Blazer Game!!!

I love going to see a live basketball game! There's just so much energy and excitement! Last Friday we took some teens to go watch the Blazers game. It was an awesome, action-filled game and the Blazers ended up scoring over 100 points. Any time that happens they give out coupons for free chalupas at Taco Bell. So guess where we went after the game?! Check out the pics below.

Portland Service Trip

Thanks to all who helped out with our "Make A Difference" hats and socks drive. We had so many items to give away! The Youth Group wrapped them up into presents and last Saturday we handed them out to the homeless in downtown Portland. A lot of the teens mentioned that it felt good to give out the presents because they felt they were making a difference in another person's life, even if it was only a small gesture. Some of the homeless people we met were so happy to see us and were so thankful for receiving even just a pair of gloves or socks. They were all so nice and joyful as well. It's amazing to see all the hardships they have to go through and yet they are still able to be so joyful. The whole trip was such a cool experience and helped us all to really appreciate the many blessings in our own lives.

Check out the video of some of the pictures:

NCCYM New Orleans

Last week I was fortunate enough to attend The National Conference on Catholic Youth Ministry in New Orleans. NCCYM is a conference for Youth Ministers and Youth Leaders. Some of the speakers and performers included Steve Angrisano, Mike Patin, Mark Hart, Jessie Manibusan, Fr. Larry Richards, Apex, and Jackie Francois. Twenty one Youth Ministers from the Portland Archdiocese attended and there were over 2,500 attendees at the Conference from all over the U.S.

It was a great experience to hear national speakers, get updated on current youth ministry trends, and network with other youth ministers. I took several workshops on youth ministry as well as college and young adult ministry. It was very refreshing and rejuvenating to be part of the conference!

The entire conference was infused with New Orleans style music, culture, and hospitality! This video clip is from the opening ceremonies:

Nothing like an energetic gospel choir to wake you up in the morning:

I also had a little bit of time to explore the city and sample some local treats and creole specialty foods like gumbo, jambalaya, turtle soup, po boys (big sandwiches), and more! New Orleans (or as the locals call it, N'awlins) is full of culture and history. Everywhere we walked in the French Quarter there were street musicians and restaurants playing lively jazz music.

Thanksgiving Festivities!

Loving God, we give you thanks for your indescribable gifts to us.
Open our hearts to the needs of the poor, the lonely,
and the sick this Thanksgiving season.
Help us to receive and share your love
with everyone we encounter.
Thank you for all you do for us.
Help us to be people who live a life of gratitude
and send us out to be a blessing of love to a world in need.

Have a great Thanksgiving weekend everyone! Enjoy the snow, spend time with family and friends, and eat lots of good food!

Check out some pics of our awesome Thanksgiving social.

Pancakes Anyone?

Thanks to all the wonderful people who helped out at the pancake breakfast! Check out this cool video of the event:

A Saintly Celebration

Pics from our All Saints/All Souls/World Youth Day Celebration last Youth Group! Thanks for a fun time!

Happy All Saints Day!

If they had facebook back then...

This was from our night about early Christianity. Want to learn more about Paul and the apostles? Check out the book of Acts in the Bible!

Early Chrisitanity Fb

Make A Difference Kick-Off

What an awesome time at our kick-off last night! It's great to see our Youth Center packed with teens! Check out the pics below.

See ya next Sunday!

Youth Group Kick-off!!!

Don't miss out on our Youth Group Kick-off this Sunday!!! We'll have pizza, games, and lots of fun activities!


This year our theme is "Make a Difference." What are ways you can make a difference in yourself? Your family? Your School? Your community? Your relationship with Jesus?

BEACH!!!

Check out the pics from the Beach Trip last weekend!

Steubenville NW rocks!!!

Steubenville NW was amazing!!! On Thursday we visited Silverwood Theme Park and went on roller coasters, water slides, and amusement rides to our heart’s content. That night we came back to the church we were spending the night and hung out with teens from other parishes. We had a little impromtu praise and worship and some of the other parishes joined us. Mucho divertido!

Friday we went to downtown Spokane and explored Riverfront park before we headed to Gonzaga to check into our dorms. At the Conference there was lots of singing, cool speakers, adoration, and of course tons of energy emitting throughout the room from the hundreds of teens present.

Saturday was full of more conference sessions, speakers, some cool entertainment, and workshops. That night was a powerful adoration experience. The priest brought the monstrance out and walked amongst the rows of people so that everyone could get a chance to worship Jesus in a closer and more intimate way.

On Sunday there were some men and women sessions, a final general session and a Mass to end the weekend. We headed for home taking with us the awesome experiences that were had throughout the trip. Check out our pics and videos to see what an amazing journey it was!

For the Steubenville NW Pics click here.

Here’s some videos to give you a taste of the fun!

VBS 2010

Vacation Bible School rocked this year! Thanks to all our teen leaders who helped make it such a great experience for the kids.

All week at VBS, teens helped with music, skits, crafts, snacks, games, etc. Check out these videos of some of the awesome songs they did.

Summer Update

Wow it’s been awhile since I’ve written. May was a blur of activity with Confirmation and finishing out the 09/10 Youth Group year.
In June we began to prepare and practice for Vacation Bible School, learning fun songs and skits. At the end of June several of our teens were selected to attend CLI (Christian Leadership Institute) which is a teen leadership camp. These teens learned some amazing skills that are applicable not only in the parish but at school and work as well. If you’re getting “I feel…when…because…” statements, you may be encountering a CLI teen ; )

CLI helps bring teens into leadership roles at Youth Group nights as well as various ministries at St. Anthony’s. It also helps teens grow in their faith and teaches them how to become better Christian leaders. It is an awesome opportunity for our teens! An article was written about CLI in the Catholic Sentinel. You can read about it here.


I can’t believe it is already the middle of July! I just got back from a trip to Hong Kong and China! It was an amazing adventure. If you want to see pics of my trip I’ll be adding them on facebook soon.
Vacation Bible School is next week and it looks like it’s going to be an exciting one! Who could resist helping kids make crafts, snacks, play games, and learn about Jesus? If you still want to help out we would love to have some more teen volunteers! And every day after VBS there is a special lunch and hangout time (12pm-1pm) for all teen leaders. Don’t miss out on the fun!

Youth Pilgrimage 2010!!!

Hey ya'll
In April we went on a Youth Pilgrimage from the Grotto in NE Portland to St. Mary's Cathedral in NW Portland. It was a 6 mile walk that was filled with lots of adventure, faith, and fellowship - not to mention a bit of rain. It was an awesome experience and we got to hear music from Johannin as well as Jackie Francois. Our teens even got to participate in the procession of the Pilgrimage cross. It was cool seeing hundreds of Catholic teens from all over Oregon participating in the Pilgrimage. Check out the slideshow!

RISE UP Youth Rally

So this is a little late but here it is! These are pics from an awesome Youth Rally we went to in April. The Band was the Ike Ndolo Band. They rock!

Help Spread the Word! H2O!!!

We now have a special St. Anthony's Youth Group profile page to have friends, family, and parishioners donate to the water project as well. Here's a link to the profile. Feel free to share this webpage with anyone you know that would be interested in helping bring clean water to people that need it!

St. Anthony's Charity Water Profile Page

H2O Project

Hey everyone! This Sunday we are going to be learning about the H2O Project.

Did you know that over 1 billion people lack access to clean water?

What if the only way to get water for drinking, cleaning, and bathing was like this?:

Did you know that every 15 seconds someone dies of water related diseases?

Did you know that you can help make a difference in the world? Check out this video:

What can YOU do to help? Come to Youth Group and find out!

Bowling Night and Happy Easter!

Hope you all had an awesome spring break! Here is a short video of Spring Break bowling night.

Have a wonderful and blessed Easter!!!
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him."
~ John 3:16-17

"Joyful Noise" High School Retreat

This weekend was our High School retreat in Newport. The retreat was called, "Joyful Noise" and was all about the psalms in the Bible. Not only did we learn about David and the psalms he wrote, we also learned how prayer can come in many forms including music, adoration, praise, traditional prayer, reflection and meditation. Each psalm in the Bible expresses different emotions and reflect the joys and struggles we face today. Check back for a slideshow of pics from the retreat. In the meantime, here are a few videos of some prayers in rap forms. Enjoy!

ICE Middle School Retreat

Howdy!

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted! But that's because there has been a lot going on in our program lately. Last weekend we were in Newport for the High School Retreat (blog article soon to come) and the weekend before that was our middle school night retreat.

ICE Middle School Retreat

Check out some pics from our awesome middle school retreat. The theme was ICE, which stands for Illuminating Christ Everyday. We learned all about what it means to shine our light for others and be a witness of Christ to the world. We played fun games, heard some cool talks from the leaders, had small groups, pizza, snacks and made new friends. Thanks to all the teens that went! I had a blast!!!

New Year Kick-off

Welcome back to Youth Group! Last night we kicked off the New Youth Group Year with pizza, games, and Bible Jeopardy. Check out the pics from the Ice breaker, "Deal or no Deal," in which contestants had to choose to take a small consolation prize or take on the challenge for each round.

Round 1: Standing on one foot for the duration of the entire announcements.



Round 2: Eat a mixture of random foods...Mmmm







Round 3: Putt the egg in the cup without cracking it.



Too bad it cracked!



And it's in!!!



And of course Bible Jeopardy (with a few fun additions) was very epic and full of high energy. In the craziness we forgot to take some pics. Oh well!

See you next week at Youth Group!