The Saturday before Christmas, we took a group of teens to Portland for a service trip. With Santa hats and bags full of wrapped mittens, socks, hats and scarves, we walked around downtown Portland and handed out our presents to the homeless. The teens were surprised at how many people there were who were in need of such simple items like socks and mittens. It was a very meaningful time for everyone and those from our group kept talking about how good it felt to make a difference in so many people's lives.
Merry Christmas everyone!!!Have a great holiday!See you all in the new year! Check back soon for pics from ice skating as well as the Portland Service trip.
Last night we went to the Relient K & Toby Mac Concert. It was an awesome time and we all had a blast. My favorite was Toby Mac. His performance is always fun, energetic and makes you want to dance. Check out the pics!
Sorry, my camera is not good at taking pics in the dark so you can't see the stage so well in these. Oh well.
Happy Advent everyone! Seriously, where did November go? I hope all of you are staying healthy and keeping up with school, sports, and other activities. It’s a busy time of the year, but don’t worry, Christmas break is almost here!
I remember my senior year of high school I spent my entire Christmas break filling out college applications and writing scholarship essays. Those were fun times (not really :P). I had to do it because going to college was important to me. I wanted to get into a good school and I wanted to make sure I could pay for it too! I’m sure many of our lovely seniors are going through a similar time of preparation, whether it be college applications or figuring out what you want to do after high school. It takes a lot of work but in the end you know it’ll be worth it and your hard work will pay off.
In the season of Advent, we encounter a similar situation. But instead of graduation day, we have an even greater day ahead of us…Christmas! A day of celebration for the birth of our savior Jesus. This date also requires a lot of preparation as we await the coming of Christ. You wouldn’t wait until the day before graduation to fill out your college applications would you? Nor would you wait until the night before a European vacation to prepare for your trip. Would you wait until an hour before an extremely hard test to study? Would you wait until 5 minutes before the homecoming dance to get ready? My point is that there are many things in life that we have to prepare for and if it is important to us, we make the effort to complete those preparations.
Advent is all about preparation and it is also about hope. We know that Jesus will come again but we do not know when. Yet, we wait in hopeful anticipation for the time that we will one day be with Christ.
"But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be watchful! Be Alert! You do not know when the time will come." ~Mark 13: 32-33
Is your Advent season filled with hope and joy? If Jesus came right now at this very minute, would you be ready to greet him?
Hope you have a wonderful time with family and friends. I am so thankful for the community at St. Anthony's and all the awesome teens and their parents. See you all back in December for our last Youth Night of the year!
Heavenly Father, on Thanksgiving Day We bow our hearts to you and pray. We give you thanks for all you've done Especially for the gift of Jesus, your son. For beauty in nature, your glory we see For joy and health, friends and family, For daily provision, your mercy and care These are the blessing you graciously share. So today we offer this response of praise With a promise to follow you all our days.
Hey everyone! Last night's youth group was awesome! Thanks for all who helped out and participated!
At the Edge night we had some special guests who were parishioners from St. Anthony's community. The middle schoolers got to hear some personal stories from the parishioners where they shared about their faith and why being involved in a church community has helped them grow closer to God. Then the teens got a chance to interview them about their lives and their faith. Finally, at the end of the night for a fun activity the teens got a chance to make popcorn balls with our guests! One of my goals for youth ministry has always been to connect the youth to the parish community because I believe that teens can learn and grow by getting to know the people in their community. Parishioners of all generations have a lot to offer our teens and we are all, as a church, called to minister to our teens.
The Life Teen night was called, "Poor Me" and was all about issues on homelessness and social justice. Some of our teens shared their experiences of immersion trips and service trips to Portland and how they've learned to be more compassionate and caring towards homeless people. It is amazing to see the growth and transformation in many of our teens! I challenged all of them at the end of the night to take action by helping others in need. By simply getting involved in service projects to help others they can change lives!
St. Anthony's Youth Group is starting a service project to collect socks, hats, and mittens to give out to the homeless in downtown Portland. See Portland Service Trip for the blog article on last year's experiences. If you can help out in any way that would help us greatly! Bring any new hats, mittens, and socks to the marked boxes at the Church or Office by December 6th. Thank you in advance for your kindness and support!
This holiday season your challenge is to make a difference in the lives of others. Remember that Christ calls us to serve and put others first. With the Advent season coming up I though I'd share this video which I found very inspirational and I hope you enjoy it!
This Sunday is All Saints Day. There are a multitude of saints who have inspired us to live as better people and to give our lives to Christ. Who has been your inspiration? If you have a favorite saint, email me who it is and why you admire them.
