Gathered in Goodness convention encourages Utahns to slow down and rediscover wonder

Ryann Anderegg | American Fork Citizen

As the holiday season approaches, calendars fill with family gatherings, shopping trips, celebrations and many other responsibilities. While the season brings opportunities for connection and joy, the busyness sometimes overshadows the very things that make it meaningful.

A local event in Lehi encouraged adults to step back, slow down and rediscover the goodness in everyday life as the holiday rush begins.

The Gathered in Goodness Convention brought together adults from across Utah on Nov. 6-7 at Good & Beautiful Media’s headquarters in Lehi. The event focused on helping people live more intentionally, cultivate gratitude, and recognize the wonder that can easily get lost in the demands of everyday life.

“We called the event ‘Gathered in Goodness’ because that’s our mission in a nutshell: making goodness go viral,” organizer Dara Johnson said. “We wanted a safe place where people who care about goodness could come together, notice the wonder around them, and learn simple ways to share it with their families and communities.”

Organizers hoped attendees would leave feeling renewed and ready to approach their lives with greater intention and joy.

The convention opened Nov. 6 with a keynote address, “Living with Wonder,” from Jenny Phillips, a songwriter, entrepreneur and mother. Phillips shared ideas for finding wonder amid modern life’s competing demands and explored practical ways to cultivate greater appreciation for everyday experiences while addressing common obstacles such as technology, discouragement and busy schedules.

Rather than treating wonder as something reserved for extraordinary occasions, the message encouraged attendees to recognize opportunities for joy, gratitude and beauty in their ordinary routines.

The idea for the convention came from Good and Beautiful Media’s experience in the homeschool curriculum industry. After years of providing resources to families through The Good and the Beautiful, the organization wanted to expand its reach and offer something that could benefit adults regardless of their involvement in homeschooling.

“We’ve been in the homeschool curriculum space for a long time, and we’ve been able to share a tremendous amount of goodness that way,” Johnson said. “But we started to feel like we could be doing more. Adults need help seeing the beauty around them too.”

Johnson said growing concerns about screen addiction, anxiety, mental health, and relationship struggles helped inspire the event. They wanted to give people tools to step back, evaluate their lives, and become more intentional about how they spend their time and interact with others.

The gathering continued Nov. 7 with a full schedule of breakout classes, giving participants opportunities to explore subjects related to strengthening families, deepening faith, enriching personal lives, and creating more intentional homes.

Although some sessions addressed homeschooling, organizers emphasized that Gathered in Goodness was not exclusively a homeschool convention. Its broader purpose was to provide education and encouragement for adults at different stages of life.

“It was amazing,” said one attendee. “We’re all going through stuff, you know? Gathered in Goodness is teaching me emotional resilience, and also how to find hope when everything around you feels hopeless. Now I can have the tools to control how I react.”

Throughout the sessions, participants appeared eager to engage with the material and find practical ways to apply what they were learning.

A couple of months before the convention, the organization also released Good on Purpose, a book exploring many of the same themes. Organizers distributed 1 million free copies, extending the event’s message beyond those who could attend in person.

The convention also featured a musical concert titled “Remember Wonder.” The concert included new and original Christian worship music and hymns performed by Patch Crowe, Jack Nelson, and other members of the organization’s team.

Organizers wanted the gathering to be more than a series of lectures. The concert offered another opportunity for attendees to connect with the event’s themes through music and reflection.

“We didn’t want it to feel like a lecture,” Johnson said. “We wanted people to leave remembering to have a little more wonder in their lives.”

The convention’s timing offered an opportunity for reflection as families prepare for the holiday season. The holidays are often filled with meaningful traditions, but those moments often come alongside financial pressures, crowded schedules and expectations that can quickly overwhelm a family.

The convention encouraged participants to consider how intentional choices could help them experience more of the season’s joy without becoming consumed by its demands.

People can practice a greater sense of wonder throughout the year by becoming more aware of their surroundings, making room for meaningful experiences, and finding gratitude in everyday moments.

The message of Gathered in Goodness is a reminder this holiday season that life’s most meaningful parts aren’t always found in elaborate celebrations or perfectly planned moments. Sometimes, they are found in familiar traditions, conversations with loved ones, and the small details that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Through education, music, conversation and community, Gathered in Goodness encouraged attendees to carry that sense of wonder into their homes and everyday lives.