A Day in the Life of... A Youth Minister

While studying Social Work at Marquette University, I began to feel called to work in ministry. I pursued a Masters of Theology at CTU and I am now the Director of Youth and Family Ministries at St. Leonard Church in Berwyn, IL, a diverse community about 20 minutes west of Chicago. I was the youth minister for two years before taking on the additional responsibility of developing a family faith formation program this year.

My major responsibilities include developing calendars for all youth and family activities, creating curriculums for 1^st-8^th grade religious education, developing retreats for those preparing for the sacraments, teaching Confirmation classes, organizing fundraisers and service opportunities, and running the youth ministry program.

While being a youth minister can be physically tiring, it definitely lifts my spirit. For the most part, the parish has been incredibly welcoming to me. I am often overwhelmed by people’s kindness, generosity, and thoughtfulness.

I love participating in service opportunities with the teens. Service work offers a wonderful opportunity to get to know the people you are serving with. It is easy to talk and share when you are actively moving around, so this is a great way to connect with some of the teens who are shyer. I also love to see the teens grow in passion about their faith, service, and social justice. It is wonderful to accompany a teen who is on fire to change the world; you can’t help but catch some of their energy!

The most challenging aspect of my job is dealing with parents. Whether they are over-involved or under-involved, parents seem to be the number one difficulty for most teachers and youth ministers I know. Hospitality and the ability to create a warm, welcoming, and safe environment are crucial to having a successful youth ministry or religious education program. While your ministry may be with teens or children, it isn’t going to work without the support of their parents. Make sure you create an environment where parents feel appreciated. Most parents I meet are overwhelmed with work and family stresses. Therefore, they are usually less than thrilled when they are required to be at a parent meeting. Having meetings organized, efficient, and practical make a huge impact (as do refreshments and temperature control)! That being said, while most people go into ministry because they love being with people, the reality of youth ministry is that you will work long hours- most of which will be spent alone. If you work for a parish, the kids will be in school during the work day, so there is a lot of solitary office time during the day in addition to evening and weekend activities with the youth.

You will design some aspects of your ministry, but other aspects will be inherited, and others will form throughout time based on the needs of your community. This past year I found myself taking teens to the wakes of grandparents and parents of friends. It was not a ministry I actively sought to create, but it was one that the teens I work with really needed. Driving to and from wakes offers an opportunity for them to begin to process the impact of losing loved ones and the roles that a faith community and a group of friends may play in that.

If you are going to be a youth minister, strive to create a welcoming environment for the teens, where they can be the leaders. Look to the community to discern needs and wants for your program and allow the teens to have a role in envisioning what they want their youth ministry program to be.

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