Jan 5, 2026 /
18:52 pm
Twenty years ago, Lauri Hauser, a Catholic mom of two and high school math teacher from Madison, Wisconsin, started a chant with her children — something simple and fun that would keep God and their faith at the forefront of their minds.
“I would chant ‘IC’ and they would respond, ‘2KG,’” Hauser told CNA in an interview.
“IC2KG,” which stands for “I choose to know God,” would be chanted around the Hauser household as chores would be done, while the kids played, and after flag football games in the backyard.
Fast forward 20 years and the family chant is now being shared with children in Catholic schools and, most recently, at the SEEK 2026 conference in Denver, which took place Jan. 1–5.
Hauser explained that it was her youngest son, Joe, who inspired his mother to start her IC2KG ministry. While in college, Joe was a part of an Athletes in Action group and asked his mom if she could make IC2KG shirts for the young men in the group.
“I said, ‘No. We don’t do T-shirts and this is just kind of a family thing and I’m kind of private with my faith,’” she recalled.
After breaking his arm before his senior year of college, Joe took it upon himself to create a T-shirt design with the “IC2KG” phrase printed on the front. One hundred shirts were made and they were a huge hit among the athletes. It was after this that Hauser thought this could become a ministry.
Despite attending a Catholic grade school and college, Hauser never felt completely comfortable sharing her faith publicly. After the success of the T-shirts, she began to think that “maybe these are the words, or the saying, that somebody needs to be bold and be brave and stand up and be strong and be courageous to share our faith.”
“I thought maybe this could be something that kids could catch on to or kids could keep in their heart — I choose to know God. We need to make that choice every day that we get up,” she added.
Using her background in education, Hauser created a program that she now takes to Catholic schools in Wisconsin and neighboring states, as well as through Zoom, in order to speak with schools that are further away.
The program aims to teach kids how to know, love, serve, and share God with others. Some of the elements of the program include testimonies from older kids to young children, teaching kids the IC2KG chant, pairing younger kids with an older IC2KG buddy, and playing games such as IC2KG bingo. Many elements of the program vary from school to school.
The program also includes a powerful demonstration where a child is asked to stand on a ball. The other kids observe and then share what they see, such as the child on the ball is wobbly, unsure of himself, or is shaky. That child then goes and stands on a prop Bible.
“Then the kids will observe and say, ‘Oh yeah, when you’re standing on the Bible, you are steadfast, you’re strong, you’re solid. This is the foundation,’” Hauser said.
Hauser has also designed more apparel with the IC2KG message. Her website includes T-shirts, hats, stickers, and wristbands with the hope that people will join her movement to inspire the faithful everywhere to know, love, serve, and share God with others.
During the SEEK 2026 conference, Hauser greeted college students from all over the country at the IC2KG booth. She called her first experience at SEEK “beautiful” and that her heart was “booming.”
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“The response has been amazing. They’re all excited,” she added. “I’ve had conversations with kids and they’re like, ‘Yeah, I’m not really great at sharing.’ I said, ‘You know, neither am I, but it’s kind of time to take the duct tape off the word share — just take it off like a Band-Aid and let’s just do it because now is the time … It’s just going to be a more beautiful world if we all share our faith.’”
She said that as she folds each piece of clothing, she recites a prayer over it: “Bless the person who wears this shirt and help them spread your message.”
Hauser said she hopes her ministry will “help people to just take that little step forward” and act as a “little life raft to help us go to the public square and share our faith.”
Francesca is a staff reporter for Catholic News Agency. She received her degree in Communications with an emphasis in Digital Media from the University of Colorado – Denver. She is also in charge of the social media for Catholic News Agency.
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