Catholic Youth Ministries
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Using technology to their advantage, the 2012 Youth LeadershipTeam has put together reflections on the daily readings for Lent 2012. This group of 26 high school youth from all over the diocese will be using the CYM Twitter feed (@cdowcym) to send anyone who wishes to receive these insights and inspiring questions. So spread the word and commit to retweeting this Lent. Visit the CYM Twitter page to sign up. If you are already a Twitter user, spread the Word by spreading the Tweets to all your friends and family. What a great way to lead up to this year's Pilgrimage and to make Lent 2012 more reflective than ever.
You know that feeling when you realize that Lent is almost here and your Christmas cards are still on your desk? Well, Lent is almost here, so cover the stack of cards and click the Resource tab above to visit the new category on Lent 2012. We have compiled a great list of resources and links that we think will help you navigate these 40 holy days. Those resources, coupled with the ongoing Tweets from the Youth Leadership Team should make for a very reflective season.
Enjoy the latest Catechetical Leader Podcast. It features a roundtable conversation about The Year of Faith announced by Pope Benedict XVI. You can listen. If you are interested, you can read the Apostolic Letter, Porta Fidei, announcing the Year of Faith. The Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith also released a Note with Pastoral Recommendations for the Year of Faith. You can also view a short RomeReports video on this Year of Faith.
Summer Camp - We offered a weeklong summer camp program for Middle School students. The week focused on local service projects and community building. It included service activities such as beach clean-ups, gardening, work at a local environmental area, and making rosaries for veterans. We also made crosses that we present to all the newly baptized of the parish. The afternoons were devoted to community building activites such as kayaking, seining the bay, and swimming. Over 20 kids participated and we hope to offer it again this year.
Organic Community Garden - We were able to set aside a 30 foot by 30 foot area on the grounds of our mission church - Our Lady of Guadelupe - to start an organic garden. We partnered with a local business - "The Good Earth" and helped plant their seedlings in exchange for a supply of mature plants. One of our favorites was heirloom tomatoes. Since the garden was in such an open area, we were afarid that our harvest would be enjoyed by the local deer population. However, scattering human hair between plants proved to be an effective deterrent. Families volunteered to water, maintain, and harvest the garden. Produce was donated to local food banks.
Caroling to the Homebound - After calling our homebound parishioners to be sure we would be welcomed, a group of about 20 visited their homes. This was a great experience - very emotional. The first house we visited was to a young, former Religious Ed teacher who was in hospice. He passed away a few days after our visit but his family was grateful that we had come. The next house was to one of our youth's father who has ALS. Again it was very emotional but the kids were excited that he could spell out Merry Christmas to us using his eye chart. One 90 year old that we visited sang to us. In addition to singing we gave each a lap blanket that had been made by the youth in summer camp.
Bowling - We bowl at Millsboro Bowling Lanes every Tuesday from January through March. A diverse group participates. It is especially nice to see so many fathers come out with their teenage sons.
Skiing - We just returned from a one day outing to Bearcreek Ski Resort. The weather was beautiful. It was cold enough that snow could be made and 20 trails were open. We try to keep this trip very affordable and we get a good turn out.
DelawareCAN Competition - The Delaware Food Bank sponosred a competition in October. The idea was to collect as many canned goods as possible and build a structure using them We built a boat. The competition was a fun spin on a food drive.
Festival of Trees - The youth group decorated a tree at the local Grotto's. The theme for our tree was "Youth of the World." Donations to our entry raised almost $400 for the hispanic community.
Upcoming we will be having our Mexican Dinner on Friday, February 17th (the last Friday before lent). We offer soft and hard tacos, ground beef and chicken, toppings, rice, refried beans, and a Sundae Bar. Cost is only $7 for adults and $5 for children 3 to 11. This is a great community builder and good way for the generations to mingle.
Submitted by: Denise Santa Barbara
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