EYE recap! (w pictures) July 12, 2011

Hey folks!

I hope everyone is having a fantastic summer thus far and had a great 4th of July holiday.  First off, I just want to aplogize on behalf of the Christian Formation office for not touching base with you all sooner. We have been very busy with summer camp up here at Shrine Mont and before that with EYE!!!

As many of you know, I lead a group of people to Bethel University outside of St. Paul, Minnesota to EYE 2011. With us we had 13 youths from all accross our Diocese, 3 wonderful adult chaperones (Cathy Tibbetts, Darren Steadman, and Meg Schwarz) and our bishop, Shannon Johnston. We rode on 3 buses (about 30 hours each way) with youth and adults from 12 of the other 13 Dioceses in Province 3.  Our group was about 165 people and was described by some of the people putting on the event as the group that “brought the funk”. I can only hope they were referring to our fun and positive vibes, not the smell coming off the bus

The event (put on by the EPISCOPAL CHURCH) was an absolute hit. It was four days of great music, prayer, workshops, games, discussion, and some really fantastic keynote addresses. We heard from speakers from all over the country and met Episcopalians from coast to coast which really was an amazing treat for many of us.

In addition to all the of great programming that happened at EYE, as a part of our journey home we were able to stop for dinner and a Eucharist in the Diocese of Chicago! It was a wonderful and cool night in downtown Chicago and the Eucharist was a great finishing touch on our journey together as Province 3. After Chicago all three buses went their separate directions towards home and all reports are everyone got home safely, and most likely very sleepy.

All in all, it was a huge success and I know at least 17 people including myself that are very excited for EYE 2014! We hope to see you all there!

Spring Day of Service Prayer Series March 15, 2011

Hey Everyone!

As you all know this past weekend we had PYM Spring Day of Service and as planned we are going to be publishing prayers the children wrote in a 3 part series running through the week. The youth were challenged in their small groups to come up with things that were important and relevant in their lives and pray for them together as a group. What they come up with we think is pretty great and hope you’ll enjoy their submissions.  Today is Group 1!

‘Wazzup God?

Thank you so much for helping us win basketball games. Thank you for food and shelter. Thank you for it not raining today, we love everything. Thanks for sleep, cough drops, goldfish, health, candy, and family. Thank you also for all the animals especially penguins and llamas.

We pray to you for nice weather, aid for the people in Japan, success for the  Haiti Micah Project, good grades because we want to go to college. Please help save the planet because global warming is not a myth. Please help bring gas prices down, and help the people in North korea, Libya, Egypt, Haiti, Yemen, and Tunisia.

Thank you for everything you do for us. Say “Hi” to Jesus for me. Can’t wait to see you in church tomorrow!

Amen.”

Spring Youth Day of Service Recap March 14, 2011

Hello and Happy Monday to you all! I hope you all had a great weekend and are as ready as I am for warm weather!

As you all know this past Saturday Trinity Arlington church in Arlington, VA hosted PYM and the Spring Youth Day of Service.  I am very excited to report the event was a huge hit and a smashing success. With a turn out of close to 80 people we were able to assemble our gift bags for Haitian children in no time. We also wrote letters to sick children, came up with wonderful new prayers (to be posted later this week), practiced our team building skills, and had worship with our very own Bishop Jones! From start to finish it really seemed like everyone put their best effort forward and we couldn’t be happier with the results. Thanks again to everyone who came out! We couldn’t have done it without you!

Have you ever gone on a mission trip? April 27, 2010

Tell us about it! We are very interested to hear what other folks and other organizations are doing. If you have gone or are going on a trip in the near future tell us about it in the “post comment” section of the blog. Thanks again, and we hope to hear from you all soon!

Mission trip to New Orleans

Hello Youth Leaders!

We hope all is well with you all, first and foremost, forgive us for slacking on the blog this past week. A large portion of the Mayo House staff (including our office) were in New Orleans last week on a mission trip. This is the 3rd year our staff has gone on a mission trip and the first year we’ve gone to New Orleans. We spent 3 1/2 days working on two different homes practically destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Most of our specific work was working on the laminate flooring and tiling but also some other side projects. Both homes are projected to be completed and moved back into by the end of May! Woo Hoo!

Needless to say we had a wonderful experience and we have a great organization to thank for that. We worked with the Episcopal Community Services of Louisiana, which is a part of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana”s office. They hosted us, supplied building materials, and crew chiefs for on site instruction and top to bottom were very professional and very good. They were well organized and prepared to work with us and did a great job leading our team.

