Youth Ministry

Holy Innocents’ values the role that youth play in our community.  Here at Holy Innocents’ we offer many opportunities for young people to engage in church life. The Youth Group of HI is called EYC (Episcopal Youth Community). Jr. EYC is for middle schoolers and Sr. EYC is for those in High School. EYC is an opportunity for fun, fellowship, community service and mission projects. But primarily, EYC is the community for youth at Holy Innocents’. It is their place to be themselves and to understand their role in the world as children of God.

Beyond EYC, there are so many ways to get involved at Holy Innocents’ for young people. Acolyting, choir, and lay reading are all available to youth and are wonderful ways to assist in leading the worship service. The committees that carry out the ministry of the church also welcome teens to serve. Holy Innocents’ is an amazing place for young people to grow up. It is a place where youth are encouraged to participate fully as members of God’s Kingdom!

If you are interested in participating, please send an email to Christy: cbeesley@holyinnocents.org.

For our Rising 7th & 8th grades – Class of 2014 & 2015

Journey to Adulthood program was begun at Holy Innocents’ in 2008. This curriculum has been tested and proven for two decades in over 1,000 churches as a program that sets youth on an intentional spiritual journey and keeps them coming back to church throughout their teen years. A brief overview of the program has been included, and a website is listed for further reading.

A diagram is available that demonstrates how the classes involved in the program will journey over a 6-year period. At the top of the chart, you will be able to identify how your child will fit in by locating her grade for the next school year (this will also list a graduation year). You will then be able to use the chart to see which class your child will participate in each year.

Class of 2014 & 2015 is the first group to begin this program. During the 2009-2010 school year, 7th and 8th graders will join together for the second year of Rite 13. This is the first of three two-year classes that these students will participate in.  During the entire 6-year cycle, they will remain together as one class. The Rite 13 class focuses on how young people in a time of significant physical, emotional, and spiritual change can begin to learn to be members of the church community. The highlight of the Rite 13 class is the Rite 13 liturgy that will take place annually during a regular Sunday morning service. During this liturgy, Holy Innocents’ will welcome the 7th graders into the adulthood journey and remind the youth and their parents that the church is here to support them along this journey. If you were unable to participate in the first year of this class, you are welcome to join in the second year. The Rite 13 leaders commit to teaching for two years, so Elizabeth Harris, Jim Langlais, Katie Ray and Brent Farnham will all be returning to teach next year.

After completing this 2-year class, this group will move together to the J2A class (short for Journey to Adulthood) for the 2010-2011 school year. During this two-year class the group will practice basic skills of adulthood highlighted by a Holy Pilgrimage in 2012: a spiritual journey to a destination in which they travel as a group, but individually each member will seek to experience the direct presence of God. There will be lots of planning and fundraising done by this class during this two year period to prepare for their pilgrimage.

Finally, as 10th and 11th graders, this same group will enter the final phase, Young Adults, during the 2012-2013 school year. During Young Adults they will explore the areas of church life in which their faith can best be practiced. It is during this time, that those ready to make a mature commitment to Christ will be offered Confirmation instruction. This is different that what has been done at Holy Innocents’ for many years. This is a big change which is why we offered a number of meetings to Rite 13 parents earlier in the year. The decision was not made lightly but rather after lots of research and with the support of the clergy, vestry and strategic initiative committee for children and youth. We have experienced for some time that confirmation has not worked. 8th graders only come for confirmation and then attendance drops off for other youth events. Consequently, we don’t see many of them the next year as 9th graders. These are the very reasons we chose to implement Journey to Adulthood. Rite 13 and Journey to Adulthood allow for the creation of an intentional faithful community that remain more active throughout their high school years.

As two grade levels stay together for 6 years, there will come a time when the older grade level graduates, leaving a set of 12th graders without their former Journey to Adulthood mates.  In this instance, we will give that class the opportunity of “graduating” to adult formation classes, teaching young children, or joining up with the 10th and 11th graders behind them. 

The Journey to Adulthood program has been tested and proven effective for over 20 years.  We feel strongly that this curriculum provides the best opportunity to offer our young people an intentional spiritual journey that will lead them to a fuller adulthood. Not just an adulthood of graduating college and finding a job, but an adulthood marked by a sustained spirituality that will fill their lives during times of prosperity and adversity. We invite you to study the overview and read more deeply on-line. Please share all of your questions, concerns and encouragements regarding this program with Alison Schultz and Christy Beesley as Journey to Adulthood is implemented in the life of Holy Innocents’.

For our Senior High… Rising 9th – 12th grades – Class of 2013, 2012, 2011 & 2010

 

It is absolutely vital that our teens have a welcoming place at Holy Innocents’ and that we offer them formation opportunities that not only instruct them in the faith but are also appealing and enjoyable.  Lots of work has been done over the past year to strengthen our Christian formation opportunities across all ages, but it is especially vital that our teenagers are fully engaged on Sunday mornings. Sunday morning is the main focus for the Christian formation of our youth. Additional HIEC EYC evening and weekend activities provide opportunities for fellowship and outreach.

During the 2008-2009 school year, the Journey to Adulthood program was introduced to our parish.  This is a tested and proven curriculum for middle school and high school students that emphasizes young people’s impending adulthood and their spiritual growth.  Since this is a curriculum that builds on itself year after year, we began this first phase of the program last year.  Class of 2014 and class of 2015 began this program and all students younger than them will eventually participate as they come of age.

Since the program will be phased in, our 9th-12th graders will not participate in Journey to Adulthood.  In its place, we will continue to offer an engaging Senior High Sunday School class for 9th-12th graders during the 10 o’clock hour.  Knowing how important it is that we offer these youth nothing but the best formation opportunities, we have assembled an amazing group of teachers including Chris & Kara Protos, Lilia Romero, and Mike Wiemann. The class will be lectionary based and thematic in nature using Reel & Relevant for the curriculum.  We feel that the teachers will be able to offer our young people a compelling reason to be at church on Sunday mornings and we are very excited to have them play a significant roll in their lives. This class will meet in the Youth Pavilion following our weekly gathering with the Rite 13 class for snacks, announcements and a prayer to begin the Christian formation hour.

If you have questions about our Sunday morning offerings for our older teens, please do not hesitate to ask!