Happy New Year!!!
This first week of January marks the third anniversary of our coming to Greater New York. Can’t believe it has been three years, we’ve worked so hard together with many of you and so much has been done, that sometimes if feels as if it has been longer than that. Both Joanne and I concurred that after three years we still feel that we are in the honeymoon of ministry in Greater New York. We always pray to God that He will continue to multiply these years of ministry, and to keep the good times going; in fact, we ask Him to make it better every single year. So far He has. Both, Joanne and I realize that though we work hard the blessings come from God; without His blessings it does not matter how hoard you work, nothing happens.
As we begin 2006 we give the entire honor, the credit, and the glory, for everything that has happened here, to God. We also give thanks to you for the hard work and incomparable support for the Adventist Youth Ministries Department. You are a blessing to us. When I say us, it’s no longer Joanne and me; that also includes Jose III, who by the way, seems to love everyone and be very happy at every church we visit. I took him with me to the Pastors’ meeting, yesterday. He enjoyed it and made good friends with some of my colleagues.
Last year ended with lots of stuff happening, including United Campmeeting, the Collegiate & Young Adult Banquet, Week of Youth Evangelism, Bible Bowl Finals, two emergency mission trips to the Gulf Coast, our I Master Guide Retreat, many Pathfinder & Adventurer Investitures, (goodness we kept on running out of insignias and patches), and of course the Master Guide Consecration and Investiture with about 100 Candidates, including our official PLA and PIA classes. This event brought the year to an end. Working on all of these things made it difficult to send Updates; this is why during the last part of the year you mostly received FYIs from me.
Last Wednesday, January 4, I got a call from one of our young people, who mentioned that him and some other young people were fasting and praying, and know some of you also did the same. Next weekend, we’ll have a retreat with AY, Pathfinder Coordinators, Master Guide, PLA, PIA Instructors to finalize our preparation for the entire year. Pray for us, as we meet, that God will guide our leadership meeting, and that He will bless us through 2006.
Since I just gave you a mini-report, let’s skip reports today and let’s move to the Update of the things happening in the Greater New York Conference Adventist Youth Ministries Department for the beginning of 2006:
Update
1. United Youth in Christ Basketball League (Tomorrow night, Saturday 7 @ 7:30 PM @ Jessup Gym, in the Bronx): An excellent group of young people got together and brought to me and later to the AY Coordinators Advisory, a very organized proposal about a basketball league, so our young people could have some clean and healthy recreation on Saturday nights, after Sabbath hours. The AY Coordinators Advisory asked Coordinators Angelina Graham-Soto, Roy Davidson, and Walter Harris to work with the group and provide support to the group.
As a result of a lot of hard work by some of our young people, tomorrow night the United Youth in Christ Basketball League will begin at 7:30 PM. I will be there to open up this activity, which I pray and hope will be a blessing to our young people. The location for the Basketball League is the Jessup Gym in the Bronx. If you have any questions regarding the league, please call Wilson (646) 778-2382, Juan (718) 679-1901, Carlos (646) 533-6318, or Enrique (917) 734-6369. The Entrance Fee is 3.00 per person, for those who would like to go and watch.
2. Adventist Youth Ministries Orientation Day (Sabbath, January 21 @ SpanishDyckmanSeventh-dayAdventistChurch): The program will begin at 4:00 PM sharp and will close around 8:30 PM with a Pizza Party. It is vital that each leader in Youth Ministries (AY, Teens, Young Adults, Collegiate, National Service Organization, Bible Bowl, Pathfinder, Adventurer, Eager Beaver, Little Lambs, Master Guide, PLA, and PIA) attends this Orientation. Leaders from all ethnic groups and all geographical areas of the Conference will be attending the program.
During the orientation you will receive Youth Ministries' information for the entire year; brief training sessions will be held so you can be exposed to the different ministries provided in our conference, and you will be able to network and meet with other leaders from all other churches. Each church’s AY, Pathfinder, and Adventurer Director will receive a package with the new, improved, full color, official Youth Ministries Conference Calendar. You will also receive flyers, forms, and lots of info in general.
A new program, the Adventist Youth Leadership Certification, will be introduced during Orientation. This is a very practical Certification Course for AY Leaders, which I will be teaching during 2006. This program is especially designed to make Youth, Young Adult, and Collegiate Leaders more knowledgeable and able in Youth & Young Adult Ministries. If you are interested in knowing about this program and becoming an AY Leadership Certification Candidate you must come and sign up for the class, on Orientation Day.
Those interested in joining the PLA and PIA Classes must be there. All Master Guide Candidates for this year must be there, as well. All Master Guides are invited to attend.
If you are a leader and would like to bring your associates with you, you are welcome to do so. Some of the keys to success and progress in Youth Ministries are, to be well informed, well trained, and well connected with your leaders and colleagues.
