Graduating high school this year seems surreal. 

Growing up, the cliches like “time flies,” “blink and you’ll miss it” or “these are the best years of your life” never reached me. Like any young person, it seemed like I had all the time in the world. Just a few short years later, here I am. 

With all of that being said, I have come to know three powerful lessons as this chapter of my life comes to a close: God is often disguised in friendships as well as their separations, our identity should not be placed in tangible things but in God himself and a certain God will always reign over an uncertain future. 

One of the unfortunate realities of high school is that not all friendships last. 

Whether it be a mutual separation, a disconnect due to different paths or just an accidental drift, growing apart from friends is never easy. This is especially difficult during the transitional years of high school when everyone is trying to figure out who they are. 

The lesson I have learned regarding friendship separations is that God is often disguised in them. In some cases, God removes people from our lives because they are holding us back from self-growth, sometimes even draining our spirits. In other cases, God adds new people into our lives because they offer self-growth and nourish our spirits.

One of the most valuable pieces of advice I have been given is to always be a fountain to others. Many of us have friends in our lives who are fountains to us. However, whether they are the part of the fountain that fills up the water below or the part of the fountain that drains away all of the water is the question. Sometimes, we can be blinded by the “fountain” aspect of someone without knowing whether their intentions are to fill us up or to drain us dry. 

God works in mysterious yet intentional ways. The removal and addition of people in and out of our lives happens for a purpose and is in accordance with God’s will for us. Although it is not necessarily easy to uncover the hidden blessings in growing apart from those that we care for, we can rest in the peace that God allows our suffering when there is something greater in store worth suffering for. 

Another lesson I have come to learn recently is that distractions are prevalent everywhere. It is easy to become distracted by scrolling on social media, allowing a sport to consume us or turning all of our attention to a specific relationship. Sometimes, this can lead to a false sense of identity and, by extension, an untrue image of self-worth. 

I know that this specific issue is one that I have struggled with and only recently recognized. At times, I find myself placing my value in the sports I participate in or the grade I receive on a test. I subconsciously lessen my self-worth when I seek out fulfillment in external aspects of life while searching for an identity. The truth, however, is that placing an identity in tangible things will only derail the path to a relationship with God — and he is the only one on whom our identity can be found. 

The last and likely most important insight I have gained over time is that God’s plan will unfailingly reign over any uncertainty in our future. With this being my last year in a comfortable setting — a town I’ve known my whole life — I am obviously a little nervous about moving on to somewhere bigger with unfamiliar faces. Not to mention the luxuries and conveniences I take for granted daily will be gone in just a few short months. Soon, the athletic pass that gets me into the games for free will be later rejected for a five-dollar bill. The 10-minute drive to meet up with friends will now take four hours. 

Inevitably, these things scare me, but they do not cause me to question God’s plan for me. It is in the seasons of change when we must rely on God the most. 

The uncertainty and rapidness of the future are scary. However, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 reminds us that “for everything there is a season.” It’s especially in the undetermined seasons of life that a strength in faith is built. Regardless of where we might find ourselves and who we find ourselves around, what matters is the purpose — and pursuing God’s will for our lives is truly the best purpose we can ask for.

Abby Liebhaber, a parishioner of St. Paul Church and student at Pocahontas High School, is involved in youth ministry, school clubs and sports teams. She plans to attend the University of Arkansas in the fall. 

When your faith is as strong as Christie Powell’s, you might find yourself involved in dozens of activities in your parish, diocese and community. 

After 38 years of parish and youth ministry, Powell is preparing to retire after Dec. 21, although she plans to stay involved in a few notable activities a while longer. 

Many people in Central Arkansas know Powell for her involvement in Little Rock’s Christmas Caravan, an event that gives toys and clothes to children and families in need. 

“My plan is to retire after Dec. 21 because that is the date of the Christmas Caravan. I’ve worked on the Christmas Caravan for 20 years, and I just can’t just drop that,” she said. “I’ll probably keep doing the Caravan, even though I’m retired.”

Powell, youth minister at Immaculate Conception Church in North Little Rock, has watched the Christmas Caravan far exceed her expectations over the past two decades. 

“There were just five, six, seven of us who used to go by the Broadway Bridge and hand out Christmas toys all Christmas Eve,” she told Arkansas Catholic. “Over the years, it’s grown and grown and grown. A couple of years ago, I had to rent the (Bill) Clinton (Presidential) Library parking lot, and then we moved from there. 

