Pacific School of Religion

We seek an energetic young adult Christian who has a heart for teenagers, to lead our UMYF group and also to assist our pastor Warren Dale for a few hours/week. We began a church growth campaign in Fall 2012, and it will be very helpful to Warren to have a willing helper for details involving publications, reports, meetings, etc. He will explain possible duties to applicants, and he will mentor this person in both positions.

For the youth leader position, experience working with teens is preferred but not essential. Our UMYF is an informal fellowship group that meets 11:45am-1:30pm on Sundays, following the teen Sunday School class (which is Bible study). The purpose of UMYF is to provide a safe place for youth to practice and deepen their faith and work on growing up. This group should help them connect Jesus' teaching to specific things in their lives, as appropriate. The leader should enjoy being with them, can facilitate discussion of issues that concern them, model good ways to deal with such issues, and inspire them to help others. This kind of group can also provide opportunities for them to develop responsibility and to lead. The leader should lead several outings, about one/month on average. An outing usually replaces one Sunday meeting.

For about 10 years we have had a small group, unique in that it has remained quite diverse, with youth ages 13-17 from Tongan, African American and Caucasian families. They get along really well, are tolerant of age differences, and seem oblivious to their cultural differences, which is quite wonderful – in local high schools these cultures tend to remain separate and often confrontational. There is definitely potential to recruit more multicultural youth who live nearby and we hope to do that.

Our current teens are energetic and really enjoy board games, volleyball, basketball, movies, and outings. What they said recently is they love a leader who is fun to be with, likes playing with them and going on outings, is patient when they're goofy, and who can lead short discussions on serious issues.

In a typical week, the youth leader would gather resources, phone individual youth as needed, and plan and lead the Sunday meeting.

A typical meeting of this group includes lunch, discussion and play time (board games, volleyball, etc.). The group has several special outings and camps throughout the year, which are very popular. They also like to support mission projects – right now they're collecting warm clothing for the Haven House family shelter and they would like to have a few fundraisers such as car washes and Parents Night Out childcare, to raise money for other missions like Nothing But Nets. There are a few adults in our congregation who will help with planning occasional projects and outings, as well as providing weekly support such as planning programs, calling, supplying food and transporting some of the youth.

Expect to spend about 10 hrs/week on this job, on average - 6-7 hrs to prepare and lead the group, more when there are outings; and the remaining time assisting the pastor.

For more information, or to apply for this position, email to the names below or call Jane for more information. Salary is negotiable, at least $400/month, depending on experience.