Youth ministry thrives on zeal and volunteers

At the end of last year, parish leaders at Assumption/St. Paul's Church in Mechanicville faced a difficult decision: To keep its faith-formation and youth-service programs active, they had to whittle the four-member support staff to one.

Victoria Giulianelli -- one of the parish's former part-time youth ministers -- became that one.

This fall, she begins her first year as the parish's full-time director of faith formation. Previously, she was in charge of Confirmation preparation, retreats, activities and service projects. Now, she has been entrusted with the religious education of all of Mechanicville's young Catholics, from kindergartners to college students.

Supporters

Ms. Giulianelli said she will not be alone; she's counting on a cadre of parent- and grandparent-volunteers, the generosity of parishioners, and the zeal of young people.

"I really love working with youth," she said. "They are so receptive, so honest and truthful. They are filled with a love for God, and they really want to make a difference. They have so much to offer."

Assumption/St. Paul's program includes intergenerational events for families, faith-formation classes for grade- and high-school students, sacramental preparation programs, and youth group events for teens.

On retreat

She is particularly proud of the parish's youth ministry program; last year, 19 teens attended the National Catholic Youth Conference on funds they raised themselves. One of the biggest events is an annual retreat for Confirmation candidates, which is designed in part by a peer retreat team of former confirmands.

Said Ms. Giulianelli: "I love to see the enthusiasm of the [teenagers] on the retreat. It's a big moment [when] you see how kids are affected by their faith. When people sense enthusiasm, they respond to it. Who doesn't? It's a welcoming feeling."

The retreat helps teens to "get to know each other better" and to cultivate a sense of community, while also learning about what it means to be confirmed, she said.

Moving away

Due to the lack of jobs for young people in Mechanicville, many of the parish's youth end up moving to other cities, leaving Ms. Giulianelli to hope that she's done her job and "they keep their faith," she said. "You plant the seed, and let God do His work."

She knows the experience, having left Mechanicville to become a nun and, later, an attorney. Six years ago, to help care for her ailing mother, she returned to her childhood parish and was hired to do youth ministry work. That involves finding volunteers and discovering ways to maximize a "shoestring" budget.

"If [parishioners] know that there is a real need, they will try to address it, especially when it has to do with kids," she said. "People will help. They've already proven that to me."

(Victoria Giulianelli, who was a worker's compensation attorney, is also a long-time faith educator. She has a degree in theology, taught children on a Mohawk reservation and worked with developmentally disabled children in Canada.)

(9/16/04)