Febraury 4, 2012 9 am @ First Lutheran Church
Meeting minutes
Present: Ian Eastman (SW Conference), Tara Eastman (First Lutheran), Mike Felsman (Tri-Church), Jeannine Gambrel (Gloria Dei), Sue Kilmartin (Bethel), Judy Lind (Immanuel) & Jennifer Spacht (Bethel)
Regrets: Jason Wood (St. Tim's)
DEVOTIONS...
The group opened with prayer for the McKillip family, who had lost a family member during the week. We prayed for Abby, a member of the SLYM youth group, who was injured by a dog. We read and discussed "2 Corinthians 11 & 12, if Paul had been a youth worker."
THE TOILET BOWL...
The Conference Youth website is receiving a lot of page views regarding this event. Hopefully this will result in many churches in the conference getting connected at the event.
Speaker... Ian confirmed that Judd Hamilton, director of First Things First recovery ministry, will speak at the event.
Music... Jen suggested several youth at Bethel, Morgan and Danielle, who might possibly sing a solo at the event. She put a call into Morgan but hasn't heard back yet. Nigel E. from FLC has run the sound system at Gateway before. [UPDATE: Ann McKillip contacted Ian on Sunday to let us know that Adam, Jason & company will lead worship music at the event. Others youth/young adults are welcome to join in.]
Prayer/scripture reading... Sue suggested Rob B. at Bethel for prayer and/or a scripture reading. She passed along his phone number to Ian to contact him. Danielle G. might work out, too. Jen suggested a "prayer chain" activity where youth write out their prayers on paper and a chain is made.
Photography... The team will ask around their churches to find a photographer to document the event.
Icebreaker... We will look for an outgoing youth to lead an icebreaker at the event. Something like "My name is Joe" or some other game.
Toilet paper collection... Several churches are doing toilet paper and paper product drives in conjucntion with this event. Tara is going to make a Toilet Seat Toss game to collect the paper products at the event. Toilet paper should be sealed.
Drama, etc... If anyone knows of youth doing drama or sacred dance, please contact Ian ASAP as we would like to add them to the event.
Adult supervision... The event is in need of a minimum of 7 adults to assist during the event. The team will seek nice, friendly adults at their churches. [UPDATE: Jeannine emailed that Lisa O. will assist... Event helpers are to be at the Gateway center at 12:30 pm for instructions, orienation, and setup. They should be free by 4:15 pm. Ian is writing up a description of duties.]
Waiver for skatepark... [UPDATE: The ONLY youth that need paperwork for the event are those using the BMX/Skatepark. Talked with Pastor Rohler, the executive director of Gateway Center, on 2/7 and got the following information:
1. If the youth is a Soaring Up Skatepark "regular" the paperwork will already be on file. Nothing else is needed.
2. Otherwise, the youth must have a parent fill out 3 forms available at soaringup.org: the WAIVER, the SKATEPARK RULES, and the DECLARATION OF FITNESS. The bottom line of the WAIVER form, asking for the signature of a notary and verification of information, is NOT required for this event. The forms are located at the Soaring Up Skatepark website.]
The team will keep in contact via email as we approach the event. Don't hesitate to contact Ian with any questions.
OTHER EVENT SUGGESTIONS...
The group will survey youth at the Toilet Bowl about what events and mission projects they would like to do.
We will keep the momentum of the Conference Youth Team going by planning another event/project for April or May. Splash Lagoon was suggested, but the team also mentioned that the expense could be a hinderance to some. Ian and Tara have some contacts with the YMCA in Jamestown and will see what it might cost to do a pool party there. The have a floating island. The ELCA has a charity that builds water wells, which could be the justice/service part of the event. Mike and others suggested that there are many themes in Scripture that involve water, baptism being the most obvious.
A mission trip was suggested at a previous meeting. Ian checked around and found a trip that is organized every July by the SWPA Synod. The event costs $125 and is relatively close (McKeesport PA). Details here: Mission on the Mon. The Youth Gathering takes precedence this year, but this or something like it could be a possibility for 2013.
We are also looking towards an October-ish event. Looking at getting Youth Encounter for a concert and overnighter. Bethel traditionally hosts. St. Tim's did a fantastic job on an overnighter last year. Maybe we can combine the two?
We will get working on these upcoming events at the March meeting.
LEARNING...
The team watched and discussed a video from the Service And Learning Leadership Team, a project that teaches Christian young people to live as the "salt of the earth" (Matthew 5:13) by utilizing an intentional service learning process to bring richness and meaning to service experiences. We discussed the importance of each step in the process: Prepartaion - Action - Reflection - Celebration. More info at this link. Good stuff and researched based. (This is something anyone utilizing youth in service should review to make the experience as positive as possible and to maximize the benefit to youth. Ian has a video and discussion guide churches may borrow.)
UPCOMING MEETINGS...
3/3/12
4/7/12
5/5/12
Meetings are at 9 am at First Lutheran Church, 120 Chandler St., Jamestown.
(Note: The Southwestern Conference Youth Ministries Team is open to young people in grades 9 - 12, plus interested adults. Please circulate these minutes to youth, Sunday School teachers, Christian Ed committees, etc.)
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