Youth News – September 2021
Lisa Ortiz, Youth Director
Welcome to the September 2021 edition of the SBCSL Newsletter
Welcome to September, SBCSL family! The Youth Program theme for this month is Reaching Higher… We’ll be reaching toward a greater understanding of ourselves and our place in the Universe, moving past our comfort zones, and finding innovative ways to move forward while benefiting from the wisdom we’ve gained along the way – both personally and as a movement. Rise with us!
So Good to be Back!!!
It’s been a couple of months since the Youth Room re-opened, and we’ve loved being able to gather in person again! Here are some photos of our little, middles, and teens enjoying each other’s company in the fresh air, outside the confines of the Zoom screen…
Passageways 2021
On September 23, 2021 we celebrated our annual Passageways Ceremony, where the SBCSL congregation reaffirms our youth members’ connection to our community and affirms the best of who they are as they start a new school year. This year we celebrated 23 young people, including two for whom it was their final Passageways – Haylee Pritchard, who graduated last spring and is going to Orange Coast Community College; and Mathias Valenzuela-Mier, also class of 2021, who will be attending Long Beach City College.
Lisa Ortiz
Lisa Ortiz has served with the SBCSL youth since 2014. She became Youth Director in 2017 and is loved by the entire Youth program. “Young people require authenticity,” she says, and this is my “passion in working with the youth”. She continues, “I am committed to youth church because without young people there is no church. A great teacher himself, Thich Nhat Han says “children are the flowers in the garden of humanity.” I delight in spending time with kids and I like who I am when I am in my role as director. I am showing a whole new generation how they might use our principles to navigate and create their own world. That is a very rewarding experience and one that every parishioner should be engaged in one way or another. Because without those flowers, our garden simply will not grow”. Lisa welcomes questions and communication with any and all parents. She has also established a required training program for all youth leader volunteers. If you are a parent, or desire to volunteer, and have questions, please feel free to send her a message.