“We teamed up with St. Mark’s Baptist Church on 12th Street (in Little Rock), and it’s gone from providing Christmas for just a few to now hundreds, almost a thousand. We provide new toys, new coats, new everything that one day — we try to make them feel super special. We have food trucks that give free breakfast, we have hot chocolate, coffee, we have everything brand new. It’s just a day that’s special for them too. It’s grown over the years to the huge event that it is, through the grace of God. He had his hand all over it.” 

Powell, a parishioner at Immaculate Conception Church, has also minstered to teens at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in North Little Rock (Marche) and Sacred Heart Church in Morrilton.

The Christmas Caravan became an opportunity for Powell to show youths their faith in action. 

“Over the years, I’ve watched kids give the coats off their backs and the shoes off their feet, and you can’t teach that. They have to experience that and be a huge part of it. That’s one of the things that I look back on over the years and I’m pretty proud of.”

Another event that Powell and her youth groups have been involved in for many years is the Tenebrae Lenten service at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church. Father Shaun Wesley, pastor of St. Rose of Lima Church in Carlisle and Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church in Slovak, organized the first Tenebrae services in Arkansas. 

“Years ago, when I first started teaching, I was teaching at Sacred Heart in Morrilton and … one of my students at the time was Father Shaun Wesley,” Powell said. “… Over the years, we stayed connected and became friends. After he went to the seminary, he introduced me to the Tenebrae. … I said, ‘Let’s do it.’ And over the years, it’s grown.”

One of the highlights for Powell has been taking teens to see the popes when they are in the United States.
“When I was at Immaculate Heart, back in 2008, we got the chance to see Pope Benedict XVI in D.C.,” she said. “… I heard he was coming to D.C., but we didn’t have a ticket to anything. And I told the teens and the families, ‘We’re going to go to D.C., we’re going to follow the pope, we’re going to find out his route, I don’t have a ticket to anything, we’re just going to see if we can find him, and if you want to come with me, then come on, but I can’t guarantee we’re even going to see him.”

Powell had 74 people sign up to go to the U.S. capital. She rented two buses and raised $20,000 in less than six weeks.

“It was miracle after miracle, the way the money was coming in and the way people were helping. It was just unbelievable,” she said. 

Then, Powell got a phone call from a woman at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. She had heard that Powell was organizing a group to see the pope.

“She said, ‘Well, I’ve got some tickets for you.’ And I said, ‘You’ve got tickets for me?’ And she said, ‘Yes, but I only have 75.’ And I just started crying. I said, ‘Oh my gosh, I only need 74.’ … But in the end, we were part of a private audience with less than 2,000 people to see the pope, and it was the hand of God. We had faith, and we wanted to go see the pope … and we saw him so many times up close and personal.”

In 2015, Powell took 53 youths and their parents to Philadelphia to see Pope Francis. 

After nearly 40 years of working with youth and young adults, Powell said she has formulated the best advice to help them through the trials they might face: prayer. 

“I would advise that you pray, and then pray and then pray some more. Until you sit down and pray and listen to God speaking, you’re not going to hear what he has to say, you’re not going to grow a relationship,” she said. “It all centers around your prayer life. … I look back over the years, and I’ve talked to God about the good, the bad and the ugly, and my needs and my plans. And it all starts with prayer…”

The diocese’s Office of Youth Ministry once again handed out its St. Timothy Award to a graduating senior who is a witness to his faith and sets a positive example for his peers.

Luke Parker, 18, a parishioner at Immaculate Conception Church in North Little Rock, received the award during the Catholic Youth Convention April 5-7 in Little Rock. 

The award, according to the Office of Youth Ministry, “is the highest recognition the Diocese of Little Rock can bestow upon a graduating senior high school youth.” It is the first time the award was given since 2019. That year, it was awarded to Collin Gallimore from St. Mary Church in Hot Springs. This year, Gallimore was the convention videographer.

Liz Tingquisty,, director of the Office of Youth Ministry, said an independent committee reviewed the three nominations and selected Parker, a senior at Catholic High School in Little Rock who plans to enter the House of Formation after graduating. 

Parker said when he learned about the award, he wondered,”‘Do I deserve this award?’ I’m naturally hard on myself, so I think a lot about what I could be doing better. It’s something I always wonder about. But now I’m going to think of (the St. Timothy award) as something to live up to. My greatest fear is being complacent with where I’m at now. So I want to use it to push me forward.”

Parkerleads discussions at his parish’s CYM meetings,, helps with Catholic retreats, is an altar server, is and participates in Bible study with Father Patrick Friend at CHS. 