Personally, I have always liked St. Therese of Lisieux (above pic). I remember reading a story that told of her life as a young girl. She used to wear a bracelet of beads she called a "sacrifice bracelet." Every time she did a small deed or kind action in secret, she would move one of the beads over a knot in the string. Her goal was to move all the beads on the strand over the knot by the end of the day. Therese always believed in doing the ordinary, with extraordinary love. Often times, saints are depicted as super holy and perfect people, but St. Therese shows us that even doing the small things can make a big difference in our lives and the people around us.
The first 3 people to email me the answer to this question will win a free pass to go ice skating at Lloyd center! Here's what you do: Go to the St. Anthony's website:
Are you burning with with God's fire of love? What does that even mean? Come learn about God's "Fire of Love" this year at Youth Group. Our Edge and Life Teen Youth Group kick-off is September 20th at 7:00pm. Pizza, games, faith, friends and lots of fun!
In the meantime you can check out this song "Consuming Fire"
Last week I went with 3 adults and 11 of our teens to an awesome spiritual and inspiring Youth Conference called Steubenville NW. The first part of our journey started with a fun-filled day at Silverwood Theme Park with roller coasters, water slides, and cotton candy. Later that evening we ended the night with some praise and worship with a few youth groups from the Portland area. The next day we headed to Gonzaga University where Steubenville NW was being held. Throughout the weekend we heard from inspirational speakers, went to men’s and women’s sessions about chastity, had some cool entertainment, went to workshops, sang lots of praise and worship music, celebrated Mass and experienced Adoration.
That first night at the Conference, seeing over a thousand people praying, singing, and worshiping God was incredible to behold. When the monstrance was brought out for Adoration, it was a beautiful and amazing spiritual experience. Teens and adults alike were encouraged to encounter God through prayer in a deeper way than ever before. The second night built on the first, moving from more upbeat praise and worship music to more reflective prayer and singing. This time, the priest carrying the monstrance moved around the entire arena slowly, giving people near the monstrance a chance to reach out to Jesus in adoration, worship and prayer. Deeply moved by the grace and love that God gives us through the sacrifice of His son, I felt in awe of the presence of God in that room. Later that night, our group had a chance to reflect and share our experiences of that adoration time. Many teens felt renewed in their faith and had encountered God in a way they had never experienced before. Some teens also felt the call to change the way they lived their life. The Holy Spirit was working within us that weekend and I hope will continue to guide our teens to a deeper conversion to Christ.
If you didn’t get a chance to come with us, we’ll be going again next summer! Don’t miss out on an amazing fun and faith-filled trip!
This has been an awesome week for me. There has been a great group of teens helping out this summer at Vacation Bible School. They've been leading the songs, skits, and helping with games, crafts, snacks, etc. It has been amazing to see the excitement and enthusiasm they bring, making the camp so full of energy and fun! If you helped out at VBS this summer, THANK YOU! I have gotten so many compliments and praises about all the teen leaders. I am so proud of everyone! Here are a few pics and videos to get a glimpse of the week so far. For more pictures, check out St. Anthony's website:
Are you bored this summer and have nothing to do? You can always come hang out at the Youth Office at St. Anthony's. I'll find something fun for you to do!
This week we are practicing for VBS on Tuesday and Thursday from 4-6pm, and on Wednesday we are having a Youth Center Cleaning Party from 2-5pm. There will be snacks, music, and fun. You won't even notice you're cleaning ;)
See the past post about Vacation Bible School and get involved in the action. We have a lot of fun throughout the entire week. Just send me an email or give me a call and I'll fill you in on the details.
Aloha! Hope you've been enjoying your summer so far!
For the last two weeks I've out of the office, first at a teen leadership camp called CLI and then last week I was in Hawaii. Hawaii was awesome!!! If you ever get the chance to go you should definitely do it. Here's a pic of me at the top of Diamond Head overlooking the island of Oahu.
And CLI (Christian Leadership Institute) is an amazing experience for all the teens who attend!!! This year we had several teens from youth group who went. They learned various leadership skills, learned how to plan prayer services and liturgies, grew in their faith, and developed lasting friendships with teens from all over Oregon. These pics were from a challenging obstacle course that required a lot of teamwork and effort.
Throughout the week all the teens grew more confident in their skills, and felt empowered to go back to their churches and use the gifts they have been given to serve God. Thanks to the teens who went to CLI. You are Awesome!!!
Vacation Bible School is a kid's summer camp. This year it will be from July 6-10th. If you haven't been involved in this event before, this is a "must do" activity for the summer. Teens and adults alike come together for a week to help kids grow in their faith and love for God. There's Bible stories, games, snacks, crafts and of course lots of fun songs and skits.
Calling all Teens!!! If you like working with kids you will love being a VBSTeen Leader. You can help out in many ways including leading songs, acting in skits, being teacher assistants, helping with snacks or crafts, decorating and much more! Last year was tons of fun for all the teens involved. Don't miss out! Sign up today!
