Thank you! We continue to Rise Up Together!

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1 You are receiving this because you have signed up to receive updates for the 2015 ELCA Youth Gathering in Detroit. If you do not wish to receive any future updates, visit this link to leave the list. Visit the same link if someone forwarded this gnews to you, and you d like to receive your own updates in the future. Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who participated and supported the 2015 ELCA Youth Gathering! Together, we were able to learn about and participate in the work of bearing burdens, breaking chains, building bridges, and bringing hope. We were able to Rise Up Together! In this edition of gnews, we take a look back at the 2015 Gathering and learn more about the Staying Ready materials. We continue to Rise Up Together! "Your youth raised up the cross of Christ, and it confirms who has rebuilt, sustains and improves Share your Gathering celebrations with #RiseUpELCA! As you are sharing the Gathering with your congregation and supporters, remember to tag your pictures and posts #RiseUpELCA so we can see how you re celebrating! Still want more Gathering coverage? Check out these links! ELCA 2015 Youth Gathering Photo Gallery ELCA 2015 Youth Gathering Videos 5 Time lapse video of Ford Field set-up/break down 1

2 Fletcher Field the Lord! All that the cross represents allowed us to fight and win the upgrade to our park." These words are from Imogene Johnson, a Proclaim Justice partner from Fletcher Field. Karen Washington, from We Care About Van Dyke-Seven Mile, said her group was able to find one of the murals created in Proclaim Community that was perfect for their butterfly garden. The mural, featuring a butterfly garden, had the words hope and rise up. She says these words will help inspire her community and will be a long-lasting reminder of the presence of Gathering youth. Where is the next site of the ELCA Youth Gathering? Houston... we have a Gathering! We look forward to seeing you in Houston, June 27 - July 1, 2018! Pat Bosch, executive director of Nortown CDC, commented: It is demoralizing to face recurring cleanup work without the people to do it. Without your help, we could not have accomplished half this work. We are still thanking God for your presence. It was outstanding seeing people coming, willing to do whatever is needed to get the job done. Our partners will continue to do the work in their Detroit neighborhoods. We will continue to do God s work in our own neighborhoods. Indeed, as Imogene Johnson notes, it is because of Christ that we were able to Rise Up Together! When you "like" our page, be sure to right-click and select "get notifications" to ensure all Gathering posts show up in your newsfeed. 'Staying Ready' materials You prepared for the Gathering with our Getting Ready lessons. Now that we have all returned home to our own communities, we want to help you process your Gathering experience with our Staying Ready lesson. The purpose of this final lesson is to remind us of the path of a disciple of Jesus Christ, a path that sometimes challenges political and religious powers. God set before us a hard path when God chose Detroit as the site of the 2015 ELCA Youth Gathering. One of the lessons we learned is that we needed the companionship of the church to remain committed to Detroit throughout the planning process. We all need each other to stay on the path of discipleship. For more information: Mail: ELCA Youth Gathering 8765 W. Higgins Road Chicago, IL Gathering Phone: In addition to sharing the final lesson, we have also developed a PowerPoint template to help you share your story about Detroit. Please modify it for your youth group and your experiences. Your presence in Detroit was a positive gift to the community and the ELCA. Thank you for joining us and as we continue to Rise Up Together! 2

3 To download the Staying Ready materials and PowerPoint template, click here. We value your feedback We are always trying to improve the ministry of the ELCA Youth Gathering, and attendee feedback helps us remain relevant and prophetic. To that end, a random sample of adults will receive an evaluation form via . The will come from Daniel.Taylor@elca.org. Not everyone will receive the evaluation. The random sampling of youth will be mailed a paper copy. Jesus is GOOD NEWS! Jesus is... GOOD NEWS! This refrain was shouted repeatedly by Gathering participants throughout Proclaim Story, the day that youth and adults gathered together with others from their synod for Bible study, worship and storytelling. The My Story Journal guided participants through the twohour curriculum formed around "God s Story, Your Story, and My Story. Bishops of each synod shared their own faith story in addition to preaching and presiding at worship. Young people across the church shared stories of their own joys, challenges, and how God is active in calling them to live out their faith in exciting and life-changing ways. All of this was undergirded by the promise we hear in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 1: The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the son of God. Participants are encouraged to continuing telling their story and find ways to share God s story of love, grace and new life with others. The Proclaim Story Journal is available by clicking here and going to the Documents tab. Gathering by the numbers 3