When Parker was younger, he realized he needed to take a deeper look into his faith. He recognized it was the love of God that got him through the most trying times, including navigating his senior year of high school. 

“The greatest thing that’s helped me this past year is growing in that intimate relationship, growing to love God, especially my relationship with his mother, Mary,” Parker said. “I don’t think I’ve ever been more in love with anything. I think it’s that love that helps me forward. I don’t think anything else would do.” 

Parker’s advice to other young Catholics? 

“Go to adoration as much as you can,” hehe said. “I really wanted to get really deep into apologetics, but it’s hard to be firm in apologetics when you don’t love what you’re teaching, what you’re sharing, what you’re defending. I think you have to develop that real, intimate relationship with God before you start defending it.”

Tingquist described Parker as “a quiet strength and a wonderful prayer and spiritual life.”

“He is a respected leader in his youth group, serving with sincere humility,” she said. 

The two other nominees are recognizable faces in Arkansas’ youth ministry. Mailelani Lessenberry is a homeschooled high school senior and member of the Youth Advisory Council. At her parish, St. Bernard in Bella Vista, she sings and plays guitar on the praise team, as well as teaches preschool through kindergarten faith formation.

Parker Vail has been involved in Christ the King Church in Little Rock’s youth ministry for two years. He has also been part of the praise and worship band Team Jesus for three years. Vail has also been part of the diocesan Youth Advisory Council and helped organize four Search retreats. After graduation, Vail also plans to enter the House of Formation. 

Twelve students were also recognized for service to the faith with a Youth Discipleship Recognition pin.

Bella Vista, St. Bernard: Danielle Machado, Angela Machado and Mailelani Lessenberry

Conway, St. Joseph: Samuel Luyet

Hope, Our Lady of Good Hope: Carlos Mayo; , Joelys Lopez;  Jair Salgado; and  and Brency Cabriales

Little Rock, Christ the King Church: Rachel Blair, Riley Foley and Parker Vail

Saint Vincent, St. Mary: Saint Vincent, St. Mary: Seth Rees

Madison Middleton, a volunteer from St. Bernard Church in Bella Vista, was awarded the Light of the World Recognition pin “given for a demonstrated commitment to young people and youth ministry.”

Two other other parishioners the fromBella Vista parish, Susan Kedrowski and Kim Syverson, received the top adult service award Companions on the Journey. 

“This is awarded to adults who have demonstrated excellence in youth ministry, a commitment to ongoing education and formation, who have served in youth ministry for more than five years, have a commitment to young people and have outstanding leadership at the local level,” Tingquist said.

Sarah Duvall was going to let her faith take a backseat in college. The born and raised Catholic, who attended Sacred Heart Church and School in Morrilton, still planned to attend Mass but wanted to shift her focus. But God had other plans when she, “spur of the moment,” signed up for a small group Bible study. It’s where she met her now-best friend Gracie Weidman, a cradle Catholic from Immaculate Conception Church and School in Fort Smith. 

“We definitely clicked very quickly,” Weidman, 21, said, despite being more of an introvert to Duvall’s extroverted nature.

But that balance has created beautiful harmony for the pair who co-direct the music ministry at Catholic Campus Ministry at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. 

“It helps you enter into a place where you can pray more fully. That’s been really beautiful,” Duvall, 21, said. “… I am consistently completely nervous before every Mass. I’m always shaking in the pew. The moment you see the priests starting to come in, everything kind of clicks. It just flows. Once those nerves are gone, it really does feel like singing is praying.” 

The two seniors sing and coordinate music and musicians for the Sunday Mass, worship nights and other events. 

“I just really dive into the lyrics. I’m purely focused on what the words are saying in each song,” Weidman said. “Sarah and I, we pray about it before every Mass, that we’re doing it to lead others in the worship of God and not do it as a performance. So it’s important to focus on the words.” 

Being a part of CCM has helped both stay grounded in faith. 

“The people there really help you remember what’s the most important part of your life,” Duvall said.

More stories will appear in our 15 Young Adults Who Inspire Us 2023 Section as they are posted online. Subscribe to Arkansas Catholic’s digital and print publications to read more content like this.

BENTON

Naomi Lee, a lifelong member of Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Benton, has always felt the calling to serve, especially to serve those younger than herself. In addition to lectoring at Mass and being a member of the young adult group, Lee is also the youth minister, a position her parents Deacon Ron and Collette Lee filled for 25 years.