The SpanishDyckmanSeventh-dayAdventistChurch is a very large church with capacity for over 1,000 people; so we have room to accommodate many leaders and associates. It’s very accessible through public transportation; you can also find parking around the church. The address for the church is:
111-113 Vermilyea Ave.
New York,, NY 10034
(212) 567-6576
3. Pathfinder Recognition Day & Mission Project (February 5 @ GrandConcourseSDAChurch): This is an exclusive event for Pathfinders, Adventurers, Eager Beavers, and Master Guides. Recognitions will be extended in the following areas: Eager Beaver, Adventurer, Pathfinder, Master Guide, Director, and Coordinator of the Year. The same thing will be done for the Adventurer and Pathfinder Club of the Year. As a reminder, the nominations need to be in by January 11, next week. E-mail them, fax them, but make sure they get here.
We are asking each Pathfinder and Adventurer club to collect 3-5 toys per club, or 1-2 fruit baskets. We would like to ask each kid and adult attending, who is able, to bring $2.00, since we will collect an offering for the Katrina Relief Effort, which is still ongoing. These toys and fruit baskets will be distributed during the Mission Project which will take place in the afternoon, right after the recognition ceremony. The schedule for the day will be the following: Ceremony from 10 AM -12 PM, Mission Project from
12:30 PM -2 PM. Let parents know ahead of time, so they can make a lunch bag preparation for each kid.
4. Adventist Youth Ministries Ski Trip (February 12, 2006 @ Big Boulder, PA): Great event for Young Adults, Collegiate, Teens, Pathfinder Clubs and Master Guides. This is an excellent outreach opportunity, you can bring along non-Adventist friends and colleagues. I have already invited my neighbors and their young kids to go with us. A wonderful way to introduce non-Christians to our church. Prices are the lowest they have ever been for this event:
Ski Package: $33.00 (Lift Ticket, Ski Lessons, Equipment Rental)
Snowboard Package: $33.00 (Snowboard Ticket, Snowboard Lessons, Equipment Rental)
Snow Tube Package: $15.00 (Tube)
Combo Package (Skiing & Tubing): Add $48.00
5. Atlantic Union Conference GODencounters Collegiate & Young Adult Retreat 4 (February 3-5, 2006 @ CampWinnekeag, Ashburnham, Massachusetts): Young Adults, College, and University students, this is the perfect event to meet other young adults. The event has been titled Unstoppable: 24/7 Prayer, and I assure you it will be a blessing to many. The cost is $75.00 for the entire weekend, and for those going just for the Sabbath is $25.00. For more info, please get in touch with the Atlantic Union Youth Ministries Department at (978) 368-8333 or E-mail:
youthministries@atlanticunion.org
6. North American Division Youth Ministries Leadership Convention (February 23-26, 2006 in Jacksonville, Florida): I would like Greater New York Conference to have the largest delegation at this convention, just like we did in Denver, Colorado in 2004. If you are involved with Adventurers, Pathfinders, Master Guides, Summer Camp, Public Campus Ministries (Collegiate), Young Adults, Teens Ministries, and any other area of Youth Ministries you should attend this event. To register call Adventist Plusline at 1 (800) 732-7587 or go to www.adventistyouthministries.org. The registration prices are as follows:
$115 per person Early-bird now through January 18, 2006
$130 per person Regular January 19, 2006 through February 15, 2006
$105 per person Group rate now through January 18, 2006 (A group discount applies when five or more leaders register from the same church at the same time with one payment).
The official hotel for the convention is the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville (formerly Adam's Mark), the price is $99.00 per night, per room (up to 4 people per room), and the deadline for the hotel reservations is January 30, 2006. You must call for hotel reservations call (800) 233-1234, (904) 633-9095, or 800 608-9330. Participants are responsible for making their own hotel reservations. Hotel rooms are not included in convention registration. Please state that you are with the Youth Ministries Leadership Convention when making your reservation.
The nearest airport to the convention site is the JacksonvilleInternationalAirport. I just checked and there are tickets to Jacksonville in the low $200s from La Guardia Airport. If you find a better price, please let us know and we will share with everyone.
For additional information you may contact Brad Forbes at (402) 486-2519 ext. 2210,
brad@adventsource.org or Cloveth Smith (301) 680-6420,
cloveth.smith@nad.adventist.org.
