News from All Around:

Lots beginning to buzz around World Youth Day…

TORONTO, ONT — As part of the new direction of the archdiocese of Toronto’s Office of Catholic Youth, the office won’t be organizing a trip to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day 2013, said director Fr. Frank Portelli.
“It was discussed at the Council of Priests and it was decided that it would be better if the parishes work on their own groups to go down so it would be more parish-based initiatives,” Portelli told The Catholic Register.

The OCY will instead help with the formation which precedes World Youth Day, such as by creating a curriculum or teaching material for youth ministers in the lead-up to the pilgrimage. “We’re moving away from being event-based to being more of a support for those doing youth ministry already,” he said. read more from the Catholic Register

Also, our buddy Jack Regan has a read on some of the events for Rio, including the Pope’s arrive there.  Break out your Barry Manilow, folks, its at the Copa…  Copacabana

Meanwhile, here’s a update on some of the contenders on the next World Youth Day…  My bet is on Poland

LITTLE ROCK, AR — Margaret Mary "Meg" Miskin, a parishioner at Christ the King Church in Little Rock and a recent graduate of Mount St. Mary Academy, is one teenager who takes her relationship with Christ seriously.

For her dedication to attending Mass, participating in parish and diocesan youth events and growing in her faith life, she was chosen to receive the St. Timothy Award from the Diocese of Little Rock’s Youth and Campus Ministries Office. An adult committee who did not know the nominees made the selection.

The St. Timothy Award is the highest award that the diocese gives to high school students.  More from the Arkansas Catholic.

News from ‘round Here:

Monday the 4th involved the intended activity of visiting the Central Maryland YM’s and addressing Georgina’s unexpected announcement in the office. Tuesday was staff supervision, completion well in advance of a MAC project and some checking in with my supervisor. Wednesday was a very busy last day in the office before a break- breakfast reception with our new Archbishop, a meeting with College and University Campus Ministers, drafting a letter (yep, snail mail – old school, peoples!) to our youth ministers and completing a job description for our vacancy, wrapping up with our Eagle of the Cross reception, again with Archbishop Lori, saluting some great young people.  The long day finished with appetizers with a beloved companion and then a drop-in on the planning team of the Jesus Way program… whew!

Vacation officially kicked in Thursday the 7th. an early morning commute to the airport and two long flights all led to hugging my son in his temporary home in Hawai’i. Friday, after a great  breakfast we toured around the island, knocking off two museum visits and a visit with Lisa Gomes of the Honolulu diocese and some of her council members

Saturday was more island touring as well as some serious cribbage card-play, some cool site seeing of the natural beauty of the island, and a Miller family tradition of fleamarketing. Sunday involved picking my brother up at the airport and moving into his hotel room for the remainder of the trip.  We played some cards and Clark and I went off on a tour of the zoo and then watched the Pan-Pacific Festival Parade.

Monday, brother Gordon and I climbed Diamondhead, chilled at the beach, played cards, and met up with Clark for meal on the NorthShore. I was left of my own devices most of Thursday until a farewell meal with Clark and then loaded up on a redeye flight back home. Wednesday the 13 I arrived mid morning, went home to shower and was in the office to send (snail mail!!!) letters to our contacts.

Thursday found me at a regional meeting of diocesan directors of youth ministry and then off to our Hispanic Young Adult Council. Friday was “a day off” according to the office summer  schedule, but involved a breakfast with one of our youth ministers and meeting another to walk a portion of the proposed revised pilgrimage route.

Saturday started with an early morning oil change and a run over to the Inner Harbor for the Sailelebration, an invasion of tall ships honoring the 200th anniversary of the Star Spangled Banner. We will cover the end of our fortnight report elsewhere on the blog.

MEMPHIS, TN — "Weapons of Mass Redemption" was the theme of this year’s Diocesan Youth Celebration held April 20-21 at St. Benedict High School in Cordova. Jesse Manibusan was the keynote speaker and John Angotti was the featured musician.

The weekend event was attended by middle school and high school teens and adults from 26 different parishes of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis, including 10 parishes from the Jackson Deanery and 16 from the Memphis Deanery.

The agenda included the opportunity to build community with teens throughout the dioceses. Different activities included writing letters to soldiers, getting religious tattoos, playing a Catholic trivia game and more. Participants were also able to celebrate the sacrament of confession and go to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

Teens in grades 6-12 attended break-out sessions including "Discovering the Gift: Theology of the Body for Teens" by Deanna Jones, a native Memphian. After college, she served as a missioner in Mexico and is now the Pastoral Minister for the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Dodge City, Kan. Jones teaches Theology of the Body to teens and adults and is working toward her Masters of Arts degree in Theology. Read more from the Commercial Appeal

FAYETTEVILLE, NC — This summer will mark the 11th year that St. Patrick Catholic Church has taken part in a Homeworks session in Cumberland County.