Lee’s dedication to the youth group comes from her own experiences with Catholic Youth Ministry in high school. 

“It helped me form relationships knowing there were like-minded people around me who had the same beliefs and ultimately had the same goals, and I want that for our kids,” Lee said. “But I also see such a more difficult struggle for them now. I was at that weird age where we got social media at the end of high school, but we weren't on our phones all the time. The world wasn’t constantly coming at us with why you should believe different things and why you should be accepting of so many different things. So I want my kids to have a strong foundation in their faith so that they can go out.”

Although Lee, 28, has a passion for guiding teenagers in their faith, it isn’t without struggle. In addition to being the youth minister, Lee also has a full-time job. But despite all the difficulties, she strives to lead by example. 

“I'm not perfect at all,” she said. “I get frustrated and I say the wrong things all the time. But I think by being willing to be open and hear other people and showing love and grace, I try to live my faith. What I think is most important is just being called to love others.”

More stories will appear in our 15 Young Adults Who Inspire Us 2023 Section as they are posted online. Subscribe to Arkansas Catholic’s digital and print publications to read more content like this.

The aftermath of the March 31 tornado in west Little Rock meant youth from Christ the King Church were delayed a day in arriving at Arkansas' Catholic Youth Convention in downtown Little Rock. 

But Hannah Rockers and Rachel Blair said it was well worth the delay.

“You always get to see people so on fire for their faith,” Blair, 16, said. “It is just amazing to see their faith in the Catholic Church, at our age especially.”

The 71st annual state convention welcomed 360 teens. Liz Tingquist, director of the Catholic Youth Ministry Office, said a couple of groups arrived late Friday night because of freeway closures following the tornadoes across the state, while four groups arrived Saturday morning. No group was forced to cancel, she added. 

Mary Gallimore, a prayer team member who attended from Hot Springs, said, “It is an amazing testimony that our God is unstoppable and he is well able to prepare a way, make a way.”

Rockers and Blair agreed. Rockers, 16, a sophomore at Mount St. Mary Academy in Little Rock, summed up their late arrival as part of the Lord’s plan, although both teens felt convention-goers kept everyone affected by the tornadoes in their prayers.

“I think it gives us more reason to pray this weekend, just for all the people affected by the tornados,” said Blair, a 10th-grade homeschooler. “I know a lot of people who know someone who had their houses destroyed. A lot of people came here with stress from that. It is time to pray and relax from that.”

Over the three-day “Awaken” convention, youth heard from keynote speakers Katie Prejean McGrady and Rich Curran. McGrady is an award-winning author, international speaker, podcaster and daily radio show host. Curran is a trainer, author and “itinerant preacher.’ Weekend activities also included scriptural Stations of the Cross, a seminarian presentation, guided adoration, praise and worship, and confessions. A dinner and games were held Saturday night, while Sunday ended with the installation of the 2023-2024 Youth Advisory Council.

Adoration is one of the activities Rockers and Blair most look forward to. This was their second state convention. 

Blair said, “There is usually something weighing on my heart during these conventions, or so it always seems to work that way, where I want to get it off my chest.”

Members of the Diocese of Little Rock's prayer team, including Gallimore, were on hand to pray with the teens if and when the teens asked. Gallimore said the team is grateful to attend because it is beautiful to see what the Lord is doing with our young people. It gave her hope.

"We come to pray with the youth for whatever their needs are," Gallimore said of their work. "Sometimes, they will come asking for a specific thing, maybe for healing. It could be physical healing or healing of relationships or family issues. Sometimes, they are struggling with a particular sin. Sometimes, the Lord lays something on their heart that he wants to address and they may go to confess, they go to adore and they want to go to prayer ministry so they can continue to heal and move on with their lives. We are just kind of the bridge between the Lord and his people that the Holy Spirit flows through."

Gallimore estimated this is the third year for the prayer team to attend the convention. She said they attend because youth are the future of the Church.

"The world is so hungry for God whether they know it or not," she added. "It is such a difficult environment that our young people are in today. This just provides an opportunity for them to maybe have a closer encounter with the Lord that they may not experience otherwise. it gives them an opportunity to experience God in a more intimate and personal way, hopefully, and to walk away changed.”

For Rockers, each convention she attends has helped her faith life. 

“It helps me later on to reach out to others who didn’t attend,” she said, adding she also made new friends of those who did.

Blair agreed. 

“It is great to see teens, people your age, your peers struggling with things that you are too and then opening up about it,” she added. “It makes you more comfortable too. I think hope spreads.”

It took two years to raise the money to fund their excursion to the West Coast, but the seven members of the St. Jude the Apostle Church youth group in Jacksonville who attended the National Catholic Youth Conference in Long Beach, Calif., Nov. 10-12 said the trip was well worth it.

St Jude’s youth group raised about $25,000 from its annual yard sale and other fundraisers to cover the trip for themselves and 10 adult chaperones, said Paula Price, parish’s director of religious education and youth minister.

Coming from a state where the Catholic population is just 4 percent, all said being around the other 2,600 Catholic teenagers made a lasting impression.

“It's really wonderful to be able to see so many other teenagers just like you,” said Liliana Clark, 15, a sophomore at Cabot High School. “At times it feels like there's not many other people who are Catholic like us. That can make you feel kind of alone, but when you're with so many other people just like you, it's just amazing. I didn't know there were so many other kids who are so passionate about their faith. Getting to see tons of different youth ministries from almost every single state, it really felt like we were all connected there, and it was so beautiful.”

The NCYC’s theme was “Walking on Water,” inspired by the story of Jesus calling Peter to come out onto the water despite being in the eye of a storm (Matthew 14:29). Organizers said teens have experienced a feeling of sinking causing a weakening of faith throughout the past few years, and this conference was an invitation to step out in faith and trust our Lord.

Grace Wagner, 15, a sophomore at Vilonia High School, said the trip provided a break from the everyday stresses teens face and allowed them time to focus on their prayer life and listen to the advice given in presentations and break-out sessions.

“They talked about things that they experienced when they were our age, the stress that they went through and the different pressures you can feel by other people,” Wagner said. “Then they went over how to navigate that to be the best person you can be and how to utilize your prayer life to help you do that. They gave a lot of good advice on how to rely on God and to put all of your daily stresses at his feet and relax a little bit.”

Abigail Hann, 15, a sophomore at Cabot High School, said the trip was “life-changing.”

“It really showed a bunch of different perspectives on the faith and answered a lot of the questions that young teens can have with the faith. Everybody goes through problems and struggles, and it's OK,” she said. “I brought back that you need to maintain a prayer life and a relationship with God if you want to stay happy, because if you don't, then your life is going to be empty.”

In addition to serving the Little Rock Air Force Base, Price said the parish has students from several high schools, including Vilonia, Beebe, Searcy, Jacksonville, Cabot and Sherwood, but they put those rivalries aside and exhibit their faith in a way they can’t at their public schools. 

Being able to attend national events helps not only to open their eyes to the Catholic world outside of Arkansas but also to draw them closer as a faith community.

“This is a diverse parish, and it was phenomenal to see them all come together, be able to share in their faith and to talk about the issues that they have to deal with every day,” Price said. “I am really proud of them. They all enjoyed each other's company. And I think the adults got a lot out of it as well. I think it opened eyes in some of the adults as well. Which is wonderful.”

Seminarian Sam Stengel, who has been assigned to St. Jude as part of his priestly formation, attended NCYC with the youth group. 

“Being able to go with the kids, to see the faith of young Catholics of the whole country, but, especially, spending time with young people of this parish was a real privilege,” Stengel said. “It was really inspiring for me to see them get excited about their faith. I feel like people get really down like talking about how we're living in dark times as a Church, but I see these young people, and it really gives me a lot of hope going forward and knowing that by the time I'm a priest, these will be my parishioners helping me out in the parish and I look forward to being able to work with them and being inspired by them as well.”

Part 1 of a four-part series on groups of Catholics the Church is striving to listen to during the Synod on Synodality.

From the time she was born, Annie Wendel’s family fostered in her a love of the Catholic faith.

“My family was extremely involved in the Church. We were always the people that sat in the front row every Sunday at Mass. During the summer, my mom would have my siblings and me serve at daily Masses at 7:50 a.m. We did it probably twice a week,” she said, along with praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet every Friday in the adoration chapel at 3 p.m. after classes at Christ the King School in Little Rock. 

But she still wound up being disconnected to her faith. She found her way back, but it isn’t always the case for teens. 

Teenagers and young adults are one of a handful of groups the Diocese of Little Rock will be hosting listening sessions with for the "Synod on Synodality,” launched by Pope Francis to better reach out to marginalized groups. “Journeying Together: Communion, Participation and Mission” is the diocesan theme. 

“A parent's responsibility, number one, is to teach their children what should be our priority in their life. And so that priority obviously has to start with their relationship with God, because everything here is transitory,” said Liz Tingquist, diocesan director of youth and campus ministry. 

