History of St. Gregory the Great Young Adult GroupThe St. Gregory Young Adult Group will be celebrating its 3rd anniversary this coming October 15, 2004.
The idea for a Young Adults Group first came into being in August 2001. It was mentioned that St. Gregory's had wanted to start a ministry for young adults, which seemed to be an age group in the parish where ministry was lacking.
With the guidance and direction of Marguerite Hewer, the first couple of preparation meetings occurred in late August and early September. At these meetings, the excitement among all those involved was extremely evident. So many ideas began to surface: ultimately it was agreed upon that the goal was to create an environment for young adults to come together in fellowship.
After some discussion, the first meeting was scheduled for Monday, October 15, 2001 at 7:30 p.m. in the St. Gregory Room at the Church. It was decided that the meetings would be held weekly at the same place and time.
The first couple of weeks revealed that this ministry was in fact both needed and sought after by young adults in the community. An incredible sense of community was being established and bonds of friendship were being formed. The basic formats of the initial meetings consisted of praying the rosary, praise and worship, faith sharing and scripture.
In the New Year, a CORE team was formed to share the leadership responsibilities involved in running the group. Those chosen to be a part of this team showed incredible commitment to the group and were willing to give both of their time and energy into making this the best possible experience for all. These original CORE team members were Julie Sorensen, Joe Algudady, Chris Laforet and Amy Healy.
Since the beginning, this group has experienced growth in many ways. The Holy Spirit has certainly worked many miracles within the group this past year! It's amazing to reflect on where we have been and where we are going.
The YAG has been moving from a general faith sharing group to more of a group which develops leadership and promotes catechesis. The YAG is starting to outreach to the community and also looks to the community for other sources of activities such as retreats, conferences, and Christian concerts.
In April 2003, the YAG endeavored to create a project that was new and innovative. The YAG put on a retreat for parishioners at St. Greg's called the Prayer Path. This retreat was a one hour interactive multimedia labyrinth retreat that was open to all people high school age and up. This retreat was held on a Friday and Saturday, and turned out to be a great success! Our close to 70 participants can attest to that!
In October 2003, the Core Team was updated, and now consists of the following members; Julie Sorensen, Chris Laforet, Nicole Weston and Melissa Beausoleil.
It is very exciting to think about what plans God has in store for St. Gregory's Young Adult Group in the future. 2003 was a great year of growth for the Young Adults Group, and we look forward to continued growth and development over the next year.
St. Greg's Young Adutls Group is a ministry reaching out to the young adults of our community. This ministry is greatly needed, and we thank everyone for supporting our ministry to young adults.
