St. Mary's Parish Community

The Scoop on Catholic Youth Ministry in Lindsay, Ontario!            

                When I began working as a youth coordinator in October last year at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Lindsay, I didn’t know what to expect or what I was in for.  I graduated from teachers’ college in May, but decided not to go into teaching right away.  I am only young once, I thought, and youth find it easier to relate to me and I feel more like one of the pack.  I can teach the rest of my life and teaching jobs are sparse right now.  Also, as a youth coordinator I am still in the classrooms at least one day a week which is good for acquiring teaching experience.

                I started this job with the expectation to expect anything and my head is still spinning.  Youth ministry was not really in existence at St. Mary’s Church before I began in October.  It is almost more than a full time job at parishes as large as St. Mary’s and is an impossible task for pastors to minister to the youth while juggling the other non-stop responsibilities.  This is an unavoidable outcome with many parishes understaffed by priests.  Many priests are working past their retirement or are assigned to multiple parishes because there are not enough of them to go around. 

                What is the present solution?  To hire qualified youth coordinators willing to take direction from pastors on how to get the youth more involved in the Church.  Many youth already know that Christ has won the battle and have been waiting to take more of an active role in the mission of the Church.

                My second day of working at St. Mary’s, Fr. Tom Lynch (the pastor at St. Mary’s) invited me to the school mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School in Lindsay.  As the students began piling into the gym (over 600 in total), Fr. Tom approached me and asked me if I would introduce myself after communion.  I agreed and quickly began jotting down what I was going to say before the mass began.  When it was time, I shakily approached the pulpit.  I had trouble getting the words out, but I was able to introduced myself and explain a couple of the events that we had planned.  I thought after, “Well, it was good to get that over with right from the start because I never liked waiting anxiously anyway.”  I later learned that this was to be a once a month event, but the first time is always the worst and now, thankfully, I am more interested in reaching the students than in mastering my nerves. 

                I have found that such presentations are a good way to reach students who are practicing their faith, but who may not have had the opportunity to get involved in Catholic youth events.  I began making announcements after communion at St. Mary’s Church and making connections with youth as they exited the church after mass.  Some youth would immediately approach me and ask about a certain event.  These youth were usually what you could call the “diehards” because this is just the opportunity they had been waiting for to get involved.  I would introduce myself and get their email.  For other youth, Fr. Tom or I would have to do the approaching.   This did not always pay off, but occasionally it did and these youth would sometimes attend an event and find out that Catholic youth events are fun.

                Events and strategies that have worked so far to attract youth in Lindsay (even though my experience is limited and I am still learning, sometimes the hard way) are as follows:

1. I have found that the youth like to work together as a team towards a certain end or goal.  World Youth Day Fundraisers, notably, the pancake brunch fundraisers after Sunday masses, have been profitable and well attended by parish and youth.   
2. There is not a lot to do in a town the size of Lindsay.  Getting the word out at the schools that there is a youth event such as a sports night have increased attendance.   Sports nights have not exhausted the youth’s prayer endurance, but they give the youth an opportunity for healthy recreation and Christian fellowship. 
3. Many youth have wanted to volunteer their time in the ministry and I realize that I can’t do it all on my own.  I routinely give the youth tasks such as creating and hanging posters.  This helps them realize that they are a part of a larger mission and church community and makes them feel good about themselves.
4. Some youth have not returned, but I haven’t stopped inviting them.  I’ve found that personal emails and phone calls work the best and show that I care.  There will always be a constant turn around with new faces coming and going, but I do not get discouraged and continue to reach out to new members. 
5. I am usually in a school at least one day a week making presentations.  At times I look like a nervous idiot, but the students are getting to know me and relationships are starting to develop with opportunities for evangelization.  School ministry that has worked so far is setting up Catholic club at Fleming College, making presentations to grade 7-12 classes on World Youth Day, etc., and having Canada’s National EvangelizationTeam (NET) present to local schools.  NET is highly trained team of Catholic young people who travel across Canada ministering to youth through personal testimony, praise and worship music, drama, games, and leading prayer and reflection.  NET presented to St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Lindsay and to the grade 7’s and 8’s from fivelocal Catholic schools in January.  The students NET presented to, many who are usually shy about their faith, are still talking about their amazing experience with NET and how it inspired them.  Shortly after the NET presentation to the grade 7’s and 8’s, we had a record turnout of about 21 youth attend the monthly sports night.  This increase in numbers, I think, can be attributed to the positive impact NET has had on these students in their faith journey.          
6. We had a youth midnight mass on Christmas Eve with young people as readers, choir singers, Eucharistic ministers, altar servers, and decorators.  The youth took pride in their role, so we will continue to try to include the youth in liturgical celebration. 
7. I have found that making connections with other youth groups such as Young Adult Catholics (YAC) in Peterborough means that I do not have to plan every event and it is a good way for the youth to make Catholic connections.  It’s a small world (especially the Catholic world) and as we work together we will draw others to Christ through our example of love. 

I am still new to this job and am not always sure where Christ is leading us, but I am excited about the seeds that have be scattered so far and am looking forward to what Jesus has in store for us next.  Jesus says, “What is impossible for man is possible for God.”  I am now really beginning to believe these words, thanks be to God!