Be involved

According to a Pew Research Center study in 2020 looking at the religious lives of teens and their parents, four in 10 teens, aged 13 to 17, said they attend religious services at least once or twice a month, but those who said they pray daily was at just 27 percent. Belief in God with absolute certainty was 40 percent, and considering religion to be “very important” in their lives was at 24 percent. 

Tingquist said lack of parental involvement, peer pressure and misunderstandings about the Church’s teaching on LGBTQ issues pull teens away from the faith. 

For families, it should be more than going to Mass on Sunday. Participating in a parish ministry together as a family, doing social justice outreach, having family prayer time and making sure teens attend the parish youth group at least a few times creates a culture of faith.

“A parent (can say), ‘I understand that, but let's set you're going to go two or three times, and your attitude has to be open to what you experience.’ And then maybe even contact the youth minister,” Tingquist said. 

Bevie Davies, youth minister for 16 years at Christ the King Church in Little Rock, said children can fall away as early as fifth grade. While Davies doesn’t have exact numbers, she mails more than 300 information packets about CYM and has about 35 to 40 high schoolers consistently attend on Wednesday nights. 

“I would just say in general it’s the same as adults  —  it’s distractions and busyness. Our teens are busy; they are also under a lot of pressure. I see the anxiety,” Davies said. “It used to be just sports keeping them busy. I think it’s more than that now. It’s the pressure to perform, to get those scholarships whether from sports or academics. That priority level is down (for CYM). They are just trying to keep their head above water.” 

Davies said the 13 members on her Youth Advisory Team will take the extra time welcome to a newcomer. If a teenager still feels uncomfortable, there are other ministries in the Church like scouting. 

“I think we have to really help our kids understand the source and the summit of our faith is the Eucharist. And they have to believe that with their heart and experience that,” Tingquist said.

Peer pressure

Social media and peer pressure can also pull teens away from the Church. 

Wendel, 18, a member of the Youth Advisory Team at Christ the King Church and the diocesan Youth Advisory Council, gave a talk to fellow teens at the diocesan Search #149 retreat Dec. 3-5 on her desire to fit in during grade school at Christ the King and not be thought of as a “picture-perfect Catholic and goody-two-shoes.”

“It was surprisingly easy to break away from it because whenever you don’t put in the effort, with anything, you fall away from it. I had these friends and they had no connection to the faith and while my family still prioritized it, when I was at school … I started to become the one who would complain to my friends that I have to go to Mass or complain that my mom was making me go.” 

Wendel decided to refocus on her faith in high school, but it left her friendless in her freshman and sophomore years. God eventually led her to faith-filled friends.

“If I hadn’t had my mom pushing me to go to the youth events and go to Mass … and always making sure that prayer is at the center of our family life, I think if I didn’t have that, if she had given up when I stepped away … I definitely would not have gone back to the faith,” Wendel said. “I needed that push because that laid the foundation for me to come back. In high school, my faith became my own and I never would have had that if my parents hadn’t set that foundation.” 

LGBTQ issues are also a major reason why young people leave the Church. The Catechism of the Catholic Church refers to homesexual relations as “intrinsically disordered.” (Catechism, no. 2357) But it also states “They must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.” 

Tingquist said, “If you don’t accept LGBTQ and ‘you do you,’ that doesn’t mean that you don’t love that person. But if you don’t accept it, you’re a hater. And kids don’t want to be seen as a hater.” 

What can be done 

It’s important for parents to follow up with a discussion, whether it’s about a homily or what they did in youth group. Parents should also be vulnerable and share their own triumphs and struggles with faith. 

“My best advice would be to live your own faith the best that you can with joy because your teens are watching you closely even if they don’t always act like it, they are,” Davies said. “Pray of course; go to Mass together as a family. It needs to be a priority.” 

During the Search retreat in December, Wendel, a senior at Mount St. Mary Academy in Little Rock,  said she and other leaders were told of an attendee whose mother wanted her to go, but the teen did not. One of the team leaders texted her ahead of time and made sure they were in the same Search group. 

“She had an amazing time,” Wendel said. “I think what parents need to do is make it so their kids have a choice, but also I think it’s the people around them. For me, I always fought my mom about going to these things because I didn't have friends who wanted to go with me. But knowing that other people actually want to get to know their faith and know God is a big pull for the youth.”

Every parish, no matter its size, should have an active youth ministry program, Tingquist said.

Youth programs also need to listen to young people.

