Youth Organization (YO) Annual Report January 2004

Prepared by Maria Kopulos

It has been almost two years since I accepted the ministry of overseeing Y.O. Being integrated into this position would not have been possible if it were not for the guidance and ideas from Chris Dandeles. Together Chris and I have been able help our youth become a more noticeable group in the church. However, it is also our mission to witness to Christianity outside the church walls. (This will be discussed later in this report.) Chris has done a phenomenal job in the Sunday classroom and I thank him for that. The Christian foundation laid by parents and teachers makes it much easier to accomplish the goals of YO members.

2003 - This past year YO organized a few bake sales to raise funds for outside organizations. The first bake sale was on May 4th in which $225 was raised for the Coptic Orphans. The second was in December where $150 was raised for Father Andrew and Pat Harrison's missionary trip to India. YO also sponsors the Mother's Day coffee hour yearly. Socially YO also forms relationships among its members. In March the group went for a bowling and pizza night out in Orland. They also enjoy getting together for pizza and educational movie nights with follow-up discussions.

2004 - Nevertheless, this group has vowed to take a new direction for 2004. They have set the goal to be involved at least once a month in outside volunteer "work". Currently they are trying to target an organization/charity/institution enabling them to spread Christianity outside the church walls as they represent Saint Luke. They also hope to gather for more movies with discussions. They also entertained the idea of getting acquainted with other youth organizations. This would present our youth with a broader spectrum of other local Orthodox youth their own age, and hopefully result in more Christian relationships.