In The Beginning... Catholic Education In The Shakopee Area The ...

Shakopee Catholic Youth Ministry
Shakopee Catholic Youth Ministry began
with a group of parents and adults
who wanted to keep junior high and senior high
aged teens involved in the life of the Church and
to help them continue to grow in their faith. They
also wanted to provide fun, safe, social events
for teens and realized it would be advantageous
if people from all three parishes worked together
to accomplish this. The Church of St. Mary, the
Church of St. Mark and
St. Mary’s of the
Purification Church in
Marystown were already
consolidated for a
Catholic school and for
their religious education
program, so it made sense
to cooperate together for
these efforts too. Parents
and adult volunteers
coordinated dances and
social gatherings for teens.
It was difficult for
volunteers to coordinate
these events and parents
and adults saw the great
need for a more consistent program to support
the spiritual formation of teens. A small task
force drew up a mission statement and goals for
the emerging program and started a dialog with
the Archdiocese about the possibility of hiring a
Director of Youth Ministry. Fr. McConville, who
was the pastor of St. Mary’s at the time, was
instrumental in hiring a Youth Minister. St. Mary’s
provided office space and equipment for the new
program. All three parishes agreed to pay subsidies
for each seventh through twelfth grade teen in
their parish which would contribute to the budget,
Nat’l Catholic Youth Conference in St. Louis
salary and benefits for a full time Director of
Youth Ministry.
In 1998, Heather Lage was hired as the first
Director of Shakopee Catholic Youth Ministry.
Heather did a great job getting the new program
off the ground. She offered weekly Youth Group
for junior high aged students and planned special
events for senior high students. Under her
leadership, teens attended Summer
Festival Camp, a non- denominational
Christian camp held at Mankato State
University for junior high teens and at
the University of Wisconsin Stout in
Menomonie, WI for senior high students.
A group of ten senior high students
even traveled to the National
Catholic Youth Conference in St. Louis
Missouri in November of 1999. A
group of parents and adults from the
community were part of a Youth
Ministry Council, which helped steer
the young program.
In August of 2000, Heather left
ministry work in Shakopee and
Lynnae Bosch was hired to replace
her. At this time, Fr. Joe Fink became pastor at
St. Mary’s and took over as lead pastor
for the Youth Ministry Program. Youth
Group and activities for junior high and
senior high students still continue,
along with weeks at camp and trips to
the National Catholic Youth Conference.
Families enjoy community building
events such as Bonfires, Mardi Gras
Parties, free Babysitting Events and
Pancake Breakfasts. Teens enjoy
everything from trips to Grand Slam,
Winter Blast, and ski trips, to service opportunities
during Summer Stretch and raising awareness
about homelessness through “A Night on the
Street”. Fr. Joe shares his gift of making homemade
caramels with hundreds of people every year,
which has been a favorite fundraiser for Youth
Ministry during Advent. The Youth Ministry
Council works closely with the SARE Council to
ensure that a comprehensive program for junior
high and senior high aged students is being offered.
Teen representatives have been added to the
Council so teens are involved in making decisions
about what service and activities Youth Ministry
offers, while being mentored into leadership roles.
7th Grade Kickoff
Making carmels
Youth Ministry continues
to flesh out its purpose to
foster the personal and
spiritual growth of young
people, and to empower
teens to be disciples of Jesus
as they share their gifts by
participating in the life,
mission and work of our
faith community.