We were very excited to work with them but were very sad to hear that they are falling short on money to keep all of their operations running. They have received a government grant but since it’s taking longer then expected to come through, they are in the midst of a fund raising operation to stay busy. Check out there website for more info….

http://www.ecsla.org/

Thanks for your support!

The Christian Formation Office

Upcoming Community Event April 16, 2010

Jody Wilcox from St. James’s in Richmond has been working hard to spread the word about this upcoming event.  Those of you who have attended some of our weekends at Shrine Mont this year may have heard him speak about Hope for Humanity, a Richmond-based organization dedicated to advancing opportunities for education (primary and secondary) in the African country of Sudan.  While this is NOT a “Diocesan event” that is coming up, there have been many who have expressed interest in learning more about both the organization and ways for churches to be involved.  Please read below for some information, and resources for your church!

In an area of the world devastated by over 20 years of civil war and a literacy rate of only 20% Hope & Resurrection Secondary School provides the students in southern Sudan a chance to build a better life for themselves, their families and their community through education (there are only 22 secondary schools in all of southern Sudan – an area the size of the eastern half of the US).  We ARE making a difference!  The Walk for Sudan is our annual organized effort to raise funds for Hope & Resurrection Episcopal School in Atiaba, Sudan.

How You Can Get Involved:

Join us at the 7th Annual WALK FOR SUDAN:

When: Sunday May 2nd, 2010 (registration begins at 1:30 with a walk start of 2:00pm)

Where: Christ Church

5000 Pouncey Tract Road

Glen Allen, VA 23059

This is a great opportunity for the youth to be creative!
We are looking for people to:

• Create a team, set a goal and raise some money – Teams can bring sponsor donations to the Walk (donations in any amount, not per mile).
• Are friends and family spread out? Create a virtual team to raise money – Spread the word to all of your “virtual friends” using facebook, twitter, etc. about the Walk, donations can also be made securely online.  Friends can also get updates on the school and students through the Hope for Humanity blog, website and facebook pages.
• If they can’t make it to Deep Run High School – they can raise funds and walk around their own high school track in solidarity (we’ll mention them during the Walk as partners).
• Buy / sell wristbands that commemorate the event.
• Write letters of encouragement to the Sudanese students – we can take to them on our next mission trip.

..OR any other ideas that the youth can think of doing!  The possibilities are endless!

For more information – see below

Website:  http://hopeforhumanityinc.org/
Blog: http://hopeforhumanityinc.blogspot.com/

(Contact with Questions – or to get involved)

Jody Wilcox

jlwilcox54@hotmail.com

8o4 590 9669

Planning future mission trips?? April 9, 2010

Good Morning and Happy Friday to everyone!

As most of you know Senior High weekend is only hours away and we couldn’t be more excited! But before we take off we wanted to be sure to get one last update before the weekend begins.

This is an interesting article about mission trips and what often happens when trip planners make common mistakes. It gives a perspective you probably haven’t heard before and we think you might appreciate, so check it out!  After you’ve read it – add a comment, this week’s post is “interactive!”

CLICK HERE!

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!!!

Towel Ministry Mission Trip April 1, 2010

As we are speeding toward summertime, opportunities are coming out of the woodwork for mission trips.  One in particular is the Senior High Towel Ministry trip to North Carolina.

What is Towel Ministry?

The name Towel Ministry derives from the towel that Jesus tied around his waist and used to wash the feet of his disciples. The towel is a symbol of loving service to one’s friends.

The Towel Ministry youth mission program was started by the Rev. Chris Greer over 20 years ago. The central location for Towel is Valle Crucis, NC, but Towel now has programs in Swansboro and Marion, NC.

For the second year in a row, the group from the Diocese of Virginia will attend the Marion camp. Towel is for Senior High students, rising 9^th grade-Graduating seniors. The intention of the Diocese of Virginia’s mission trip is to bring together youth from churches around the Diocese to share a common mission.

What do they do?

We begin and end each day with a Bible Study (morning) and an evening program led by us, and we spend the day working at sites around Marion. After the workday is complete, we have free time to play in creeks, get ice cream, hike, or have a cookout.

There are likely to be 4 or 5 different sites, and the nature of the work that each participant will do will not be known until arrival. So, flexibility is a must! Groups will likely not consist of youth who know each other, and there will be a mix of boys and girls. Typical jobs will include painting, laying flooring, building decks, demolition, etc. The homes that we work on are identified by the county department of social services, and the homeowners will be present while we work. Sometimes they join us in the physical labor. Youth are expected to spend part of their days getting to know the homeowner. The relationship formed is as much a part of the experience as the hammering and nailing.

