To kick off the annual 2026 Raise Your Voice Symposium, over 50 people gathered in prayer at the Lizzy Seeberg Memorial Garden next to Reidinger House. Hosted by the Center for Faith, Action and Ministry and the Belles Against Violence Office, the prayer service that was traditionally held to commemorate Seeberg’s experience now aims to encompass the lives and experiences of survivors of sexual violence.
Seeberg, a former student at Saint Mary’s College, received severe pushback and harassment after filing a police report on former Notre Dame football player Prince Shembo for sexual assault. On Sept. 10, 2010, Seeberg died by suicide, a week and a half after the report. This year, Tom and Mary Seeberg, Lizzy’s parents, were in attendance. Tom Seeberg also gave the introduction to the keynote panel for the symposium.
“Pretty much every year since Lizzy’s death, we’ve done some sort of prayer service, typically closer to her date of death. But then when we started doing Raise Your Voice, it felt like a really natural space to also honor her there,” Liz Baumann said. Baumann is a Title IX officer and director for harassment education and response.
The Raise Your Voice Symposium, established in 2021 by College President Katie Conboy, quickly evolved to include highlighting Lizzy Seeberg’s experience as part of their range of programming. Baumann mentioned that the prayer service has consistently been the opening event in order to orient the community toward a mindset of reflection and faith.
“I think it’s really important that we bring our community together to center ourselves on why we are doing this work. Why are we hosting something like a sexual violence prevention symposium? … Why do we do the work that we do? Where have we come from? What needs to be done? I think the prayer service is such a nice centering of that,” Baumann said.
The prayer service commenced with an opening prayer, led by CFAM community engagement intern Caitlin Price, followed by a Scripture reading from BAVO student advisory committee member Ally Krause and a reflection offered by Baumann. Afterward, Price and Krause led those in attendance through a universal prayer of petitions and recitation of Psalm 9.
“It’s such an honor to be here and to be a channel to project Lizzy’s story to people who want to hear, pray and honor her legacy and then also the legacy of others who have experienced sexual violence and sexual assault. It’s more common than I think our world gives attention to,” Price said.
Krause, who is also involved in the planning for the Take Back the Night prayer service on Thursday, said she finds fulfillment in preparing and offering spaces of healing through prayer for tri-campus students.
“Doing this, prayerful, meditative work … is a really good way to recenter yourself back and like actually creating change. Because we’re allowed to be angry; we’re allowed to be loud about it; we’re allowed to call for change in our communities, in the country, in the world, loudly. But we’re also allowed to take time for ourselves, to heal internally,” Krause said.
Erin Taylor, the liturgist and musical director for CFAM, aided assistant director for justice and solidarity Sarah Neitz in organizing the prayer service. She said that centering the symposium and “your voice” in faith, prayer and solidarity with those who have experienced sexual violence is an important step for healing and prevention.
“There can sometimes be stigma around faith communities ... that is an extra barrier for those that might have had those experiences to come forward. So I think saying that we can talk about it in a faith-centered environment, that we can ask God to put a stop to these things … that’s a thing that we should pray for, and that also praying for the consolation of anyone that has experienced that and in solidarity with those that are experiencing that,” Taylor said.
Baumann’s sentiments paralleled Taylor’s when asked about the importance of approaching sexual violence through a lens of prayer. Survivors of sexual violence often struggle with their relationship with faith and spirituality, according to Baumann, but she believes that faith can also become a central component to healing.
“It’s so important to recognize that that relationship [with faith] can be complicated for a bit, but that faith can also be a big part of healing. And we want people on our campus, especially survivors, to feel welcomed by faith and supported by faith, and I think the prayer service is a great example of that,” Baumann said.
Neitz felt especially touched at the sight of the large gathering for the service and believes that such a show of solidarity is important for the Saint Mary’s community.
“This is something that touches all of our lives as women and then providing experiences like this, where we’re able to come together in prayer before God to ask for an end to sexual violence. I think prayer is important and effective, and if we believe that, it’s really important for us to show up for things like this,” Neitz said.
