The 2026 Going On Faith Conference takes place August 11–13 in Owensboro, Kentucky, a scenic city on the state’s western edge that is cradled in a bend of the Ohio River and enjoys a generations-old affinity with two revered traditions: barbecue and bluegrass music. Those traditions offer as good a reason as any for why Owensboro has long embraced the spirit of faith-based travel.
As an age-old river town with deep roots, a farm-based economy, and cultural ties to traditional foods and music, Owensboro is a natural host for this event. The fact that the meeting takes place in August — when late summer heat rises from surrounding crops and up from the river itself — assures that conference attendees will feel right at home. This may not be a revival in the strictest sense, but this gathering could well generate a few “amens” from attendees before it’s finished.
“I’ve been looking forward to hosting this specific conference for a long time,” said Teresa Jones, destination account executive for Visit Owensboro. “Owensboro is a faith-friendly town that supports many churches, one of which rings its wonderful bells three times daily. We nurture the gospel roots in our bluegrass music, and we have a gentleman at the VFW on the riverfront who steps outside to play taps every evening at 6 to honor our veterans.
“We offer a safe and walkable downtown,” Jones added, “and our local coffee shops, restaurants and boutiques will treat these delegates like guests. Due to our music and barbecue heritage, we have well-known people come to town, and they love the fact that they can come here and just be themselves.
“We’ll host an event at our Owensboro Museum of Fine Art, which includes sixteen 19th-century stained-glass windows in its collection,” she said. “These inspirational German stained-glass windows were created by the internationally recognized glassmaker Emil Frei.
“I’m hoping we can do a reflective walk on our riverfront that will allow our guests to slow down, enjoy the rhythm of the river and feel thankful for all we’ve been blessed with as Americans,” Jones added.
Riverfront Venues
Owensboro Convention Center
The Owensboro Convention Center treats delegates to an outdoor setting that is highlighted by river traffic. Multi-container barges pushed by diesel-powered tugs run both ways on the Ohio, just a few hundred yards beyond the center’s outdoor balconies. The center has won numerous awards, as much for its ties to the river as its overall functionality. Between sessions, Going On Faith Conference delegates can steal a few moments outside to watch barges navigate their ways north and south. Many of the conference’s sessions will be held in riverside rooms featuring floor-to-ceiling windows that emphasize Owensboro’s enviable landscape.
Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum
The Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum showcases Owensboro’s standing as the home to bluegrass music, a genre often characterized by its “high lonesome sound” and pioneered in the mid- to-late-20th century by performers like Bill Monroe, Ralph Stanley and Earl Scruggs. Monroe is considered its “father” and grew up in nearby Rosine, Kentucky.
Stanley enjoys a stature in bluegrass gospel music that no musician in Owensboro, Nashville or anywhere else is likely to overshadow. The late, great leader of The Clinch Mountain Boys, whose high tenor voice remains unmistakable, holds a special place in the pantheon of faith-based music. No one knows how many of his truest fans have been eulogized in part by one or more of his songs.
Going On Faith Conference delegates will enjoy the museum’s authentic displays on well-known bluegrass musicians, their instruments, their attire and their careers. From standards including “Blue Moon of Kentucky” and “Rocky Top,” the songs of one of America’s most beloved music genres shine in this outstanding venue.
RiverPark Center
Owensboro’s RiverPark Center is a landmark on the riverfront, a regional performing arts center that many cities twice its size would envy. Comprising almost 100,000 square feet in all, this center includes a 1,479-seat auditorium, a multipurpose theater and an outdoor entertainment patio. Travel planners can take note of performances on the center’s calendar in case there is one appropriate for their group. Outdoor events take place on the center’s Truist Plaza, which offers impressive river views; some events are especially suitable for a faith-based group’s evening entertainment.
Traditions & Points of Interest
Western Kentucky Barbecue
Over the past century, Western Kentucky barbecue has likely been served as the entree of choice at more church picnics in Owensboro than fried chicken and country ham combined. Barbecue as an American food item may outrank chili as the country’s most regionalized delicacy. Some of the best-known varieties originate from places like Kansas City, Memphis and Texas, but Western Kentucky barbecue is as well known as any.
Owensboro is the home of Western Kentucky barbecue, which generally features barbecued mutton, chicken and pork smoked over an open pit and basted in a vinegar-based sauce. Mutton, which comes from sheep, is an Owensboro favorite and is offered as a main dish or as a complement to pork or chicken. Delegates will likely enjoy a meal or items from Moonlite Bar-B-Q or Old Hickory Bar-B-Q while in Owensboro.
Historic Churches
Owensboro is graced with numerous thriving churches, but there are two that are considered particularly historic. Fourth Street Baptist Church is nearly 200 years old and is considered Daviess County’s oldest Black church. A marker near the church reads, in part: “In 1830, a Baptist church began in a log cabin-house, which was provided for Black worshipers by Philip Thompson … The Black Baptist Church was founded after the Civil War and in 1866 was named Fourth Street Baptist Church.”
The second historic church is Saint Stephen Cathedral, which features red brick and stone Italianate architecture that dates to 1924 and covers nearly a full city block when including all structures on its campus. The Diocese of Owensboro was established years earlier; its roots began as a Catholic parish in 1839.
BBQ & Barrels
Owensboro is home to an internationally known barbecue event that was produced for many years as the International Bar-B-Q Festival. Today, that event is named BBQ & Barrels, and it’s held each May. Owensboro has a rich Kentucky bourbon heritage that has been added to the barbecue event to give it even more authentic appeal. Concerts at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum, offerings from various barbecue vendors and local festivities bring hundreds of barbecue fans to Owensboro, and faith-based groups will fit right in.
ROMP Festival
Owensboro’s Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum hosts one of America’s best-known bluegrass and traditional music events just outside of town at spacious Yellow Creek Park. Chairs, blankets, kids’ activities, nature trails, even a fishing lake combine to create a family atmosphere in which any church group would feel at home. The ROMP Festival typically takes place in June, and this year’s lineup of talent includes Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, The Del McCoury Band, Punch Brothers, Rhonda Vincent and Micheal Cleveland.
Register for the conference at gofconference.com.
