Elementary, Middle and High School youth events run by Ignite Youth Ministry
Like most events these days, Camp Hope was cancelled this year due to Covid-19. The Camp team still had a deep desire to put on some type of event for our youth. With the help of incredible volunteers, teens and adults alike, we were able to host three awesome events for our elementary, middle & high school youth right at Koinonia Academy under a huge tent. Although we could not make it out to the beautiful rolling hills in Tunkhannock, PA, we were so grateful to have a mini camp experience with the 100 youth who attended.
Overview of the Events
ELEMENTARY - 8/7/20
The Elementary event included group games and activities, a talk & sharing to hear about how Jesus can be the "Best Friend" & the opportunity for confession, mass & adoration. Jesus was truly present to the young hearts at this event!
MIDDLE SCHOOL - 8/6/20
The Middle School event focused on the parable of the sower and the seed and the importance of planting yourself in good soil. This day also consisted of group games & competitions and ended with mass, adoration & confession. It was a gift to be together for the first time in a long time as "Ignite Middle"
HIGH SCHOOL - 8/8/20
The High School event, Youthfest, was an opportunity for the Ignite youth to be together again after many long months of quarantine & Zoom meetings. They had an opportunity to hear talks about how the Lord wants to give each of them the confidence to trust in Him and an invitation to make Jesus the center of their lives. The day consisted of group games, mass, adoration, confession and time to spend with one another.
Youth's Perspective
ELEMENTARY: Q&A with a 5th Grade Boy
Q: What was your favorite part of the event for you? Why?
A: I really enjoyed all the games and activities, but my favorite part was being able to see all my friends, go to Confession, and spend time in Adoration.
Q: What was the talk/witness about & what was one thing you took away from it?
A: Mr. Paul Scarfone was talking about Friendship. One thing I took away from the talk is that you can pick your friends. You don’t need a lot of friends, you just need to surround yourself with 4 to 5 good friends who will have a good influence on you. You might keep these friends for the rest of your life!
Q: Even though we had to wear masks & social distance all day, what was one thing you are grateful for because of this event?
A: Even though the Ignite Day wasn’t the same as Camp Hope, I think all of the leaders did a really good job putting Camp Hope into the few hours we had. I am really grateful for the opportunity to go to Confession and experience faith and friendship like I do at Camp Hope!
Middle: Written by a 7th Grade Girl
When I first heard camp was not happening I was really disappointed. When my mom told me that there was going to be a camp day I was not really looking forward to it because I knew it was not going to be the same. But, it actually was really fun and I had a great time. They made it a safe and enjoyable environment. My favorite part of the camp day was getting to talk about things that are hard during this time but what makes them a little more bearable. The talk for the girls was about having a strong relationship with the Lord and the different ways he can work in your life. One thing I took away from this was that even when you're going through a rough or a good time God is there working in all different ways but you might not realize right away. Even though we had to be safe I was grateful to see my friends and get to have confession and adoration because I have not been in a long time. Even though it was not the same as Camp, I had an amazing time.
High School: Written by a Sophomore Girl
My overall experience at the Youthfest was amazing! It was a great way to revamp, and get back on track with my prayer life, and God. My favorite part of the event was definitely adoration. It was such a peaceful time, and we had an amazing music ministry to lead us in that time of prayer. During the event we were given 3 talks: Sofia Margiotta gave the first talk, which was on trusting God and believing that he has a better plan than any plan we have in mind. She also talked about how trusting God, and giving our lives fully to Him can be “scary business”, but there’s nothing to be afraid of when you put everything in His hands. The second talk was given by Katy Robles. She talked about how God doesn’t see us as how popular you are, or how many likes you get on Instagram, or any of the outside world things, or what we look like, but he see us as who we are on the inside, and how we treat others. The third talk was by Ed Moccia, which was on taking that extra step and falling into God's hands, and trusting in Him. He talked about how he took his children to go cliff jumping, and to get into the water you had to take that step off the cliff, and that’s kinda like our lives: we need to be able to take the step off the cliff, and let God catch us and He will lead us to amazing things. Personally I thought the day went really well, and I am super grateful I was able to see my friends.They had priests there for most of the day to hear confessions which was also a huge blessing.