“They are being talked to a lot. We need to provide opportunities to be listened to and that starts at home and youth ministry as well,” Davies said. “I think what is so beautiful about this synod is the Church listening to us.”

If a parish cannot pay for a youth minister, the priest must make sure volunteers have the necessary catechesis. Consistent youth Masses, even once a month, with praise and worship music is also vital. 

“We don’t have priests who come into our youth groups a lot and really talk to the kids and make us feel like we’re a part of the community. It's not just adults who cater to the Church. We are the next generation for the Church,” Wendel said. “I think it’d be amazing if we could have more encounters with priests and seminarians and have more of a voice within the Church.” 

Having occasional homilies that speak to a younger audience would be more inclusive. 

“I think it'd be really nice if priests maybe would realize that they need to kind of talk more at that basic level for young people, not be so theological and esoteric all the time,” Tingquist said. 

For the synod listening sessions with the youth, Tingquist, who was appointed by Bishop Anthony B. Taylor to be a leader in the diocesan synod process, said she hopes all priests, particularly older priests, attend those sessions and listen to what the youth have to say, rather than just reading the reports that will follow. 

“Pray over it and figure out, ‘What’s at least one thing I can do for our parish to be more appealing to young people?’” she said.

Do you have thoughts, opinions or a story to share? The synod process is about listening. Click here to share your experience in the Catholic Church.

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A handful of youth ministers in the diocese got a resounding groan from their teenagers at the prospect of meeting virtually.

“The kids are sick of that,” said Liz Tingquist, director of the diocesan Youth Ministry Office. 

It’s why some youth ministry programs across the diocese are moving forward with creative in-person, distanced sessions for children to grow in faith but also staying safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.

‘Suckerpunched’

Tingquist said all the major diocesan youth events had to be canceled — the state Catholic Youth Convention in April, Catholic Charities Summer Institute in July and Search retreats in March and July. The Weekend for Life retreat is also canceled for January. Because several retreats were overnight stays — with teens sharing rooms to keep costs down — and people traveling from all over the state, they were not safe during COVID-19. 

“We were kind of suckerpunched by it,” Tingquist said of the virus. “I really spent the summer researching as far as live-streaming events and online programs that didn't cost anything to our youth ministers.” 

Around 40 parishes have active youth ministry programs.

“Not one person has resigned. It’s a big deal because it’s hard enough doing it in the best of times … I’m extremely proud of them,” she said of youth ministers. 

Diocesan CASA grant applications for youth ministries and faith formation programs were due Oct. 1, with a total of $100,000 available, which will be distributed in January. Tingquist said she hopes the money could help some with technological advancements. 

In July, she surveyed youth ministers, asking what ministry looks like for them with COVID-19. Fifty-four percent planned to have in-person, small group youth ministry sessions this fall, and 29 percent would use virtual meetings. Eighteen percent mentioned using online resources for assistance. 

The diocesan office plans to hold its confirmation retreat in February and the state convention in April, which typically draws 400 to 600 teenagers. National Catholic speaker Steve Angrisano has already been lined up for the likely one-day, outdoor event, but how many can attend and where it will be held is still unknown. 

“There’s a lot of hurdles. I’m not saying we are not going to do something. We’re continuing to see what happens with COVID,” Tingquist said.

Instagram takeover

However, the diocese has kept its 23-member Youth Advisory Council strong with virtual meetings and a new social media initiative dubbed the YAC Instagram Takeover. When Tingquist asked how they were going to be the hands and feet of Jesus during COVID, Madelyn Eveld, 18, a parishioner at Sacred Heart Church in Charleston, thought of Instagram. Topics from Church teaching and personal witnesses of YAC members will be posted on the YAC Instagram account, yacdolr.attack, with each reviewed by an adult prior to posting. 

“I feel like this is the time where teens are getting to be lukewarm Catholics because it’s hard to be involved in things. My goal with instagram is to get them involved and to show teens are trying to grow in faith … that they’re not alone,” Eveld said.

YAC members have their individual roles, including Abby Ellis, 17, a parishioner at Immaculate Conception Church in North Little Rock, who will be the mediator between the adult and YAC members who are posting and correcting grammar.

“For me, starting out during quarantine in March and April, I fell off the wagon for a bit. I didn’t have much of a faith life after that happened,” Ellis said. “Because … we weren’t having Mass, we weren’t having CYM or any YAC events, so I lost interest for a bit. I think it’s important to have a connection with other people.” 

