4. Who
to Contact for more information
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What happened in '05 ?
Click on photo above to see more
youth delegate pics at the 2005 Convention
This year the Annual Convocation
Convention was hosted by Christ the King in Frankfurt
Germany. We had parish youth delegates from Germany
(Wiesbaden, Frankfurt & Munich) and Italy
(Florence & Rome) as well as from Belgium
(Waterloo).
The youth delegates worked very
hard to fulfill thier responsibilities to the
general Convention, their Mission 2006 committees
and sub-commitees, and to build a presentation
that was representative of the needs and expectations
of youth across the Convocation. It was a difficult
task given the full schedule of the Convention.
Nevertheless, they were able to pull together
a presentation- after a couple late nights, and
time taken during some breaks and Convention voting
sessions (since the youth delegates do not have
voting priviledges yet). The resulting presentation
was insightful and reflective of their concerns
for the health and development of their local
programs while also aknowledging the efforts and
support they have recieved thus far by the Convention
Delegates, Council of Advice, Commission of the
Ministry of the Baptized (COMB) as well as Bishop
Whalon.
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What happened in '04 ?
Bishop Whalon sports the TEAM YAE hat at
a gathering following the 2004 convention.
Click here to see more convention photos.
|
YAE '04 parish delegates to the convention
enjoy some "creature-comforts"
at the youth hostel in Wiesbaden, Germany.
Click here to see more YAE convention photos.
|
Your YAE parish delegates worked very
hard in an effort to build a presentation that was
representative of the needs and expectations of
youth across the Convocation this past October in
Wiesbaden, Germany. They recognized that their perspectives
were only really representing the female sentimets
of the France, Germany and Belgium parishes, though
they tried to keep other perspectives in mind as
well. To view the '04 convention presentation by
your representatives, or to view the summaries of
the presentation and the collection of ideas resulting
from the convention brainstorming sessions, please
select and click on the options below:
- We generally followed the Convention
schedule and participated as well with the general
Convention in worship, some meals, social activities,
and meetings.
- We grabbed breaks for our own sessions
during a few of the Convention’s work sessions.
- Dr. Ken Gilman, PhD, a licensed a psychologist,
lead a session focused on how our personalities
and talents influence our “… communication,
growth, problem solving, collaboration, etc….
What it means [to us] individually…[and how]
these concepts can apply to people working together
in a community of one kind and another…”
- We listen to each delegate’s
report of his or her youth group’s activities
over the past year, inspired within their parish,
and/or in regards to last year’s YAE goals.
- We mostly had discussions about
issues and proposals for how YAE can make effective
changes, and discussed the merit and priorities
of the various issues. We then created a PowerPoint
presentation that discussed our past achievements,
the role of our leadership, and our expectations
and goals for YAE in the coming year.
- We had the pleasure of staying
in a very nice youth hostel facility this year (Hostel
location: Located on the western outskirts of the
Land capital Wiesbaden on the 2nd Ring in the direction
of Limburg. Hostel name: JH Wiesbaden Address: Blücher
Strasse 66, 65195 Wiesbaden, Phone: +49 (611) 48657,
Fax: +49 (611) 441119, Web address: www.jugendherberge.de),
which included a cold breakfast. The rooms were
clean and light (six representatives to a room),
and security seemed adequate. One problem was that
the front door was closed and locked 11 pm. Some
of the general convention events ended late so we
had to rush to get back in time.
-We had own meeting room and a place
for and evening wienie roast, and there was plenty
of space for outdoor games such as basketball, volleyball,
soccer and a table tennis table and a few arcade
games which were also available for our use. Unfortunately,
our schedul was so busy we did not have the opportunity
to take advantage of these.
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Why
attend the Annual Convocation Convention?
If you are a new or even a returning
YAE youth you might have some questions about what
the YAE Convention event is all about, and probably
some questions about the particulars of the convention
too. I hope the following answer everyone’s
questions.
What is the Convocation?
The Convocation of American Churches in Europe is
the official name for the group of our churches and
missions in Europe. We are connected to and supported
by the Episcopal Church in the United States and associated
with the world-wide Anglican Communion.
What is Convention?
Convention is a yearly gathering of lay (non-ordained)
and ordained (bishops, priests, deacons) leaders from
our churches. Theses individuals gather each year
to make decisions about the direction of the convocation
and to come closer together as a community.
Why are we going?
In the past, Anne Rowthorn, the wife of the former
Bishop Jeffery Rowthorn, and others began inviting
youth from all the churches from the Convocation to
attend a special Youth Event; run in parallel with
the yearly convention. Because of its popularity,
the Convocation’s leaders began to think that
the youth event could be much more. They recognized
that the future of continued health and strength of
the Convocation relies, on you, our youth. So, they
began planning events that provided leadership, and
community building training, in addition to other
fun activities during the general convention and other
times during the year. As a result, we have had several
successful years of youth programming and an ever
growing Youth Ministry that has touched lives across
Europe and beyond.
So, as in past conventions, one of our
goals this year is to become a leadership team that
will help set priorities and goals for our Youth Ministry
in Europe and prepare plans to implement them. Another
goal is to interact with the adult leaders at the
convention so that youth and adults alike will get
to know one another’s concerns, priorities,
and perspectives.
What
is generally expected of the Parish YAE Representatives?
Don’t forget to bring lots of enthusiasm and
ideas about the future of YAE. After all, you will
participate in not only YAE workshops, but also some
general convention activities. It won’t all
end at the close of the convention either. Plan to
participate in other YAE functions, and keep in contact
with the other delegates and youth across Europe on
the new YAE bulletin Board or e-mail, etc... through-out
the following year.
How do Parish Representatives prepare?
You will be representing your peers from your parish
as you share your thoughts with the rest of the youth
team and the general Convention. So, get in touch
with the members of your parish youth group. Poll
these and other youth in your church (both junior
and senior youth) with two questions:
1) What is your wish list for our Youth Group/Youth
Program at church?
2) What is your wish list for Youth Across Europe
and Youth Ministry opportunities Europe-wide?
You can do this by asking them at church or Youth
Group, calling, emailing, text-messaging…whatever
works for you and whatever you have time for. Just
try to get a sense of where people are coming from—what
they like, what disappoints them, what they hope for.
3) Try to dig a little deeper to and ask what types
of changes they think Youth Across Europe can do for
your parish, the community or others. Prepare a list
of three specific issues your parish youth community
feels should be YAE goals for this new year, along
with implementation ideas.
4) You will also need to prepare a report of your
youth group’s activities over the past year;
highlighting goals you achieved.
Finally, remember YAE in your prayers, for in the
end, all we are doing begins and ends with God. God
wants youth in Europe to know how much He loves them.
And it is God who is bringing us together to figure
out how we can communicate His love with others across
the globe.
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