4 The many ways Detroit impacted Gathering participants and participants impacted Detroit cannot be counted. But there are some parts of the Gathering story that can be expressed in numbers. Here are some Gathering statistics: 1 million diapers collected 1,425 backpacks distributed 3,200 vacant lots cleared of debris 319 vacant homes boarded 2,976 square feet of boards painted for abandoned homes 36 urban gardens installed 99 picnic tables built 26 dumpsters filled 600 neighborhoods engaged 650 people donated at least 8 inches of hair 607 pints of blood donated 4,000 hats constructed for local churches to give away For a document with Gathering stats that you can share, click here and go to the Documents tab to download the "Gathering by the Numbers" file. MYLE and DAYLE join together in fellowship and worship The Multicultural Youth Leadership Event (MYLE) and Definitely- Abled Youth Leadership Event (DAYLE) participants joined together in Detroit in fellowship and in worship. They enjoyed a boat cruise with dinner, entertaining 4

5 and dancing. The groups also worshiped together with Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton as preacher. In her sermon Bishop Eaton encouraged: Let your light shine, let that passion come from you, be of good cheer, have courage even when people, well, not only disregard you, but persecute you, because we are walking in the footsteps of the One who would rather die than lose a single one of us, and in fact, by his death and resurrection has saved us all. Watch excerpts from the joint MYLE and DAYLE worship here. MIF was honored to be a partner at Youth Gathering The Mission Investment Fund was honored to be a partner to all those attending the Gathering in Detroit. MIF s Service Center served as the on-site bank to provide cash for Gathering volunteers and MIF Youth Ministry Account holders. MIF staff members at the interaction booth were busy managing more than 5,000 photos taken at the booth. And those 5,000 photos yielded more than 250,000 engagements via social media! Even though this Gathering has come to a close, please remember that MIF s Demand Investment Youth Ministry Account remains a great way to earn interest for other youth ministry activities. The account has great features, with checks, no fees, immediate access and interest is paid and reinvested monthly. Most important, when investing with the Mission Investment Fund, you help strengthen the ministry of our church, while you save for your future! From the director's blog: 30,000 Lutherans the ELCA Youth Gathering was art! Heidi Hagstrom 5

6 How do you define art? A painting? A sculpture? A fine piece of music? A moving play? Seth Godin, one of my favorite bloggers, defines art as a human act, a generous contribution, something that might not work, and it is intended to change the recipient for the better, often causing a connection to happen. According to Seth s definition, the 2015 ELCA Youth Gathering was art. 30,000 Lutheran humans acted on behalf of a city that needs champions. 30,000 Lutherans contributed generously 1 million diapers and counting! 30,000 Lutherans risked meeting in a city emerging from economic collapse. 30,000 Lutherans were changed for the better because they gave of themselves in service to others. Continue reading the director s blog. Adult leader tip During our time in Detroit, we learned about bearing burdens, building bridges, breaking chains and bringing hope. These topics are relevant to Detroit and all the corners we returned to after our mountain top experience. What are some ways these themes can be continued in your congregations? In your community? You are invited to share your experiences with your congregations and those in your communities. Tell them how this experience challenged you or maybe changed you. If you could pick one thing that impacted your life the most, what would it be? Share your experience with family, friends and all those who supported you. Share the good news of Jesus with all you encounter as we move from the chapter of life in Detroit to the chapter of life in our communities. Contact us Please contact us with your ideas and comments. Please forward this to others who may be interested. Update your name or address 6

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