YouthSpirit is where our children grow spiritually with fun, friends and fellowship on Sunday morning. Our hope and mission to give families “more of life” (to glean a phrase from Robert Fulghum) begins on Sunday when WellSprings’ children safely engage in meaningful activities designed to encourage faith practices and spiritual consciousness. Energetic WellSprings members serve as YouthSpirit Mentors and develop classroom experiences that extend past Sunday and into family discussions about God, nature, acceptance, gratitude, forgiveness, love, and every meaning in life that our youngsters, or anyone, can imagine.

The YouthSpirit program year opens every September and progresses seasonally in lively fall, winter, and spring classes, and a relaxed summer season. Deeply rooted in WellSprings’ Core Values and Beliefs, and modeled after Springboards—our adult groups for spiritual growth—YouthSpirit meets in age-appropriate Sunday morning classes from September to May. Summer season brings all classes together and provides outdoor fun, arts and crafts and Kids’ Spiritual Cinema.

Focusing on the wholeness that friendship creates, our program year opens the 2010 fall season exploring the wonders of “Good Friends.” YouthSpirit Mentors in each class, K-2nd Grade, 3rd-5th Grade and 6th-8th Grade are developing fun and age-appropriate activities that introduce successive weekly themes including “I Am a Good Friend,” and “New Friends.” “Friends of the Earth” opens opportunity to be good and mindful environmental stewards. Going deeper into exploration, “Spiritual Friends” lets us honestly discern how we nurture spiritual growth in community and encourage one another to live fully, love generously and be who we are called to be.

Week-to-week our YouthSpirit kids will experience and expand the depth and meaning that friendship holds in our lives as we travel on to discover “Friends of All Ages” and “Friends of All Shapes, Sizes and Colors” before enjoying a YouthSpirit Halloween Party on October 31st! Our fall season will be complete when we give thanks for good friends before the Thanksgiving holiday.

In the busyness of the holiday season, YouthSpirit plans to present our first Winter Workshop to reach our kids and families where they are – active and excited! We’ll engage in 6 weeks of fun – from November 28 through January 2 – when the kids can experience a different interactive workshop each week that will include mindful movement, sports, music and artistic expression.

Classes will settle back in after Winter Workshop as we continue our journey into awareness examining “Good Company,” and the strength and affirmative influence in communal companionship. The spring season will bring our journey to its end, concluding in “Good Times,” when YouthSpirit classes discern topics of the same depth and breadth as our adult Springboard, “Listening to Our Lives.”

Every Sunday all year round, the nursery is open to families with very young children for the entire service. At the half-hour, the 3- and 4-year-olds participate in a lightly structured lesson that includes a short meditation, sharing time, and a story. Magda Rooney leads the nursery with a parent volunteer assisting each week.

As a community, our collective spiritual gifts are abundant, and YouthSpirit provides opportunity for WellSprings members to bring their heart’s passion to our youth. If you are interested in serving as a mentor in the near or even distant future, or would like to learn more about YouthSpirit, please contact Becky McAndrews, YouthSpirit Director, at becky@wellspringsuu.org.

YouthSpirit YouthGroup – Brand New This Fall!

Helping our kids transition from childhood to adolescence is central to healthy and whole spiritual growth. Recognizing the spirit and vitality of our kids as they grow up, WellSprings is offering more ways for our teens to be a significant part of our community and shared spiritual lives.

This fall, YouthSpirit is pleased to offer YouthGroup for WellSprings teens in 8th through 12th Grade. YouthGroup will gather outside of Sunday service, twice a month, and experience interesting and fun activities together while deepening friendships and creating a place that is just for them.

On Sunday mornings YouthGroup kids in high school are welcome to stay in service during YouthSpirit and hear Rev. Ken’s message, or they are welcome to Peer Mentor in a YouthSpirit class and provide helping hands for YouthSpirit Mentors. YouthGroup kids in 8th Grade will join the 6th-8th Grade YouthSpirit class with their middle school peers.

Our YouthGroup Mentors—Karen Cicchinelli, Heather Kahan, Kristen McDevitt, Mike Smith and Andrea Tollison—are busy developing insightful activities and gatherings for our growing kids focused on fostering fun and friendship. YouthGroup will be a safe and cherished place where our teens can develop the vital relationships that are central to healthy and whole spiritual growth.

YouthSpirit is growing up and excited about this very special place for our teens to grow wholly and spiritually in fellowship. If you’d like to learn more, or be a part of the fun, contact Becky McAndrews, YouthSpirit Director at the WellSprings’ office, 610-280-3797 or send an email to becky@wellspringsuu.org.