World Youth Days are the greatest concentration of young people in the world. Thousands of young people respond every two to three years to the call of the Roman Pontiff to go on pilgrimage to a city of the world and manifest their faith in Christ.

WYD can change your life! This is how it has affected some of Salford's young people:

“The acts that changed my life, the acts of friendship, acceptance, patience, community and love that I experienced both during the preparation of WYD and during the event has allowed me to rethink who I am, what I value and how I move forward in my life."
(Joanne Chadwick – St Mary’s, Horwich) 

“Going to WYD made me realise that being a Catholic is not about belonging to a dying faith, but about being part of a faith which is full of life.”
Kirsty Lacey – Corpus Christi, Nottingham

“The next WYD is to be held in Madrid in three years time and I would definitely encourage other young people who have not yet attended a WYD to get involved. It is a fantastic opportunity to not only get in touch with your faith, but to also make good friends with other young Catholics, particularly within the Salford Diocese.” 
Phillippa McEvoy – St Joseph’s, Mossley

“The great thing was that we got to experience a different way of life, different foods and a different culture. At the same time and perhaps more importantly, I learnt that although we live thousands of miles apart from my host family, practice a different culture and have different hobbies...we all still have this powerful and universal bond...we are one body, one body in Christ and we do not stand alone.” 
Chris Singleton – St Mary’s, Horwich

“The most amazing aspect of DITD for me was the genuine kindness and hospitality shown to us by the people of the parish, it was incredible to travel to the other side of the world and, by sharing the same faith, have such a connection with people we had never met...” Helen Hunt – St Wilfrid’s, Shrewsbury

“We stayed with families who treated us like one of their own with amasing warmth, generosity and love...”
Michael Deas – St Edward’s, Rusholme