Vince Mescall, the Fayetteville session coordinator and coordinator of Catholic Youth Ministries, said the event has come a long way in that time. The first year, only 13 teenagers and adults volunteered to work on service projects here in the county. The last four or five years, some 100 volunteers have taken part.

The purpose of Homeworks is to take teenagers with adult supervision and send them out to various building and repair projects around the county over a one-week period. This year’s Homeworks projects will be undertaken the week of June 18-22. More from the Fayetteville Observer.

Monday the 21st started early with a Relevant Radio interview. A cancelled meeting lead to some desktime and prep on meetings later in the week.

The next two days were crazy busy.  We had a great staff meeting where everyone was “game on,” a first effort at a webinar style meeting initiating efforts towards world youth day domestic, working of hs curriculum religious freedom, and lay ministry certification, and, oh yeah… in the middle of that, the blog went down for a day! There were some great phone consultations with youth ministers on the side and it was great to be alive and in ministry -truly an A.W.E. (Amazing Weekly Event) moment.

Thursday the 24th, we knocked off the Religious Freedom resources and only had a one meeting day on the Schools’ Convocation. As the Catholic Center closes on summer Fridays, the 25th involved just an errand and a Hispanic Christian music concert in the evening.

Saturday was an empty day of rest, some advance blogging, and a household chore or two. Sunday the 27th, beyond a great start of the day, I attended a multi-parish Confirmation at the Cathedral, scouting out our new Archbishop’s Confirmation homily.

Tuesday we had a shorten version of a staff meeting, double check on a big event budget, (re)produced a meeting video, had a site visit for the Jesus Way social justice program.

Wednesday I finalized the office e-newsletter and then headed out with the DYYAN ladies to a e-team overnight which was both challenging yet hopeful.  the evening.

June 1 was an office closed day that was busy.  Headed over to my daughters’ place in the morning to move some furniture and visit, then down to the city for a MAC project, off to Pennsylvania to visit family for the afternoon, then through tornado warnings/ thunderstorms to the youth retreat house for their annual raffle, where I bought an item in the silent auction which I delivered that night, in a full circle move, to the daughters. This day and the company I kept throughout it made it an A.W.E. (Amazing Weekly Event)

Saturday I presented at the NALM conference, napped a little, and finished up the day in a triumphant round of Hearts. Sunday was low key.

News from All Around:

While, I don’t necessarily miss fund-raisers, I do imagine that I would like this sort of effort. I‘ve heard of a similar effort involving flamingoes.

CHATHAM, NJ — When Barbara Murphy heard "a commotion" on her front lawn Monday night, she thought college students home for the summer were having some fun. It was not until her daughter Colleen came home later that she learned her front yard had some new occupants. "Colleen came in that night, and she could barely speak, she was laughing so hard," Murphy said.

The commotion came from members of local youth ministries who set up about a dozen garden gnomes in Murphy’s yard. JoAnne Babbitt, who woke up to the gnomes in her yard Saturday morning, donated money to send the gnomes to Murphy. The gnomes raise money for the Appalachia Outreach Program for youth ministry teens from St. Patrick Church in Chatham Borough and St. Vincent Martyr Church in Madison.

Read more from the Chatham Patch.

News from “Round Here:

Monday was spent primarily at a parish as part of the Bishop’s visitation team, meeting with staff and parishioners.  Had a great conversation with a transitioning youth minister about finishing well and starting strong. Came back into the office and had a solid conversation with a staff member regarding future plans.

Tuesday, there was supposed to be a staff meeting but we were short staff to pull that off.  Georgina and I worked on projects and I drafted something for use with our pilgrimage cross for the upcoming year. The evening involved a vespers prayer with the Archbishop-elect.

Wednesday was installation day of the new Arch.  I was in early in the morning, mostly wrapping up a report from Monday’s visit. Thursday was a day of check-ins.  The E-team celebrated its role in the installation and I had two impromptu meetings with staff.

Friday, I grabbed a day off, finishing off the day with an investment for a dream. *which in a quieter week was actually Saturday, I spent a portion of a day developing a power-point to be delivered on-line for next week. I like the creative process of image selection so it doesn’t feel as much as work.  The evening involved a viewing of Marvel’s The Avengers, which was fine but not world-shattering.

Sunday was also a quiet day, finishing off the later afternoon the act of helping to bury the dead.

News from All Around:

CINCINNATI, OH -  La Salle High School recently honored four of its graduates with the Pillar Awards which honor alumni and members selected because they exhibit Lasallian values of Leadership, Scholarship, Faith, Community and Service in the focus and direction of their lives.