7. Conference-wide Youth Week of Prayer, Youth Day, and Youth Baptism (March 4-11, 2006 @ Each Local Church): We would like to encourage each church to participate in the Youth Week of Prayer. At the Orientation Day, each AY Director received a packet that had the Youth Week of Prayer Accent Magazine in it. If your church was not present at the Orientation we have already sent the packet to your AY Leader. If you wish to purchase an extra magazine for your leaders, the price is: $4.00 per magazine. The week of prayer will close with a Youth Day at each church and a youth baptism at each church. Youth leaders, this can be a great week for our youth, I hope you have already began to plan, make sure you talk to your pastor and get his support, begin to promote it from now, so the church can be ready. Try to have young preachers, as much as possible; a sermon presented by a young person can be of a tremendous influence in the life of other young people and in the life of an adult.
8. Adventist Youth Leadership Certification Class Begins (March 18 @ TBA): A new program, the Adventist Youth Leadership Certification, will be introduced during Orientation. This is a very practical Certification Course for AY Leaders, which I will be teaching during 2006. This program is especially designed to make Youth, Young Adult, and Collegiate Leaders more knowledgeable and able in Youth & Young Adult Ministries. If you are interested in knowing about this program and becoming an AY Leadership Certification Candidate you must come and sign up for the class, on Orientation Day.
9. Master Guide, PLA, & PIA Registration & IDs Distribution (March 25 @ GNYC Office): Master Guides who do not have their ID Cards will be able to register on that day and get their Master Guide ID, the same for those who are invested PLA, and PIA. The cost of the registration and ID is $5.00. Master Guides, PLAs, and PIAs invested in December 2005, if you paid your investiture dues, registration will be of no cost to you. This registration process will be explained fully at Orientation Day.
10. Ice Skating Day (March 26, 2005 @ Wollman Rink, Central Park, New York): Great event for Young Adults, Collegiate, Pathfinder, Adventurers, and Teens. Adults from your church are also invited, if you wish them to come. This is an excellent outreach opportunity, you can bring along non-Adventist friends and colleagues. The prices are: $6.75 for Admission and $4.75 for skates.
11.IV Adventist Youth Ministries Leadership Retreat (March 31 – April 2 2005 @ Tranquil Valley Retreat Center): A must for anyone working within Youth Ministries (AY, Pathfinders, Adventurers, Eager Beavers, Collegiate, Young Adults, Teens, National Service Organization, Drill & Marching, Drum Corp, Master Guides, and Summer Camp). Seminars will be presentedin each one of these areas. A great weekend no leader should miss. *(Habrá seminarios en Español; todas las sesiones generales serán traducidas al Español). Price and more information will be forthcoming at Orientation Day.
12. Youth Ministries Day of Prayer and Fasting (April 5, 2005): A day set apart to fast and pray for the kids, youth and young adults of our Conference. Please, spread the word in your church, not only among the youth but also among the adults. They too can help us to fast and pray. This can be a day in which we take the time (which we would usually spend eating, watching TV, and listening to the radio or CDs) to pray.
13. Deadline for Bible Bowl Early Registration (March 30, 2005): If your Bible Bowl team has not yet registered, this is the last day for early registration. Up to this day, the Registration is $30.00 per team; on March 3 the registration will $40.00 per team. I would like to encourage each one of our churches to participate in Bible Bowl. Select a person in your church, who has the discipline to coach children, youth, and young adults and begin to study the Bible and practice. The books to study for this year are: Mark, Exodus, Ephesians, Nahum, 1Samuel, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, & Psalms 1-25.
For more info, you can contact Kemley McGregor
kayonic9@yahoo.com or Ike Karl
yuris44@aol.com. We also have all the info here in the office, as well. You can also find all this information in the packet given to each church’s AY Leader at the Orientation Day.
14. BAYDA United Youth Congress (April 19-23, 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia): Thousands of young people from across North America are expected at this event. The price for the event varies according to the type of hotel accommodation that individuals choose. All of the information for the event is online: http://www.unitedyouthcongress.org/index.asp. This will be an excellent event that many of our young people can benefit from, promote the event in your church. Just in case you are not familiar with BAYDA, it is the Black Adventist Youth Directors Association. Greater New York Conference always participates and supports the events that BAYDA puts together.
15.Youth and Young Adult Mission Trip (August 16-24, 2005, Mexico): This is a good time to begin planning for this trip. Last year we had a large group of youth and young adults from New York, New Jersey, Maryland, WashingtonDC, and Virginia. We cannot take more than 80. First come, first serve basis. The project is to build a church, to have a VacationBibleSchool for very poor kids, and to conduct an evangelistic series. More info will be coming your way shortly. The prices are: $800.00 for students and $850.00 for adults and professionals. These prices include airfare, lodging, meals, transportation in Mexico, t-shirt, and donation towards construction materials. Flyers and Registration Forms will be distributed at Orientation Day.
Don’t forget to keep in touch, through E-mail or telephone:
GNYCYouth@aol.com, the telephone # is: (516) 627-9350.
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