FORT SMITH — On Pentecost weekend, Immaculate Conception Church in Fort Smith experienced an outpouring of new growth as Bishop Anthony B. Taylor confirmed 100 teens and adults and blessed the parish’s new youth center named 4:12@IC.
The teens and staff incorporated 1 Timothy 4:12 into the center name because Paul called young Timothy to set an example for believers in speech, life, love, faith and purity. Before sheet rock was installed in the building, core teams of teens and adults bought medals of saints who exemplified these five pillars of faith. Pastor Father John Antony blessed the medals that were placed inside the walls to surround the teens with positive Catholic examples.
“The center will give youth the opportunity to express their gifts and talents and be joyful in it,” Father Pius Iwu, associate pastor, said. “Children are the future of our church, and this center will help them to grow and become heroes in the faith.”
The center is housed in the former Abilities Unlimited building on Garrison Avenue and is directly accessible from the church’s western parking lot. It was donated anonymously and the cost of renovation was included in the parish’s “Restore to Glory” campaign, which has raised almost $2.8 million to restore the 139-year-old St. Anne’s building and chapel, create a youth center and complete repairs in parish center, church, school and preschool buildings.
Following the confirmation Mass, Bishop Taylor, Father Antony, Father Iwu and Deacons Charles Kuehl and Greg Pair led parishioners and confirmandi to the center. Bishop Taylor blessed the center, sprinkling each of the five areas with holy water. The largest room is a worship area, to be equipped with a permanent stage and 200 stackable chairs. It will be used for Teen Life life nights, retreats, Bible studies and XLT nights, which combine adoration with live music performed by the Life Teen band.
The kitchen area will be used to prepare meals for about 175 teens attending Sunday evening programs. The small prayer chapel is equipped with an altar and benches and will eventually have a prayer request wall and a pocket library of spiritual books. The social area has ping pong, pool and foosball tables, as well as a TV connected to a video game console. It will have several seating areas to create a comfortable and inviting atmosphere for teens. Youth director Chuck Becker’s office sits between the worship and social areas.
Anna Shields, a teen core member, said the new center will attract more teens to the youth program.
“Before 4:12@IC, we met in our parish center, which definitely held a large number of people, but the large, empty room made it difficult for many people to feel comfortable worshipping God,” she said. “Now we have a place of our own with different options for people to worship; for example, we have a large area that will be used for group worship, but also a small chapel for people who need one-on-one time with God.”
Becker has an ambitious schedule of activities and programs for the summer and fall. During the summer, he will hold movie nights, social nights, ping pong and pool tournaments and retreats.
In the fall, in addition to Sunday evening life nights, Becker will begin a Bible study for teens called T3: The Teen Timeline, part of the popular series by Jeff Cavins. He plans to hold monthly days of recollection and regular prayer services in the chapel.
“The possibilities are endless right now, and that is so exciting for me and my core team,” Becker said.
Becker said he is encouraged by new volunteers who want to revive the Edge program for seventh and eighth graders. He and the Edge team will begin holding social nights for junior high students during the summer and will hold monthly programs in the fall with the goal of involving more junior high school students and their parents and increasing activities for them.