Among the four recipients was Sean Reynolds, Ph.D. ’72, director of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, where he has served for more than 20 years. Dr. Reynolds is a national leader in exploring how research into the faith of young people is challenging communities to respond, develop and grow.

Sean is a national leader in exploring how research into the faith of young people is challenging our communities to respond, develop and grow.
Sean’s degrees in theology, organizational development and ministry serve him as an adjunct professor. He is author of Multiply the Ministry – A Practical Guide for Grassroots Ministry Empowerment. He also is a 2004 recipient of the NFCYM National Youth Ministry award, a national recognition for outstanding diocesan youth ministry leaders.
He has served on the boards of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Commission on Certification and Accreditation, the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, and the Jesuit Renewal Center in Milford.

News from ‘Round Here:

Monday was just a good desk day, but Tuesday was one-on-one staff supervision.  All went well, worked uo drafts of newsletters, and then headed out to Msgr. O’Dwyer Youth Retreat House for a mass and board dinner/ meeting.

Wednesday, I went into the office briefly to finalize the parent newsletter and ship it out.  I had two meetings on the road with two newbie parish youth ministers, did some homework /reading in between, and attended a recognition meal at the far-western end of the diocese… such a good and full day of ministry, this week’s Amazing Weekly Experience (A.W.E.) event. Thursday, we wrapped up and shipped out the office e-newsletter with some peppy looking flyers attached.  Margaret and I took out a first draft for September’s Youth Contact meetings< I sat with IT to get briefed on the dynamics of  GoToMeeting, and started the process of booking a musician for our local World Youth Day ‘13 that, if we get, will certainly add a Wow to it.  I was home by 5 and crashed.

Friday, as you might imagine, was a scheduled shorter day.  One meeting. some deskwork, and I was outta there.  I helped my daughter with some house/yard-work and then had a delightful afternoon and evening with a friend.

Saturday, I popped-in (if you can do that after a 90 minute commute) to the AYAC Hershey Park trip, stopped in the office for some file shredding, and then went off to a Hispanic young adult celebration. Sunday was a complete lounging around sort of day and that was good… It was needed.

News from All Around:

BALTIMORE, MD — The Division of Youth and Young Adult Ministry honored the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s current longest-tenured youth minister with the prestigious Cardinal Shehan Award May 3 at St. Matthew Parish in Northwood.  Twelve others, including Patti Murphy Dohn of The John Carroll School (pictured here) were recognized with the Youth and Young Adult Ministry Medal of Honor and the For God and Youth Award, and others were recognized as Volunteers of the Year. Read more from the Catholic Review.

PORTLAND, OR –R600 teens from western Oregon trekked across Portland April 28, carrying an eight-foot-tall cross and praying as they passed storefronts and houses. The second biennial Archdiocese of Portland Pilgrimage Walk wound 6.2 miles from the Grotto to St. Mary’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception with stops for music, prayer, inspirational talks and good works.

"This day is going to change my life," said Mary Vasquez, a 15-year-old member of St. Anne Parish in Gresham. "We walked and saw so many people who need help and I’m just always going to remember that and keep helping."

"I think it’s a great way for them to spend their energy," said Jack Platt, a volunteer who had come from St. Joseph Parish in Salem to lend support.   
About 450 youths took part in 2010.  Read more from the Catholic Sentinel

News from ‘Round Here:

It was an amazing wonderful and busy week, starting with Monday. My son from Hawaii called with updates regarding his promotion as well as a summer time-time for discharge as he completes his four-year commitment to the US Army. Lots of desk work, including finalizing a draft of a high School conference on the New Evangelization next fall.

Tuesday we stated off with an Annual Recognition Celebration script review –pretty good, short and sweet, creative and diverse.  We offered each other positive critique and then broke into one-on-one supervision which, while very good, led into early afternoon. I left early to do some shopping and prep for hosting our pilgrimage evaluation meeting.  Good food and good energy! 

I was in early Wednesday processing minutes from the night before. I attended a school’s in-service on bullying, had a lunch-off with a friend, picked  up the ARC awards, went back to the office and dealt with an internal issue and drafted a program flier before heading home.

Another very full day Thursday which ended with the Annual Recognition Celebration (see left) The morning started with shopping for some of the catering, an e-team check-in, some conferencing related to Equip, and finalized the flier. So… you’ll understand that on Friday I did very little more intentional than have breakfast with my oldest daughter and visit a sick friend in the evening.

Saturday was a relaxing day as well culminating in assisting with the hosting of a meal- lots of prep! Sunday involved primarily delivery of some materials to a staff person travelling to the western half of the diocese the next day, set up for a project that didn’t pan out, and placing the stylized version of the banners atop the blog page which were sent in by Gene.  Thanks for making the site look cooler, Gene!