vol. 1 • no. 1 | March 2013
sayconnect.com The Salvation Army USA Western Territory Youth Department
Unexpected—Youth Councils 2013 Hawaiian and Pacific Islands Division youth come home to Jesus. BY GINA HALVERSON, CAPTAIN “Before all your people I will do wonders never before done in any nation in all the world” (Exo. 34:10 NIV). Wonders never cease, especially when Christ is in control. The Hawaiian and Pacific Islands Divisional Youth Councils began with Captain Roy Wild, Western territorial
youth secretary, speaking on “unexpected forgiveness.” Delegates bowed their heads and knelt, opening their hearts to a weekend of growth in the Lord. The next morning, the youth woke to the “unexpected” surprise of seeing their dinner, a full pig, roasting on a spit. First, though, they had workshops to attend. One was a hike and devotional on giving all your worries and burdens to Christ. Delegates threw a rock over a cliff symbolizing the release of their burdens. Other workshops, led by officers, youth leaders, Revolution Hawaii participants and a dorm student (a divisional head-
quarters-run program for Salvationist college students), included spear fishing, crafts, ukulele, hula and multimedia (search YouTube for “The Homelani Harlem Shake Saga”). Each workshop related its activity to Scripture. The Hawaiian and Pacific Islands Gospel Choir opened the Saturday evening activities at the Kroc Center. A local Christian rap group, “Bridging the G.A.P,” also performed. Andy Gross, a comic/ magician/illusionist/ventriloquist stole the show with his act and had everyone roaring with laughter by using Captain Wild as his puppet.
Pine Summit hosts young adult retreat Sierra del Mar youth explore Scripture and serve in “family” groups.
Kroc Center, the Albuquerque Citadel and the Las Vegas Citadel. Each rally began with troop and uniform inspections. The boldness with which the young people participated showed that they already had an understanding of the theme of the day. In what has become a tradition for the Southwest Division, we hosted a Trash Bag Fashion Show—a real red carpet affair. Believing in everyone’s ability to participate, we asked the kids from each corps to dress up their youth leaders in the BRAVE-est costumes they could create, using items such as painter’s tape, fuzzy bottle cleaners, clothes hangers, birthday party hats and other random items—including, of course, trash bags. The youth leaders then had to walk down the runway, one-byone, to be judged by the crowd. One unexpected
BY KRYSTINA MACIAS The Salvation Army’s Pine Summit Camp, Big Bear Lake, Calif., welcomed over 120 young adults from the Sierra del Mar Division for a retreat designed to explore the ways in which Jesus “covers” them. The weekend began with praise music from Remanente, before delegates were placed in “family” groups that met every day, when they dug deeper into what it means to cover others with friendship. Special guest Rob Noland, director of Revolution Hawaii, spoke on Saturday morning. “Talk is cheap, love has feet,” he said, explaining that loving our neighbors really means loving those who are not liked, who are broken and hungry for love. “I loved his explanation of discipleship—living and loving like Jesus did,” delegate Matthew Ball said. Family groups were challenged to cover others in love. Groups went into the city, passing out toiletries, water, hugs and prayer, and offering a dollar to hear people’s stories. Later, Majors John and Pam Brackenbury, territorial candidates’ secretaries, led the marriage track while Noland led one for singles. With a focus on Psalm 32:1, Captain Lynn Stewart, divisional youth and candidates’ secretary, reminded attendees of the
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Brave in the Southwest Three youth rallies held across the division. BY ANTHONY BARNES, LIEUTENANT What does it mean to be BRAVE? That was the question put to the youth of the Southwest Division. The theme of this year’s divisional youth rally was “BRAVE”—a play on the title of Disney’s 2012 summer blockbuster movie. Much like the movie, the rally came complete with curly red wigs, bows and arrows, bagpipes and even bears! Participants sang songs, played games, and issued BRAVE challenges, but that’s not all. The division hosts three regional youth rallies in Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada. The specific locations change from year to year; this year the rallies were held at the Phoenix South Mountain
Lt. Colonels Doug and Diane O’Brien shared God’s Word on Sunday morning with power and conviction. The altar call reflected the weekend’s goal of coming to Jesus, when wonders never seen before start becoming clear. The altar overflowed with individuals giving or rededicating their lives to the Lord. “I left camp feeling re-energized and refreshed in Christ,” said Jessica Gazmen (Kahului Corps), “ and I am very blessed to have gone and experienced this wonderful life-changing event.” To watch the weekend rewind video, search YouTube for “Rewind/HIPA.”
