Thank you AVANZAR & ANONYMOUS PARTNER for making this story possible to share.
Weekly Young Life Club meetings are a
power hour of fun.
“At camp, they experience a level of
peace they otherwise don’t have.
“Young Life kids go to camp with
their leaders, which strengthens a
relationship in which they’ve already
been investing. Every single night they
hear the gospel story unfold. Then
teens have time with their leaders to
ask questions in a no-pressure environment.
They are clearly asked to
respond, but we want their response to
be their choice and to be real.”
Until recently, Young Lifers in Texas
had to go thousands of miles if they
wanted to experience one of the
organization’s
signature camps.
It seems incredible
that there
wasn’t a Young
Life camp in the
entire state of
Texas! That all
It seems incredible
that there wasn’t
a Young Life camp
in the entire state
of Texas!
changed this spring, when Young Life
purchased Camp Lonehollow, a beautiful
property in the Hill Country close
to Garner State Park.
The new acquisition opens opportunities
for camping to many who
otherwise couldn’t afford the travel
time and expense.
“God put on our hearts a vision for
all kids of San Antonio—including the
disabled and the almost 70 percent of
secondary school kids who are Latino.
Our heart is for our Club’s demographics
to look like those of San Antonio,”
Annie says.
Since Young Life has historically
attracted more Anglo-American teens,
Annie's staff is working to overcome
any cultural obstacles to make Club
inviting to everyone. In her 15 years
working with Young Life on San
Antonio’s South Side, her team found
nuances of the Latino culture that
were at odds with traditional Young
Life ways. For example, going to camp
is not normative for many Latino
families.
“ We now have a generation of
kids—even in poverty—who don’t
remember a time when they did not
have a daily relationship with their
screen. They have never had a
mental break from the constant,
stressful, distracting screen in front
of their face. Camp is the only place
we can offer that break.”
— Annie Mays, Metro Director
of Greater San Antonio Young Life
“It is not considered good parenting in
many families to let your kids go away
with strangers for eight days,” she says,
as she strives to earn the trust of
parents as well as their teens.
In addition to middle school, high
school and college-age Clubs, Young
Life Capernaum ministers to kids with
disabilities; YoungLives reaches teen
moms; and Club Beyond, teens from
military families. Young Life’s multicultural
ministry, “focused on kids in
diverse cultural communities and
those in economically-depressed areas,
is arguably the largest of its kind in the
United States.”
“There are so many great things
about Young Life that are nonnegotiable
around the world—building
relationships, going where kids are,
sharing the gospel, doing life with
them—but there are some things we
can do differently to make sure that we
continue to reach the next generation
with the gospel,” Annie concludes.
Be A Light.
Visit. Visit the ministry website and see
how you can get involved. Attend. Go to a
fundraising event. Host. Offer your home
as a meeting place for Club. Volunteer.
Become a leader or supporter. Pray. Pray
that Young Life will keep reaching teens.
Give. Donors are vital to Young Life. Local
donations remain here to fund efforts in
our community and help send kids to
Young Life camps.
Young Life Greater San Antonio
www.sanantonio.younglife.org
1248 Austin Hwy #106-214
San Antonio, TX 78209-4821
(210) 287-4876
Many say Young Life camp was "the best week of my life."
S TOR Y MADE POS S I B L E B Y:
www.avanzar.com
1 Lone Star Pass, Building 41
San Antonio, TX 78264
(210) 271-2300
Avanzar Interior Technologies, located in
south San Antonio, produces automotive
interiors for Toyota Motor Manufacturing
Texas, Inc.’s San Antonio and Mexico plants.
Avanzar's CEO Berto Guerra serves on Young
Life's National Board of Trustees.
And an
Anonymous Partner
Thank you Lord, for this anonymous donor
who generously gave so YoungLife could
be featured in our May/June Issue. With this
generous gift, we are able to raise awareness
of this ministry and the difference they are
making in our community.
May / June 2019 www.saBeacon.com 21