Story - The Meade County Messenger


Vol. 114, No. ??	Month DAY, 2007

Young people and adults share ideas at youth town hall meeting

Photo by Sandra Stone
A group of about 50 adults and youth gathered Jan. 12 for a youth town hall meeting to discuss the needs of the youth which the churches and community can work together to address.

By SANDRA STONE
Messenger Staff

The Youth Cafe at Glad Tidings Christian Center was the site Jan. 12 for a youth town hall meeting, a gathering designed to hear straight from the youth what they would like from their community and church.

“We wanted to get together to discuss some things to see if there was something we could do as adults and youth working together,” said Pastor Glenn Gordon of Zion Grove Missionary Baptist Church. He and Pastor Eric Bolin of the Full Gospel Church of God spearheaded the event which grew from discussions among Gordon, Bolin and several other pastors whose churches work together on an old-fashioned tent revival ministry.

“The last two years, we have been praying for a uniting of our resources and our churches,” said Gordon. “As we met and discussed, we wanted our youth to be involved in some type of ministry, and we saw this as a great opportunity to get them together and see what they’d like to do.” A sense of ownership is key when asking people to give of their time, treasure and talents. “If they have a say-so, they’ll be more apt to follow through,” said Gordon.

Included in the gathering of about 50 were representatives from Zion Grove Missionary Baptist Church, Full Gospel Church of God, Glad Tidings Christian Center, Tabernacle of Worship, Brandenburg Church of God, First Church of God U.S. 60, Gospel Fellowship, Payneville Baptist Church, Lighthouse Assembly of God and Community Baptist.

Guests at the forum were Meade County Judge Executive Harry Craycroft and Melanie Cox with the YMCA of Greater Louisville. Both were asked to make opening remarks prior to the forum. “Our goal is to build people so they can reach their full potential,” said Cox. “I’m encouraged to be a part of what we might do in this community.” Cox also offered her services as a resource.

“I’m glad to he here, glad to see the crowd here,” said Craycroft. The future of Meade County and Kentucky is sitting here tonight.” Craycroft said the county is looking into the possibility of working with the YMCA. “That may be a couple of years down the road,” said Craycroft, “but we’ll keep looking.”

After everyone had gotten their pizza and soft drinks, they settled in to speak their minds about the three questions posed:

What would you like to see in your community for youth? Answers to this question centered mostly on recreational activities and included a roller rink, movie theater, a skate park, laser tag, paint ball, a computer lab, an arcade, camping trips, basketball, a pool hall, a swimming pool and concerts, to name a few.

“Some of these goals are very reachable,” said Gordon. “That’s why we wanted our churches to put our resources together to accomplish some of these things. It’s very possible for us to do something even in this year.” One idea already being worked on, continued Gordon, is a 3-on-3 basketball tournament for both boys and girls in middle and high school. Guest speakers would come in, and prizes would be awarded to the boys’ and girls’ teams which won at both levels of play.

Bolin advised the Meade County Ministerial Association is considering bringing the Power Team here. That idea was met with enthusiastic response from those who are familiar with the message of the Power Team which exhibits extraordinary feats of strength while sharing a Christian message.

What do you want from church? Answers to this question were essentially more of the same in terms of recreation opportunities – a bigger playground, a gym, a flat-screen television, a dance team, wrestling, karaoke. “We may not have all the answers tonight,” said Gordon. “We want to build upon this meeting. Continue to think on that question.” He encouraged the youth to think about what they could do to make the worship experience something other youth would want to be a part of and encouraged them to share their ideas with their own youth ministers.

What might be done by the community and church leaders to reach the youth? The suggestion was made to make Meade County a mission of the local churches. If the local churches contributed to a mission fund for Meade County, those funds could be used to build a supervised community center where all will be welcome and safe. Other suggestions included utilizing the facilities at Otter Creek Park and providing a safe place for abused kids to seek help.

It was also recommended the youth ministers of the local churches get together to discuss what is and isn’t working for them and perhaps to plan events together.

Cox said she could assist with some of these ideas, particularly in utilizing Camp Piomingo and working with the city of Louisville regarding use of Otter Creek Park. Of the recreational activities suggested, Cox recommended sharing the responsibility for planning and supervising these programs among the churches. “This is how YMCA’s get started all over the country,” she said. “A bunch of people get together to work on ideas just like you’ve brought up tonight.”

“You have some wonderful ideas,” said Craycroft, who had been taking notes throughout the forum. “Next time we meet, bring someone with you. The more you get involved, the more the community will see you’re serious about this.”

The forum ended with one last question: “Are we going to walk out of here and say, great meeting, or are we going to do something?” Bolin encouraged the youth to come back for the next youth forum and bring a friend. He also encouraged them to talk to their friends and find out what’s important to them.

Anyone – youth or adult – interested in becoming involved may call Pastor Eric Bolin at (270) 828-8107 or e-mail kjbolin@bbtel.com for information about future meetings and activities.

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