The Sunday school year ended with a bang on Youth Sunday. What a great way to showcase the amazing youth of St. Paul’s. I don’t know what was my favorite part of the day. I loved all of it, from the fifth graders performing the parts of the service, guest youth musicians, the recognition of the fifth graders and confirmands to the missioners giving the sermon. It was such an exciting day to see the strength of the future of our parish. When speaking about the future of our church, we only need to turn to two events that took place during this month. At the Cathedral, we had 19 teenagers decide that they wished to follow Christ and be confirmed in the Church. How exciting. For some, this decision was not easily reached, but they thought long and hard, and decided that this was a decision that they wanted to make. It was their decision, not their parents or friends and we commend them on it. We are so proud of these teens. On Youth Sunday, the church recognized both these teens and the fifth grade Emmaus class. Our fifth graders went through a yearlong program in order to understand the Eucharist and the teachings of the church in a more mature way. We had 13 students take part in the youth Sunday service from this class. Jane and I really enjoyed working with these kids during the year.

The year can’t be complete without a huge thank you to the teachers of our Sunday school. Each week they show up with activities, crafts, stories and music to make the Bible come alive for our children. They are a group of amazing, dedicated, and loving individuals. We are truly blessed to have such wonderful people leading our children’s education, and I am thrilled to have worked with them throughout the year.

I am pleased to say that most of these teachers have agreed to return to teach again next year. What a wonderful thing for St. Paul’s. If you are interested in joining our merry band, we have openings in the second and fourth grades. We try to have three teachers per grade to allow teachers time to attend services or to attend to personal matters. New teachers are always paired with more experienced teachers; we provide curriculum and lots of support. No experience is necessary, just a love of children and the willingness to teach them about God. If you are interested, call me at home 294-9908. I know it’s an experience I have never regretted since I started 12 years ago. Personally, I’ve gotten so much spiritually from teaching and from being with these children; they are wonderful.

Finally, I would like to thank those people who went the extra mile to help out at the end of the year. Thank you to David Brown, Leslie Kershaw, Beth Bergwall and Jane Winter who helped out with the baking of the bread for the Emmaus class. I couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you to Nick Jorgensen and Father Phil for assisting with the rehearsal of the fifth graders for Youth Sunday. The kids did a great job and it was because of your patient teaching. To all the parents of the Emmaus and Confirmation classes who brought food, set up, cut cake, cleaned up, etc. I owe you a big thank you, especially to Pam Blodgett for coordinating the whole reception at 10:30 am, and Leslie Kershaw for doing whatever needed to be done at 8:30am. It was these youths’ special day and everyone really helped make it a day they will remember. Thank you. Last but definitely not least, I would like to thank the staff of St. Paul’s for all their support during the year. I couldn’t do this without each and everyone one of you. You are the best. Many thanks, and I look forward to working with all these children during the upcoming year.

Vacation Bible School will be held at Camp Canonicus, July 27-31, 9-2:30 pm. Cost is $35 per camper; all children who have completed K through 8th grade are invited to attend. This is a multi- denominational camp that includes Bible stories, music, arts and crafts, swimming, nature, and lots of fun and games. Registration forms are available in the church office and need to be returned no later than June 30th. Any questions please call Lori Lamb at home or email.