When is it and how much does it cost?

The trip is July 10-July 17 and the cost is $400 per person.  Please don’t forget about the Youth Mission Vouchers ($200), available to all youth who have been confirmed in the Diocese of Virginia.

For more information, or to receive an application, please contact the Rev. Mary Davila at St. James, Leesburg.
E-mail: mary@stjamesleesburg.org
Phone: (703) 777-1124 x103

Office Hours March 25, 2010

The following article is an excerpt from Episcopal Teacher, a publication from the Virginia Theological Seminary.    Subscriptions are free and can be mailed to individual teachers’ homes or to the parish office.  To request a free subscription, please send an e-mail to CMT Circulation.  Include your name, address, phone number and e-mail.

“Love is patient…”I Corinthians 13:4

I started as the new youth minister at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Alexandria, VA in July 2008. After spending a semester trying to figure out how to reach youth (going to sports events, plays, lunchrooms, coffee shops, among other things), I decided to try an idea that came to me while listening to my father.
My dad is an adjunct professor at a university in Augusta, GA. He told me about his office hours and how useful they were in his teaching. The ingenious thing about posted office hours, he said, is getting to spend some time in the office on the off chance someone might come by. “I can read a book, flip a magazine, play Tetris… it doesn’t matter – you are working, waiting for someone to come and ask you a question.”
I decided this type of freedom might be good for me, as well. St. Paul’s is a neighborhood parish not far off the path home from school for many of its youth. I wondered if they might swing in for office hours. Would my rector see this as time well spent the way my father and I do?
The only way to know if the scheme would work was to try it. The answer from the rector and the youth was a resounding “Yes.” Youth were intrigued by the opportunity to just drop by, and my rector saw this as a good way to build relational ministry. From that moment on, my time on Tuesdays and Thursdays afternoons from 4 to 6:30 belonged to the youth.
Ups and Down
For a youth to be confirmed at St. Paul’s, they must meet with me one-on-one to talk about confirmation and satisfy my yearning to know that the desire to be confirmed comes from each youth, and not just their parents. The office hours provided a time for that conversation to happen. Confirmands began using my office hours with great regularity.
I discovered that youth not involved in the confirmation program needed a reason to see me, too. It wasn’t enough to let them know that my office was open for them to stop by; they needed a set day and time and they needed a topic. I started asking different youth to stop by the church to talk about something they were interested in. After getting comfortable with the office hours, they started coming.
This article begins with a portion of a passage from Paul’s first letter to the Christians in Corinth. I am learning its real meaning. I spend many afternoons throwing a football at my ceiling tiles. I have read all of the Chronicles of Narnia again and again. I have blasted invading space aliens into oblivion. But I don’t do any work and I don’t pray; I wait. This time is set aside for waiting for the youth.
I can’t say that this has been the most popular or groundbreaking program ever initiated. I am downright bored at times. But in the waiting, a spirit of love for youth and their issues has grown in me. They know I am here, not doing anything except waiting for them. Sometimes that’s all ministry is.

—Bill Campbell, Director of Christian Education for Children and Youth, St. Paul’s, Alexandria VA.

Top 5 Service Activities for Youth October 22, 2009

Got your attention?  Good, because I want your input!

PYM has been talking about service, and is interested in incorporating more activities that help remind youth about giving to others in their events.  Which leads me to wonder…… What are some really great/functional/age-appropriate service activities for groups of middle and/or high schoolers?  I would love to hear what has worked or not worked for your church.

For instance, the youth group I worked for before coming to the Diocese did a project during a lock-in that worked out well.  The youth decorated brown lunch bags, and then stuffed them with granola bars, peanut butter crackers, a bottle of water, etc.  We stood outside the doors of the church that Sunday and handed them out to the families in our church.  The bags were to be used to give to panhandlers who would walk up to car windows asking for money.  (I know that the best approach is to offer panhandlers information about where to find the closest shelter or community center, but this allowed the families in our parish to “do something” that wasn’t just giving money or looking away.)  The parish loved the idea, and they were talking about the project for months to come.

So – youth professionals…. it’s time to share those ideas and thoughts.  Let us know what has worked, what doesn’t…. what  you might like to see tried.  Who knows?  One of the suggestions posted here may just be the next “service activity” that you see at an upcoming PYM weekend!