Uno & Hot Chocolate

-
Serving hot chocolate at Walnut Grove Secondary


I thought I was pretty good at handling loud volumes and high pitch until I was surrounded by 8 teens chanting the word ‘yellow’ for half of the lunch hour. Every Thursday, our team along with a local youth pastor, open the doors of a classroom at a local high school for students who want a place to hang out to play games. We have a Wii set up, air hockey, colouring books and the ever-competitive card game of Uno. I often find myself settled at the Uno table and this particular week a student would try to turn the odds in her favour by chanting yellow whenever someone played a ‘change colour’ card. By the end of the lunch hour, the whole table was chanting (screaming, really) the word ‘yellow’ and my ears were ringing for the rest of the day.

Perhaps one of the greatest values that the team at Youth Unlimited shares is consistency. This consistency, of
being present in the school on a regular basis, is what shows youth that we want to be a part of their lives. That we want to show up where they are and be a part of the day to day. This consistency is what built a strong enough relationship for my co-worker to be available when a youth attempted to end their life through medication overdose. This consistency is why counsellors connect our youth workers with students in need of extra support. And this consistency is what the school sees and, in turn, asks for us to be the ones to serve hot chocolate during their memorial service for those who have overdosed within the community.

Showing up does not mean having the answers or giving advice. Showing up means being present, asking questions when necessary and mostly just being available to listen. Beginning 2020, I will continue to handle the administrative tasks of the team while joining them for the occasional youth work task, such as the Games Hub on Thursday’s. I am continuing to fundraise for my position and am looking to raise approximately $2,000/month of continued support.

Matt, Evelyn and I enjoyed a two-week break over the winter holiday’s and have now settled back into routine. Matt works on the maintenance team at Trinity Western University and loves the opportunity to build connections with students. Evelyn is in daycare four days a week where she is loving the social outlet. She is a complete goofball, very busy and slightly sassy. We have been enjoying this stage of life.

Thank you for being a part of my support team, through prayer, finances and/or reading these letters. This work is made so much richer knowing that there is a great support base behind each of us.

- Megan Adam

The first snow of 2020!

Timbit Tuesday with Mountainview Alliance
- a community partnership

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Changing Seasons

-
Image
As we move into the fall, we move into a new phase for the Langley Youth Unlimited team. This past winter saw a significant decrease in our funding. This led to a shift in staffing hours and caused us to refocus. As we took into account staff hours and the finances available to our team, we felt it was necessary to take a step back from how we had been doing things.

What does this mean?

As we go into the fall, we will be turning our focus primarily to our work in two Langley schools, working to build relationships with staff and students. By working in the schools, we are meeting youth where they are and entering into their day to day lives. This consistent presence helps to build up trust as these youth see our staff on a regular basis.

The relationships that begin at the school often grow into time outside of the school. Although these hangouts can often appear surface level and like way too much fun, they are actually necessary building blocks for deeper connections. In working si…
Read more

Renewed Vision

-
Image
One evening after putting my kids to bed and tidying the house I finally got a chance to sit. As I did, my vision suddenly turned into an array of bright shapes and colors, as if I was viewing the world through a kaleidoscope. I was able to make my way to bed and fall asleep. The next day everything seemed fine.Losing vision is a scary thing. I have an elderly neighbor I visit often who faces blindness more and more each day. It affects independence, safety and perception. While this incident only lasted a short time for me, his experience was echoing through my mind and I knew I should get things sorted out.
I checked in with my eye doctor. She told me, after an examination, that I’d experienced an ocular migraine. She informed me that unless I took steps to reduce my stress I’d likely have more frequent and severe reactions. My family doctor confirmed this and showed high concern for my health in this season. Stress is a normal part of life and while I work hard at caring for my phy…
Read more

The True Outcome

-
Image
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I drove.  I felt overwhelmed with grief over the news I’d received.  One of my former youth, who had beaten the odds, overcome their trauma, found Jesus and entered into ministry themselves, had suddenly done a major U-turn. They threw it all away in the pursuit of a newly developed passion. I questioned my purpose as one great success turned into a failure.  Pulling myself together, I came to our drop-in center to prepare for the 50-60 teenagers who would soon invade the space.  
As I walked in, one of my interns asked if I could help them with something.  Thinking it was a simple task, I agreed. It would help to get my mind off of things for a few minutes.  Instead, they pulled out a notebook and asked this question:
“What are some outcomes you’ve seen in youth you’ve shared the gospel with?”
I froze.  This intern wanted to hear victories. And there has been many ways in which Jesus has miraculously shown up - in dreams, transformations, softening h…
Read more