Youth ministry (7th-12th grades)


As youth and adults responding to God's love in everyday life, we seek and find our Creator. Called by the Holy Spirit, we strive to praise God through worship, study, service, and our social lives. As disciples of Jesus Christ we reach out to disciple others.

Sunday activities

Morning
Church school begins with a gathering at 9:30 in the great room on the third floor, followed by classes from 9:45 to 10:30 a.m.

• September - Our yearly "faith and film study" involves connecting our spiritual journey with the viewing of a commercial release that relates to the year’s theme followed by small group discussion.
• October-May - Age-graded classes survey the Bible with an emphasis on personal relevance.
• June-August - In the summer, youth explore issues of faith through a variety of creative media.

Afternoon
Youth choir is for all youth in grades 7-12, regardless of musical experience. The choir prepares choral music in a variety of musical styles during their weekly rehearsal from 4:30-5:30 p.m. Members provides musical leadership for the 10:50 a.m. service at least once per month and engage in special services and events throughout the year. The youth choir is a great place for our busy young people to develop basic choral singing skills that will serve them for a life-time of enjoyment in choral singing.

Youth with instrumental music skills can find a place in the church’s instrumental ensembles including a brass group, periodic woodwind groups, and a newly formed string ensemble. The church owns an extensive collection of percussion instruments as well.

Evening
Youth from grades 7 through 12 are encouraged to participate in a variety of Sunday evening activities from August through April including:

• Dinner from 5:30-6:00 p.m. - Provides our youth and adult leaders, who come from numerous school districts and communities, to get to know each other better through informal conversation while enjoying a good meal prepared by parents of youth.
• Presbyterian Youth Connection (PYC) from 6:00-7:30 p.m. - The evening programs emphasize service, recreation, and worship opportunities. Youth and sponsors plan the year's programs at the annual kick-off retreat.

Other opportunities throughout the school year

Confirmation Class – During the church school hour, younger youth are invited to learn more about our Christian and Presbyterian history as well as reformed beliefs, in preparation for full membership in the church. In October the class begins selecting and organizing the service project they will carry out. November and December classes help youth explore scriptures they will later memorize. The four months of formal study begin with a Saturday kick-off class in January. During the spring, confirmands lead worship at monthly session meetings.

SHYC (Senior High Youth Connection) - The mid-winter yearly retreat is held in Sherman, Texas, at Austin College for all 9-12th graders in Grace Presbytery. The weekend includes leadership opportunities in drama, music, and recreation as well as small group gatherings, group building, worship, and a variety of Saturday afternoon workshops of interest to the youth.

YOUTHQUAKE! - A fall weekend event for all 7th and 8th graders in Grace Presbytery focusing on worship, small group opportunities, recreation, and group building. Sites are normally Camp Gilmont or Camp Prairie Valley.

Senior Sunday – High school graduates are recognized during worship the first Sunday in May and honored with a gala luncheon and program in Byrd Hall.


Summer Opportunities

Junior High Jubilee and Senior High Youth Celebration - Each summer, rising 7th graders through graduated high school seniors have the opportunity to attend Synod-wide youth conferences at Mo-Ranch in the hill country of Texas. Opportunities for community building through small group experiences, recreation, energizers, and the closing outdoor worship and communion service provide a rich experience that has become a must on all the calendars of those who have attended.

Community Ministries Week - This annual week-long mission opportunity is open to rising 9th graders through graduated high-school seniors. Young people and sponsors serve lunch daily at The Stewpot and help with Summer Day Camp here at FPC. They also work with other social ministries throughout the DFW metroplex while living on the third floor at FPC. This project has a limit of fourteen youth who are accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis the day registration opens.

Summer Mission Project - Every three years, the youth and their sponsors embark on an extended mission project. Previous work has included working in conjunction with the Chatauqua County Rural Ministries in Dunkirk, New York; and scraping, painting, landscaping, and hosting a neighborhood block party with Mountain View Presbyterian Church in Seattle, Washington; and working for peace in Northern Ireland. The next extended project will take place in 2009.

Montreat Youth Conferences - Every three years youth who have completed the 9th-12th grades are eligible to attend the Montreat Youth Conference held at Montreat, North Carolina. Youth from across the country gather for a week of worship, recreation, and small group connections. Seniors highs will be attending in the summer of 2008.

Winter Opportunity

Every three years youth and sponsors get a break from their busy schedules on the Mid-Winter Rec event, a time for community building, sightseeing, and worship. Recent sites have included Crested Butte, Colorado; New York City; and San Francisco. Youth must earn service hours to be eligible for all major events. In 2007 the group traveled to Disneyworld.

Service and Rec Highlights

The Youth Committee - The youth committee has oversight of all youth work, as a subcommittee of education and fellowship. Ten youth are elected to a one-year term with an option for a second.
Adult leaders are asked to serve a two-year term. The committee meets on the second Sunday of each month following worship.

Youth Shepherds - An FPC peer support group, youth and adult coordinators, volunteer in one of three areas: celebrations and concerns; welcome and we’ve missed you; or happy birthday. The group meets on the third Sunday of each month following worship.

Service Corps - An honorary group dedicated to service and unified by the common goal of helping people. To qualify a youth must volunteer 35 hours of service through church, school, or community. Ten of those hours must be through FPC. Hours are recorded on a quarterly basis. The annual service corps dinner and celebration honors the volunteers and recognizes the confirmation class for their service project work.

Coffee House - This intergenerational variety and talent show is held annually on a Sunday evening in Byrd Hall. Emcees and acts audition in advance. Other youth prepare publicity or help with the dessert and coffee portion of the evening.

Contact Camilla Ballard  at ext. 231 for more information.