Youth leaders and volunteers have been acknowledged for their commitment, service and dedication to sharing the love of God with young people across Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains.
The group of 50 leaders were recognised during a thanksgiving dinner with Catholic Youth Parramatta on Thursday 6 December.
The dinner provided an opportunity for the youth leaders and volunteer supporters of CYP to celebrate the achievements in 2023 and a chance to network and brainstorm what will come in 2024.
In thanking the youth leaders for saying ‘yes’ to ministering to young people, Qwayne Guevara, Manager, Catholic Youth Parramatta, described 2023 as being a “massive year, especially in our local communities.”
“I feel that this has been the first year since the COVID pandemic that there has been a resurgence of young people in our Diocese,” she said.
“It has been a big year for the diocese. There has been a revitalised opportunity for our young people to feel something significant like the Church.
“Your ‘yes’ to ministry shows young people they have a place in the Church and your communities benefit so much from your ‘yes’ as well.”
For youth leader Monica from Holy Family Parish, Mount Druitt, her 2023 highlight was being selected to be a member for the Diocese’s first ever Synod in October.
“Being able to listen and talk to people from other parishes gave me a different perspective on how I view our Church and different ideas on how we can run our youth ministry at Holy Family,” she said.
“In 2024, I look forward to going out to different parishes, seeing how their youth groups are run and learn different ways of how we can teach our young adults to come back to church and come back to their faith.”
Antioch community member Jeremiah from The Good Shepherd Parish, Plumpton, shared his appreciation for being involved in the Synod as part of the liturgy team.
“I was able to see how our community can work together. It was really inspiring to see how diverse our community is, and it made me want to make more changes in my own parish,” he said.
“I hope in 2024 to strengthen the friendships and bonds that I’ve made in my parish and across the Diocese, and I’m excited to create a great community together.”
Looking ahead to 2024, Catholic Youth Parramatta will continue to accompany young people in their ministry through its Duc in Altum formation program and will provide additional opportunities for leaders to connect and share what is happening at the grassroots level with others.
Diocesan favourites LIFTED Sports Day, Good Friday Night Walk and the LIFTED Retreat will also make a return in 2024.
The Catholic Youth Parramatta 2024 calendar will be released shortly. Keep an eye out on CYP’s Facebook and Instagram pages to learn more, or visit https://parracatholic.org/connect/meet-catholics/ to find out how you can get involved.
View images from the CYP Thanksgiving dinner here or below:
