Ah well. The schedule is updated so you can see what we’re doing all the way through until the summer. Come along on Mondays for our drop in nights and come play some Rock Band! If you want to stay up to date with our news and future happenings; either join our Facebook group or get put on our e-mail list by writing mailing Phil. Hopefully we’ll have a shiny new site for the Fall!

Also well underway now is Ignite: The Big Picture where we’ve looked at the religious life through the eyes of The Simpsons and heroism in The Lion King. Next week it’s life and death decisions with (who else?) Jack Bauer on 24.  No doubt we’ll also have spot prizes and much more pizza; if you’re not already coming along then you really should!

We’ve also had some special events. One, which is becoming a regular, is an oppotunity to come serve the poor on Saturday mornings on the Downtown Eastside with the Lutheran Urban Missions Society. On the first two Mission Saturdays, nine of us have gone down to join LUMs in serving a meal for some of Vancouver’s poorest. We take a trip to join them every two weeks and it’s highly recommended for senior youth to see a side of the city we rarely visit. More information in the new LUMs section above.

And, finally, we also had a mega St. Francis Day Pie Sale in aid of the St. Petersburg Children’s Hospice. Rising to the challenge to provide some baked goods over the Thanksgiving weekend, we had pies donated and then had a mass baking session where we made eleven (!) fruit pies, sold after the Sunday morning service at St. Francis. The sale was a great success; with $250 dollars raised which, as Fr. Alexander from the hospice told us a few weeks ago, will help keep five terminally ill children pain free for a month.

It’s been great to have so many events which we can enjoy; and now it’s pretty awesome that we can give something back both in Vancouver and abroad. Check out the schedules (which are constantly changing as we sort out the term’s program) and the new information about LUMs above!

We had a quick hike to Edith Lake on Saturday, broken up by our traditional ‘day out in the woods’ game of Camouflage (this time the carefully chosen camo gear paid off) and a little wildlife spotting. We then headed over to the beach to enjoy the sunshine and the beautifully warm waters of Alice Lake. Oh, wait, that would be the freezing cold waters of the seemingly glacial Alice Lake. But some of us brave folk managed to get into the water; and those who didn’t got a second chance to when we went back later in the evening for some stargazing and night swimming. Not a lot of stars to be seen; as the clouds had started to roll in after we left the beach. And as we sang songs around the campfire things suddenly got a lot colder. We should have taken that as our warning; as on our last morning we were treated to a dose of British Columbia rain to remind us that the summer really is over.

A little rain wasn’t going to dampen our fun, though, and after a short fight with N0-Name cereal (don’t ask) we were on our way home for some tent drying and well deserved sleep! Thanks to Angus and Caitlin for helping with the leading, cooking and singing. For everyone who lent camping equipment (not quite sure how we ended up with eight tents but we used most of them!) and for those who helped out with the driving.

And, of course, the beginning of year camping trip means that youth group is now back in session. We had our first Junior Drop-In of the year the day after the trip; which meant our usual basketball had to be postponed whilst the hall was turned into a tent city to dry some wet camping equipment. But we’ll make it up by going on a Junior trip soon! We also had a great All Age Worship with our youth band. And, after some great singing talent was on display on the camping trip, we’re hoping to recruit some new members to build up for the next year.

Lots of things happening in the next few weeks. As well as what’s on the schedules for Drop In and Ignite, some of us will be heading to the Downtown Eastside to help out with the Lutheran Urban Mission Society on Saturday; with whom St. Francis are serving a meal for the folks living out on the streets. Check out the schedules by clicking the buttons above. And don’t forget to look us up on Facebook!

If you click on the headings at the top of this page you can see our programs for the next few months, including Monday Drop-Ins, our Sunday morning Junior Fellowship and evening Ignite.

Actually, we didn’t spend *that* much time on the beach. But that water was pretty cold; and there was a bit of a breeze blowing. And there was plenty of rugby, frisbee and human pyramid related entertainment to be had on our patch of the fields. We even did our bit for the enviroment by leaving the place distinctly cleaner than when we first arrived!

So, with summer finally here (we had sunshine and everything) that means youth group activity has ended until September. But do not fear as there will be updates over the summer talking about beginning of year camping trips for the Senior Youth, welcome back party for the Juniors and information about our Fall programmes both for Monday nights and for Ignite. Which is going to get all high tech and modern next semester. Intrigued? You’ll just have to keep checking back, won’t you?

Have a great summer!

We followed that up with Flight Night. A deceptivly simple evening based on finding out who could construct the sturdiest, fastest and generally most excellent paper darts with the promise of chocolate related prizes for the best. We had some great ones; and the far ends of the church hall were hit on several occassions. The future of Canadian aeronautics is obviously in safe hands.

And then, this week, came an incredbly exciting night when one of Anaheim’s finest, Rob Niedermayer, popped into youth group to tell us what it’s like to be a Stanley Cup winner, what it was like back in the early days of his career as well as filling us in on his musical tastes. It was a sneaky, ‘organised in secrecy at the last minute’ kind of a deal but, incredibly, folks still managed to turn up with autograph books, caps and (impressivly) at least half a dozen pucks to be signed. Rob was happy to oblige; and we were able to wish him and his finacee, Jess, the best before they headed off for the evening. We also found out that they both get pretty competitve on the Grouse Grind. But with a career best time of 36 minutes; I don’t think any of us will be catching up to them just yet… And for those of you who missed out. Well; this is why it pays to get on our mailing list and come along on Mondays!

Phew! I’m exhausted all over again just writing it all up. And there’s only one week left before the summer begins; which means sometime this week I’ll be posting about our end of year Beach Party which is happening next Sunday. I’ll also start telling you about our plans for the Fall pretty soon. Yes, from camping trips to Playland and an all new series of Ignite, it’s already coming together!

Next week there will be much excitement as the much delayed Laser Night shall finally be upon us!  We will be meeting at St. Francis at 6.15pmfrom where we’ll head over to the Laser Dome in North Vancouver (2455 Dollartown Highway) and we’ll return to the church for pickup at 9.00pm (Note the time changes!)

Cost for the evening will be $13.50 for the laser tag plus extra if you want to buy food/drink whilst we’re there (I won’t be doing any food type things this week) Feel free to invite friends along but please do let me know so I have an idea of numbers (preferably before Saturday)

Climate Night: Following up on last month’s Environment Night we had a showing of An Inconvenient Truth and carried on some of the discussions we started last time. Between youth group and the West Vancouver school board’s efforts, hopefully everyone has had a chance to see the film *and* to discuss the issues to see whether you agree or disagree with the viewpoints. As I’m sure you’re all bored of hearing; this will be the issue of your generation. No doubt we’ll be revisiting it again.

Mystery Night: Whilst I was away, Angus took charge and supervised the construction of some great collages marking the highlights of the Car Rally. You can check them out in the church lounge!

24 Finale Night:Youth group’s biggest talking point ended with both a two hour season finale and a feast of Jack Bauer inspired culinary delights (JACKet potatoes; for those who weren’t paying attention) We also played two rounds of ‘What Will Jack Say?’ sweepstakes; although the classic Bauer quotes were minimised over the course of the finale.

All Age Worship: May 27th was the latest in our regular All Age Worships at St. Francis, with a new lineup to keep things fresh. Following our musical performances; Caitlin and I then quickly switched into clown mode to make balloon sculptures for the St. Francis picnic. Now that’s versatility!

UPCOMING -Here’s what’s going on until the end of the summer term:

May 28th – Pizza Night

June 4th – Laser Night

June 11th and 18th – T.B.A.

June 25th – Beach Party

It was a hard fought race; with teams needing to complete such tasks as performing YMCA with a stranger in a grocery store, to finding someone at a local beach who’d be willing to do some impromptu artwork. And, for the hardiest sleuths, big bonus points were available for those who managed to follow a series of maps and cryptic clues to recover bugs from the Galvani garden. This year’s victors were Angus and his Flower Girls. Of course, that means there are a lot of teams ready to have their revenge next time around… Loads of pics from the rally are available on the St. Francis Facebook group!

A bit of a change of pace for Sunday afternoon where four members of our Ignite discussion group were confirmed at Christ Church Cathedral by Bishop Michael. Angus and I joined Ashley, Claire, Erica and Eva as well as over fifty other candidates from across the Diocese of New Westminster for the annual service.

No clues to solve and fewer challenges to contend with. Except, perhaps, the art of standing from a kneeling position when on a set of steps and wearing heels. They all succeeded admirably. (For those reading this in months to come who would like to explore the possibility of being confirmed in 2008, get in touch with me sometime at the beginning of January when we’ll be starting next year’s set of discussions and preparation sessions!)

And finally, on Monday we finally got to experience the assorted randomness of the ancient art of Kabaddi. A holdover from Curry Night before Christmas when the evenings were darker and wetter, we finally managed to have an evening on the green with only mosquitoes to battle. How to play Kabaddi? Very simple. It’s much like a game of tag, in teams but with much holding of breath and repeated saying of ‘Kabaddi.’

Couple that with a little human pyramid building and recreation of scenes from The Karate Kid and there you have the end of an exceptionally busy week! Of course, we’ll be back next Monday to do it all again!

For those who’ve not tried out Letterboxing, head on over to Letterboxing.org where you can find clues to take you to letterboxes hidden all over North America. There’s at least three in Lighthouse Park. After successfully uncovering one of them (the highlight for me being watching everyone taking ‘twelve paces to the left’ straight into a load of brambles and fallen branches) we then settled down with our guest, Christie Manners, who led us on a journey using words from Psalms and Ephesians, as well as our own poetic observations. Folks came up with some great compositions; including the image of God as a candy waiting to be unwrapped. Great stuff!

And, of course, there was camouflage. The great game of forest hide-and-be-sought. Some came prepared with all manner of woodland shaded clothing. Mark’s ensemble could only be summed up with one word; thorough. Of course, it’s not just about the outfit. Successful camouflage participation requires a good eye for a hiding place, an ability to remain in position with the minimum amount of noise and movement for the longest possible time and subsequent sprinting for the grand prize. Jillian, Emily and Angus all managed to win rounds. Kudos to them all; and their achievements have been noted in the annals of St. Francis Youth history. Of course, there will be more games of camouflage before the summer is out…

Meanwhile, back at St. Francis, our second season of Igniteconcluded on Sunday finishing off preparations for our candidates who will be confirmed at Christ Church Cathedral on Sunday April 29th! Angus joined us as we explored ways to pray, and to read the Bible and for some reason we got rather distracted talking about goats. Hmmm… Next week both youth groups return to normal times on Monday!

Also: Don’t forget to register your teams for the car rally on Saturday at 2pm! It’s an all age event; just as long as your driver is of appropriate age and license status. Invite the whole family! See last week’s post for all the contact information.