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Summer Service Corps 2013 2013 Service Corps teams BOLIVIA Ruben Cordero - Leader (Whittier Corps, Southern California Division) Joshua Stewart (San Diego Citadel, Sierra Del Mar Division) Eren Matto (Kaneohe Corps, Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division) Micheala McQuade (Gresham Corps, Cascade Division) Alex Wennstig (Seattle Temple, Northwest Division) Bianca Mireles (Chula Vista Corps, Sierra Del Mar Division)
POLAND Amanda Wennstig - Leader (Seattle Temple/Tacoma Corps, Northwest Division) Lindsey Chamness (Kauluwela Corps, Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division) Jennifer Breazeale (Fresno Corps, Golden State Division) Mackenzie McQuade (Gresham Corps, Cascade Division) Jasmine Moody (Hanford Corps, Golden State Division) Katie Owens (San Francisco Kroc Center, Sierra Del Mar Division)
USA (HAWAII/SAN FRANCISCO) Cadet Luke Betti (College For Officer Training) Edgar Azueta (Gilroy Corps, Golden State Division) Lauren Weller (Bellingham Corps, Northwest Division) Maggie Diaz (Redlands Corps, Sierra Del Mar Division) Kristin Williams (Moreno Valley Corps, Sierra Del Mar Division)
Follow team outreach from Bolivia to Kenya BY MEGAN McQUADE Service Corps, a short-term summer missions program, allows Salvationist and corpsattending non-Salvationist young adults to sacrificially serve within and outside of the Western Territory. The program intends for participants to serve and evangelize in activities as varied as leading worship services, day camps, vacation Bible schools, teaching, community work, conducting youth and adult outreach activities or taking on a maintenance project. Participants are spiritually challenged in their stewardship and service to God, while learning to adapt to new cultures and living environments. Our desire is that members will be drawn closer to God and be challenged toward a deeper commitment in ministry and service, while gaining a larger vision of God’s work through the Service Corps program. Individuals 18 and older are selected following an application process, then placed on teams according to their abilities and the specific needs of the host locations. Specifically, the Western Territory looks for responsible, mature young adults who are actively
walking with Christ, living out their faith, and who are involved in their corps ministry. Applicants also need to be able to work well within a team setting and communal living situation. This year, Service Corps teams will serve in Poland, Bolivia, Kenya, Chile, San Francisco and Hawaii. In addition to community outreach, youth evangelism, and participating in various corps activities, the Chile and Bolivia teams will assist in musically preparing youth for the upcoming Congress this fall. The USA team will minister in Hawaii at Camp Homelani, Kona Corps and Hilo Corps, assisting with youth programs, music lessons and leading crafts. For the second half of the summer, the team will assist in the Bayview Hunter’s Point, Lighthouse and Kroc Center ministries in San Francisco. The Poland team will serve in Warsaw, Malbork and Starachowice providing program support to corps music and outreach activities. The Kenya team will minister and teach at several of the children’s homes in the Kenya West Territory and will participate in several painting projects. Follow this summer’s Service Corps team blogs, or download an application, at saynetwork.com.
KENYA Sarah Wild - Leader (Torrance Corps, Southern California Division) Arnold Henry-John (Pasadena Tabernacle, Southern California Division) Rachel Bach (Roseville Corps, Del Oro Division) Dylan Mosshart (Spokane Corps, Northwest Division) KC Hunter (Oroville Corps, Del Oro Division) Taylor Covert (Pasadena Tabernacle, Southern California Division)
CHILE Cynthia Garcia - Leader (Whittier Corps, Southern California Division) Melissa McQuade (Gresham Corps, Cascade Division) Dilay Berry (Guam Corps, Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division) Karen Rangel (Phoenix Citadel, Southwest Division) Kayla Covert (Ft. Collins Corps, Intermountain Division) Jennifer Zielinski (Long Beach Citadel, Southern California Division)
‘Foundations of Faith’ in Sierra del Mar Sixty Sierra del Mar kids gathered for a Junior Soldier Rally—themed “Foundations of Faith”—at the San Diego Citadel Corps on March 2. Led by Cari Arias, Western territorial Christian education specialist, and Major LeAnn Trimmer, Murrieta corps officer, 29 of the young people took the junior soldier preparation track. They completed the “Totally His” junior soldier preparation course and left the rally ready to be enrolled as junior soldiers at their corps. The other 31 youth—already junior soldiers—split into teams and visited different learning stations focusing on the foundations of their faith. “One God,” led by Dan Abella, was the first station. The second station was “One Salvation,” led by Erin Kofoed, and the third was “One Bible,” led by Frankie Saguil. “One Mission,” led by Renee Howard, was the last station. The junior soldiers strengthened their foundation of faith through the activities and Scripture presented at each station. At the end of the day a special dedication service took place for the new junior soldiers, who received their junior soldier promises. Each one approached the altar where a leader waited to pray with them. Those who were already junior soldiers participated in a time of rededication, when they received certificates of completion for the “Foundations of Faith” course. They, too, were invited to the altar to pray with one of the leaders. The day ended with corps group photos and a rally group photo, as a memory of the commitments made that day.
Annual Day of Prayer for Children April 7 is set aside this year as The Salvation Army’s annual Day of Prayer for Children, a day for Salvation Army corps and centers around the globe to place the world’s children before God in focused prayer, acknowledging that they are precious in his sight. The verse chosen for the 2013 Day of Prayer is Proverbs 22:4: Teach them the way they should live and they will remember it all their lives (GNB). The occasion is generally slated on the last Sunday of March, but because March 31 is Easter, day for prayer is set for April 7.
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guest model appeared in this year’s Arizona rally: RJ Kroc, dressed as Merida from the movie “BRAVE.” “The heroes really are here!” one kid shouted when the Phoenix Fire Department arrived, complete with a fire engine. Second Lieutenant Steve Brown of the U.S. Army spoke about his journeys and showed his equipment to the kids. Through this, we hoped to provide positive exposure to the heroes and BRAVE leaders in the community. The theme verse for the rally was 2 Timothy 1:7: for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. Through this verse, we encouraged the youth to be their own BRAVE hero by living out their faith and sharing it with others, even when it’s difficult to do. “Thank you for letting us come to this,” one young person said. “I’ve never done anything like this before.”
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need to uncover what they hide behind. In the family groups, participants revealed what they use to cover their true identity. “The youth in my group opened up about hiding behind something, and let me tell you it got deep,” Shalom Jaramillo said. Delegates experienced a ceremonial hand washing with the guest leaders. The session included spoken word from Victor Cordero, special music by Ruben Cordero and a testimony from David Cain, before late night 80s cowboy line dancing. On Sunday morning, the Brackenburys spoke about God covering his people with a purpose, and encouraged everyone to accept a time of waiting or of change while that purpose came to light. Lt. Ashley Koebel, Oceanside corps officer, said of the weekend,“God reminded me that he has great plans for this generation.”
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WYI 2013
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