Please check page four of the weekly bulletin for more information and upcoming events.

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Welcome Back to another year of Youth Ministry activities. This will be a year of changes for our program, so please watch this space to see what’s coming!

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Mark Your Calendars:
Sept. 11th Service Opportunity-
We need helpers to set up and fill grocery bags for the Parish Festival. To help please call or email Kathy.
Sept. 19th: Core Team Leadership meeting at 6:30.
Oct. 2nd: Habitat for Humanity 8 am- Noon for high school students.
Oct. 17th: Youth Mass at Noon at St. Gerald Church. This year we will be changing our Youth Masses from 5 pm at the Lakeview Chapel to Noon at the Church. All 7-12th graders are invited as we kick off this new format. All youth are invited for lunch and a youth forum following Mass to share ideas about our new program. We need youth to help with the liturgy and music at these Masses. Please contact Kathy to help.
Oct. 24th: Archdiocesan High School Youth Rally 10 am- 7:30pm at Roncalli High.

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Sept. 11th Service Opportunity-
We need helpers to set up and fill grocery bags for the Parish Festival. To help please call or email Kathy.
.
Oct. 2nd: Habitat for Humanity 8 am- Noon for high school students. Have you ever built a house? Well how about giving it a try? If you are at least 16 years old, you are invited to meet us at the Lakeview parking lot a 8 am, then carpool over to our worksite. Please bring a water bottle and wear work clothes, including work gloves, and sturdy shoes. You will also need to bring a Release of Liability form (see below). Please call Kathy by Sept. 30th if you can help.
If you are in high school, but not yet 16, you can help if you are accompanied by your parent.
Don’t miss this great service opportunity!
.

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Sunday, Oct. 24th:
b> Archdiocesan High School Youth Rally
10 am- 7:30pm at Roncalli High School
If They, Why Not I: Celebrting with the Saints
Featuring Mass and Adoration with Archbishop Lucas

Keynotes by Bob Perron, Stooge for Christ
and Jackie Francois, singer/songwriter

Also featuring Social Contradiction, Michael Debus,
Workshops, dancing and much, much more...

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Our High School Youth Ministry Core Team and Faith Sharing groups are now forming. We will be meeting together on Sept. 19th at 6:30 pm in the Youth Room, 7859 Lakeview (in the basement of the business office.) Please come to this opening session and help us set our course for the new year. Contact Kathy at 331-1955 or kathyk@stgerald.org for more information.

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7-12th graders are invited to CELEBRATE your musical gifts by joining our CELEBRATIONS youth music group. We need your help with our Youth Liturgies and special events.
For details call Kathy @ 331-1955

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The Church is alive and the Church is young
This summer, many young people in the Archdiocese of Omaha participated in summer youth conferences, leadership camps,
and work-camps helping those in need.
In Pope Benedict XVI installation homily in 2005, he proclaimed "...The Church is alive. And the Church is young."
As these young people return home, we might ask ourselves, are they returning to a Church that is alive and young? Or might
it scarily resemble a slow, lifeless faith?
As faith communities, there are many things that we can do to ensure the vitality and vibrancy of our Church.
• We must find more ways to inform, form, and transform the faith of parents. They are the first witnesses of faith for young
people. Whatever kids understand about the Church was likely both taught by and caught from their parents.
• We must make a commitment towards greater inclusion of young people into the ministries of the Church, especially within
our communal worship.
• When we do minister with young people, we must find ways to elicit their energy, passion, and skills towards making a
meaningful difference in the world. Pope Benedict encourages young people to make "definitive choices" regarding their
lives and faith and we should do the same.
From their summer experiences, hundreds of young people will be returning to parish pews and will look at the Church through
new eyes. Young people must recognize the Church as alive and young. Is this what they will see?
Adapted from Catholic Youth Ministry Blog

A Top Ten for Raising Teens by Glen McCall NACYML (National Association of Catholic Youth Ministry Leaders) Chairperson
10. Get to Know Your Child’s Friends and Their Parents ..One of the best ways to keep a teenager on the right track is to know who they hang out
with. Getting to know their friends and their friend’s parents will aid in making both your lives much easier.
9. No One Is Perfect ...There is a difference between being the best and doing your best. The pressures placed on teens today go far beyond anything we
ever experienced as teens. We as adults and parents need to realize that our children are not perfect in everything we desire for them. All we can ask is that
they do their best.
8. Teens Need to Be Taught Life Skills ...Our young people need to learn the basic life skills that we take for granted-the proper way to shake hands,
rituals surrounding a wake and funeral, or interview skills for employment or college entrance-all need to be taught to our young people.
7. Teens Need More Supervision Than Younger Children ...Not much explaining needs to be done here. However, most parents are under the impression
that as their child gets older, the less supervision they require. The reality is, they actually need more supervision because the life experiences of a teen
will carry greater challenges and consequences.
6. Fifteen Minutes Daily of One-on-One Time with Each Child..With all the craziness that life has to offer, this is probably the most challenging task for
parents to accomplish. Yet, the rewards are priceless! Whether it is in the car on the way to soccer practice or just before going to bed, this one-on-one time
will give the teen time to share both the high points and low points of their day. It also allows time for questions she/he finds difficult to ask when others are
present.
5. Be Realistic in Your Expectations of Your Child...The one question I ask parents concerning their expectations for their child is "Would you be able to
survive your child’s schedule?" Most of the time the response is "No." Some of our teens, get up at five in the morning to attend a sports practice, then off to
school, followed by another sport or part-time job, then off to their tutor or SAT prep course. Finally, arriving home around 8:00 PM to have dinner and do
their homework and then bed at midnight. At five the next morning it all begins again. Why do we expect this type of schedule for our young people?
4. Educate Your Child in Financial Responsibility...If we do not do this, we are setting them up for failure. Have we taught our children to save for a
rainy day? Have we established a checking account for them and shown them how to reconcile a bank statement? Have we helped them create a budget to
pay for things such as a car (and insurance), college expenses, and other needs?
3. Saying "No," "Because I said so," and "I do not care what everyone else is doing," Will not Kill Your Child (or cause years of future therapy)
Did any of these phrases kill us when they were spoken to us by our parents? Of course not. Sometimes, these are the most appropriate words to say given
the situation. And, guess what . . . one day your child will use the same words on your grandchildren!
2. Consistency, Consistency, Consistency...Young people need consistency, especially in the area of setting boundaries. Being fair and consistent in setting
expectations and boundaries will bring positive results!
1. Foster Faith Skills for Adulthood...It is our faith that will help us through whatever should cross our path as we journey through life. But, we must encourage
our children to develop their faith skills just as we encourage them to develop their educational skills.

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Click the link to download the release of liability / permission form in Adobe PDF format.

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Need service hours? Here is a list of phone numbers and contact information for places where you can find service opportunities. Just download the attached PDF document.

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