she said.

Bybee added, “The YSA counselors made the biggest impact on us because they are with us all the time. I love our counselors!”

His counselor, Rycor Coon, 22, a BYU student majoring in experience design and management, served his mission in Thailand and was thrilled to return and volunteer at this conference.

“My responsibility is to uplift the youth through both spiritual and fun activities. I had to coach them on behaviors that needed refining, but I still loved them during the process,” he said. “I was so happy to see them make Christlike efforts to help others feel welcome... Sometimes, I feel like I’m the one learning from these young people!”

Another counselor, Cherry Saengchai, a 27-year-old Thai student at BYU–Hawaii, led a younger group and was deeply moved by their sincere testimonies, strong faith and pure love. She said one girl in her group, who hadn’t attended Church for months and had never borne her testimony, felt inspired by FSY to return to Church and stay active.

The youth also had the special opportunity to serve 30 young participants from the Mercy Center in Bangkok during a meaningful day of service. Through games, activities, and heartfelt interaction, the youth showed kindness and care. The Bolands, who helped organize the service project, said, “Though different languages were spoken, the spirit of love, service and friendship created a powerful connection. It was a joyful day, filled with smiles and unity.”

Witnessing the positive impact FSY had on the youth was deeply rewarding for the organizing committee. During the process, they learned and grew with the youth.  

“When we give the youth space and trust, they show maturity in their thinking and testimonies,” said Coordinator Isaac Woolford, 22, from Utah, a mechanical engineering at BYU. “We just have to give them opportunities to do that and experience that.”

He continued, “While serving a mission in Thailand, I heard many conversion stories from longtime members. It’s so cool that FSY is now going to be a part of that conversion story and why there’s more multi-generational families throughout the Church, especially in developing countries where the Church has just started.”

His counterpart, Amanda Hansen, 22, from South Carolina, a psychology major also at BYU, emphasized God was in the details of this conference. “The Savior really knows every single one of these youth,” she said. “He knows where they are at with their testimony and in life, so He puts the people and things where they needed to be.”

She appreciated the global consistency of FSY’s format, while also valuing the flexibility to tailor this conference to meet local needs, including organizing a special sacrament meeting attended by the Area President on Sabbath (FSY typically doesn’t extend into Sunday).

Elder Benjamin M. Z. Tai reflected on that moment and said the level of reverence made that sacrament meeting one to remember, “Watching the priests, the deacons, passing the sacrament and blessing it with such care and respect was really powerful. I had a vision of the future of the Church: They organize themselves; they administer the ordinances themselves; they make covenants by themselves. It’s very powerful.”

Sister Boland said, “My one hope for these youth is that they recognize this spirit that they did feel here at FSY…and write these memories in a journal, recall them later when they need them and don’t forget.”

Likewise, Brother Boland added, “We told them they don’t have to be 'perfect' disciples. They just need to be 'willing' disciples… [After FSY], they aren’t going to take on everything, but maybe they take on enough that they can be ready to make life’s decisions and…stay strong in the Church.”