Graduation and Youth Group Wind-Up

*For some youth ministers “official” youth group activities wrap-up in May as they take a break over the summer. To not lose the momentum of your group consider choosing some photos of your youth activities from over the past year. Create a photo album for each of your youth and include in each of the albums the photos you have chosen. Make sure that for each person that there is at least one photo with them specifically in the picture for their own album. Leave empty spaces at the end of each album to indicate this is for the memories to come when you join together again the fall. It is also important for your youth to know that even though there won’t be “official” youth group events during the summer that the ministry is always available to them (if you are taking holidays – and I certainly hope you are taking some time for rest and renewal over the summer – make sure to let them know who will be available to take their calls/e-mails/etc. It feels good to know that the church is always there to care for them.).

~If you haven’t done so already now might be a really great time to do a review and evaluation of how the past year has gone. It doesn’t have to be all talk. You can do things like a continuum - having one side of the room being great, the other side being it sucked and the middle being neutral ground. You can ask for their opinion on things like different activities you did, how connected they feel to the group and the church as a whole, what they’d like to see happen in the next year, the next three years, etc.

~It is also the season of graduation. If you have any youth group members that are graduating from Grade 12 here’s an idea that you can use with them. Go to this link Graduation idea #5 link and scroll way down on the page to idea #5 Quilt Sunday by Lisa McArdle. *please keep in mind that this idea comes from a site that does not necessarily reflect the theology of the United Church of Canada. You may have to adapt other articles as needed should you choose to use them.



* Just for You ~ How are you going to stay in touch with those who may be graduating from both school and youth group? If they are off to university or moving out on their own a care package waiting for them at their new address would be one way to let them know that the people “at their church home” are still thinking about them. Make sure to include in it a special invitation for coffee or lunch together the next time they are home for a visit. Another thing that you could do to help them adjust to their new location is to connect them with a church congregation in their new area. If you don’t know of any church congregations in their particular area contact Debbie Coss, Conference Youth Minister at dcoss@confmnwo.mb.ca  for recommendations.

~If your graduates are remaining in your congregation find ways to connect them both into some of the youth activities in more adult mentoring ways and also help them “transition” into some of the other ministries of the church by connecting them with an adult mentor of their own in their area(s) of interest e.g. Christian Education/Faith Formation committee, Outreach/Social Action/Mission group, etc.

~See what you agree with after reading an interesting article by Tim Schmoyer at My Toughest Challenges in Youth Ministry article link. *please keep in mind that this article comes from a site that does not necessarily reflect the theology of the United Church of Canada. You may have to adapt other articles as need should you choose to use them.\