A Place to Belong

Welcome

We are excited to kick off a new year of youth ministry at Nativity! Whether your child can come every week or just when their schedule allows, there is a place for them here.

Our hope is to give our young people a place to belong while helping them grow into active and responsible members of the Church community.

Youth Sunday School (Ages 12+)

Sundays | 9:30 – 10:00 AM | Sanctuary

Youth Sunday School meets in the sanctuary on Sunday mornings. Cam and Loren are using TalkSheets as the curriculum this year — conversation guides designed to make the Word relevant and engaging to developing minds and spirits, while leaving plenty of room for discussion.

These resources have been used by youth leaders at Chapel of the Cross for years, and we are glad to bring them to Nativity.

EYC – Monday Nights

Mondays | 6:00 – 7:30 PM

Monday nights are divided into three separate 30-minute blocks, so youth can participate in any or all of them as their schedules allow. We know how busy they are, and we would much rather have them for 30 minutes than not at all!

6:00 – 6:30 PM — Dinner and Wind Up
We kick off with dinner and an easy, welcoming time to talk and catch up. Come hungry!

6:30 – 7:00 PM — Youth Service
We move to the sanctuary for a 30-minute service that includes the daily Scripture readings, a relaxed conversation about the themes we find in them, the Collect of the Day, Prayers of the People, and Compline.

7:00 – 7:30 PM — Dessert and Wind Down
We finish the evening with dessert, followed by separate junior-high and high-school conversations or activities.

Guest Adults This Fall

Different adults from our Church Family will join us each week to add their own insight to the conversation. We want our young people to know the wider church family and to see that the Church is made up of people with many different gifts and responsibilities.

Upcoming Guests:

• Father Don — Kickoff night

• Jamie Hargett — September 21

• Billy Bowman — September 28

High School Leadership

Later this fall, we would like a couple of our high school students to help lead each week — reading Scripture, assisting with discussion, or helping with Compline.

We are letting everyone experience the service first before asking anyone to commit to a rotation. If all ten of our high school students participate, each would serve only about once every five weeks.

Help Us Plan the Fun Stuff!

Cam will be the first to admit he is not great at the fun stuff, so we are gathering a small group of moms to help plan some fun events this year!

The kids loved our kayaking trip last summer. Charles has been itching for another tie-dye party, and Father Don has encouraged us to plan a fun trip, too. But it is going to take a few folks getting together and pinning down the details.

If you would enjoy helping with that part of our youth program, let Cam or Cindy know. You do not have to sign your life away — we just need a few creative minds willing to help us make some good memories with these kids.

Wee-YC

Occasional Wee-YC gatherings are planned to provide fun and fellowship for children ages 1–12 and their parents. These might take the form of an Easter Egg Hunt, a picnic in the park, or a movie night. Watch the newsletter for upcoming dates.

Summer Camp

In the summer, we encourage our kids to be part of the summer camping program at Camp Bratton-Green, the Episcopal Church in Mississippi's camp located just north of Canton, as well as other programming offered by the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi across the state.

Other Ways EYC Serves

Throughout the year, our youth help put on the annual Nativity Christmas Pageant, Halloween Carnival, Easter Egg Hunt, and Vacation Bible School. They also frequently spend a week together in mission, having slept and worked in New Orleans and Sunflower County.

Questions?

Contact Cam Abel at camabel@yahoo.com, or reach out to the church office at 662-453-7786.

We are excited to get started and to see where this year takes us!