They say that it takes a village to raise a child, and I think there’s some truth in that. But I can tell you for sure that it does take quite a crew of dedicated volunteers to put on a Steubenville youth conference!

Last weekend’s youth conference was staffed by 108 volunteers – and there are 112 volunteers staffing this weekend! When you consider that each volunteer is here in Springfield from at least 10 am Friday until at least 1 pm on Sunday, that means that over 6800 volunteer hours are put in each summer by amazing people devoted to making our conferences a positive experience for every teen and every adult who attends. And I couldn’t even begin to calculate how much time and energy and prayer that staff members of the Office of Youth Ministry and Franciscan University of Steubenville devote to these amazing events!

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There is a profound truth in the theme for this weekend: Belong. Not one of us is an outsider. And if we belong to Christ, we belong to His Church.

Joe Murphy has been coming to Steubenville for 14 years, and this year is helping us out with production both weekends.

He loves being outdoors and doing things like hunting, fishing, and hiking. He teaches computer to students at All Saints Academy/St. Rose Campus in Florissant, MO, loves technology, and considers himself “a total tech nerd.”  Joe has been playing hockey since he was three years old and is, of course, a diehard St. Louis Blues hockey fan. (LGB! Play Gloria!)

Joe’s favorite part of our conferences is simply seeing teens getting closer to Christ in so many different ways.

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If you’ve ever been to Eucharistic Adoration, you know that it’s an intensely personal experience; it’s an encounter that’s hard to put into words. It’s an opportunity to pour out your heart to Jesus as He pours His love into yours. It’s a chance to reflect, to listen, to praise, to honor, and – most of all – a chance to simply be with the One who loves you the most.

There is something uniquely special that happens when this intensely personal experience happens in community, especially when that community is over 5000 people who approach the opportunity full of hope and expectant faith.

As Jesus entered the arena, everyone knelt. And when the monstrance was placed on the altar, we all knelt in silence, which was stunning – considering that most of our participants are teenagers. It’s the part of the conference that blesses me the most…thousands of teenagers in silent prayer. It was a silence that spoke volumes. Love, honor, faith, reverence. Adoration.

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Mary Sophia from LEAD is a parishioner at Mary, Mother of the Church in the Archdiocese of St. Louis where she is a member of the parish youth group. She recently graduated from Mehlville High School, and in the fall she will be a freshman at the Franciscan University of Steubenville.

Tonight we had the privilege of hearing her share about the first time that she let God into her life. In 8th grade, during a time of deep personal struggle – her mom had been diagnosed with cancer – she started to resent God, and thought that He had forgotten about her.

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