Plus for all the teen leaders, we have a special lunch and game time after each day of the VBS week. We hang out in the Youth Center from noon-1pm.
Check out a video of some of our teens leading the kids in a fun song:
Yes I know it's been awhile since I've posted. Spring is a busy time for Youth Ministry. Here's what we've been up to: High School Beach Retreat, Fundraising for Steubenville NW, youth yardwork days, Decade Dance, volunteering at Blanchet House (soup Kitchen in Portland), and of course finishing up with our year long Confirmation Program. We had 23 awesome teens Confirmed this year. Congratulations to those teens on their commitment to their faith and lifelong journey with Jesus. Don't forget to keep on using those gifts that you have received from God to help serve in the parish and the community.
As we near the end of the school year we come to a close with our regular Sunday Youth Nights. However, our program doesn't stop for the summer! We have activities and events all summer long for you to participate and build relationships with other teens at the Church. We welcome incoming 7th graders through graduating seniors at all our summer youth events. You are always more than welcome to bring a friend as well! Check out the summer calendar to find out how you can get in on the action!
And if you enjoy reading this Blog, you should think about becoming a youth group blogger. I will be looking for teens and parents to write articles throughout the year. Let me know if you'd be interested!
We headed to Newport, Oregon last weekend to stay at the retreat house at Sacred Heart Parish (a much requested retreat spot by the teens!). The theme for the retreat was "Unstoppable." Teens learned about the conversion of Saul, later named Paul, and his life story and mission for God.
Teens listened to talks by leaders, discussed their faith in small groups, sang praise and worship music, experienced Adoration, and were given an opportunity to participate in the Sacrament of Confession. The retreat ended back at St. Anthony's with the Life Teen Mass. Throughout the weekend teens learned what it means to be unstoppable in our faith, as well as how God is Unstoppable in His love for us.
This was a great retreat for me. It is an awesome experience to get to know the teens more, share my faith with them, and (hopefully) make a difference in their lives. Thanks for all the leaders who helped out this weekend and to all those that were praying for us!
May you always be unstoppable in living out your lives for Jesus Christ.
Last weekend the Youth Group went on an Immersion Retreat in Portland. We got to learn about issues on homelessness and what it’s like to be homeless and living in Portland. We ate at a place called Blanchet House where they serve free meals daily. We socialized with homeless people and got to hear their stories. Many of us were very nervous to talk to the homeless because we were unsure of what to say or if we would have anything in common, but after talking with many homeless individuals throughout the day we were all able to get over our fears and feel more comfortable speaking to them. Many teens reflected on the fact that the homeless are people too, and that they deserve the same respect and dignity that any human being needs. Here are a few teens who wished to shared their experience:
“I thought the Immersion retreat was a great heart reaching, eye opening experience, I learned that everyone is the same no matter where they come from, we are still the same on the inside as we are on the outside. We shouldn’t judge because in the end these people are great people and they're so nice and welcoming no matter what they’ve been through, they still have self dignity and are happy to be who they are.”
“On the Immersion retreat, I learned that the people who are homeless and on the street cannot be stereotyped. They are all different. You can't say that they are all homeless because of ongoing addictions to drugs or alcohol, as we met people who, if they had made that mistake, wanted to correct it. There were also people who did have these addictions, however, so you can't say that homelessness was a cold turkey diet from their addictions. But, they are all people, just like you and me.”
St. Anthony's Youth Group is going to see a Blazer game!!! Woo hoo!!! There will also be a special concert afterward by Christian artist Aaron Shust.
We'll be going Friday March 13th. If you want to go, get a permission slip at Youth Group. Cost is only $15/person and we have a limited amount of tickets so turn in your forms today to get a spot!
Check out this You Tube video for a sample of Aaron Shust's music
Hey everyone!!! Our Youth Group will be traveling to Spokane, WA this summer for the Steubenville NW Youth Conference on July 29th - August 2nd. This trip is open to graduating 8th graders - graduating seniors. Save the dates and get ready for an awesome trip full of fun, friendship, and getting excited about God and your faith. Check out this promo video to get a taste of what the weekend will be like.
We will also be traveling to an awesome theme park called Silverwood. Check out the cool rides and water slides!
Don't miss out on this great adventure! Hear more details at Youth Group or attend a parent informational meeting on February 8th from 4:45-5:15pm in the Youth Center.
The year 2009 is upon us. Time to catch up on holiday stories with good friends, eat some good food, and enjoy a night of faith and fun. Don't miss our Youth Group Kick-off for the New Year on Sunday, January 11th from 7-8:30pm in the Youth Center.