Journaling, lawn chairs

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, beyond the health risks of COVID-19, “many adolescents’ social, emotional and mental well-being has been impacted by the pandemic. Trauma faced at this developmental stage may have long-term consequences across their lifespan.” 

Tingquist said each youth minister has been sent COVID-19 guidelines, safety precautions and waivers for parents to sign for in-person meetings. 

“I do think it’s the feeling of isolation. It’s the need to be around people you see the face of God in,” Tingquist said. “I think we really need to reach out with a reminder to these kids that the Lord is walking with them.” 

Jessica Petter, youth ministry director at St. Stephen Church in Bentonville, spent two months creating a 90-page workbook, drawing from Life Teen materials and the model the national Catholic youth organization uses for its annual Catholic Youth Ministry Conference. It includes Life Teen curriculum, Bible studies, prayers and a journaling section. 

With 45 students registered, she hopes the workbook will keep in-person and virtual participants  on the same page. But no one will be required to use it, Petter added. 

“We try to be the place that’s it’s OK to not be OK. You’re in a safe place and with people that care about you and want you to be the best version of yourself, so I'm hoping this will be a resource for them,” particularly the journaling portion of the workbook. 

Julia and Ben Sleeper, high school youth ministry directors at St. Mary Church in Paragould, have met twice in-person with seven teens. She said they attempted some Zoom calls in the spring, but “those weren’t super well attended.” 

“We are still super rural and not everyone has excellent internet where we live,” Julia said.  

On Sept. 13, they sat distanced in lawn chairs, but for the second meeting, moved into the parish hall to avoid the loud train on nearby tracks. 

“We’re taking a completely different teaching approach,” Sleeper said.

Instead of having Scripture and ice breaker activities, they surveyed the students to find out what they wanted to talk about, using the texting app Remind where students could text them individually with their responses. 

COVID-19 pushed back youth ministry’s official start at Christ the King Church in Little Rock, as it did at several parishes, to give kids time to settle into school. 

The Youth Advisory Team at Christ the King has 12 teens, who kicked off their year with a four-hour retreat Aug. 30, distanced in the parish’s Youth Center. The theme this year with all the youth activities is more meetings, but smaller groups. 

“They just need that community,” director of youth ministry Bevie Davies said of virtual meetings. “It's ironic with social media and cell phones and all that, but they're really seeing they need to be together.”

The larger group activities on Wednesday nights will be outdoors, distanced and mask-mandatory. The youth music ministry Team Jesus will also meet again on Mondays, with special masks for musicians and other safety protocols. This year, they’ll start using the free, conversation-based Alpha Youth Series, which emphasizes “getting back to the basics of the faith,” Davies said. 

Alpha groups will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Teens participating in the 40 Days for Life campaign meet on Fridays. Davies added any teen who feels more comfortable participating virtually will have options. 

“We wouldn’t have tried this if it hadn’t been for the pandemic,” Davies said of Alpha. “We did have to start thinking outside the box.”

For Kyle and Hannah Zinno, life is about discerning God’s plan. After both contemplated religious life, the two realized they were called to marriage. Kyle, who spent three years with the Salesians of Don Bosco, said the time of discernment “formed me to be a disciple,” with his wife adding it taught him how to be “a very clean man,” learning how to scrub a toilet and such.

“Seminary really helped me develop a habit of prayer and study and just really gave me a foundation of discerning my vocation,” Kyle said. “When we started, we really wanted to discern marriage together, not just casually dating. The seminary definitely helped with that.”

Married three years, the couple serves St. Joseph Church in Conway. Kyle, who has taught religion, is teaching history this year at St. Joseph High School, his alma mater, and Hannah, who spent last year as the parish youth minister, will work as the youth ministry assistant, giving more time to care for their daughter.

“The greatest thing I learned was it’s not about anything I do. At the end of the day it’s about what he’s working in their hearts,” Hannah said of youth ministry. “I can do what I can do, but it’s never going to change hearts like he can. I’m just a vessel I think.”

While life with a baby can be hectic, the couple stays grounded with prayer.

“Our lifeline has always been the rosary. That’s kind of where our relationship started, praying the rosary together, and that was what we did during our courtship and what kind of kept us centered,” Hannah said. “Whenever we noticed those times where we’re not really praying together as much as we should, we always know we have the rosary.”

• If you could meet Pope Francis, what would you ask him?

“To bless (our daughter).” (Kyle)

“She’s going to be a saint one day. We’re hoping if we don’t make it, she’s going to make it.” (Hannah)