 Programs
of Religious Activities with YouthP.R.A.Y. News Bulletin First Quarter 2009 Welcome to P.R.A.Y.’s News Bulletin. This Bulletin is written for pastors, counselors, mentors, and parents associated with Protestant and Independent Christian churches. It includes program helps, best practices, and special features to support a P.R.A.Y. ministry. We hope you enjoy this bulletin and take the time to share it with others. AMANDA VOGT SPEAKS AT P.R.A.Y. CONFERENCE 
As the National Venturing President for the Boy Scouts of America, Amanda Vogt is in high demand. Most recently, Amanda was part of a delegation that presented the BSA’s annual Report to the Nation in The focus of this year’s P.R.A.Y. conference was on Middle School and High School youth and how denominations and agencies can come together to benefit young people. CEO Mark Hazlewood invited Amanda to share her story and tell how her life has been shaped by church and the Scouting program. What a story she told! Amanda explained that she had earned the God and Church and God and Life awards, also the Venturing Trust Award, but that she didn’t know the extent to which the programs had impacted her until her struggles with a brain tumor. It was right around the time she graduated from high school that Amanda started having seizures (sometimes a dozen a day),and it was right before she enrolled in college that doctors discovered that she had a brain tumor. The tumor was tiny, but it was deep in the tissue next to the area that controls motor skills. It was as her condition worsened that Amanda recalled the Bible verses she studied in God and Life and learned just how strong her faith was. Surgery was presented as an option but not as a guarantee. The choice was Amanda’s to make. She tells how she fell apart, and then turned to prayer. A feeling of calm came over her and she knew that if she did the surgery, everything would be okay. Amanda thanked the P.R.A.Y. board for their ministry and for developing curriculum that can help young people grow strong in faith. “I didn’t know it at the time, but the God and Life program had a big impact on me.” It is obvious that Church and Scouting have influenced Amanda and countless other young people. But it is a two-way street. These same young people are making lasting impressions on congregations and Scouting groups across the nation. What an inspiration and blessing for future generations! Denomination and Agency Representatives Attend P.R.A.Y. Conference P.R.A.Y. hosted a conference March 11-12, 2009 in The following presentations were made:
Here is the roster of participants: Denomination Representatives: Larry Coppock, United Methodist Church Carmichael Crutchfield, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Mike Grissom, Association of Baptists for Scouting Daryl Ingram, African Methodist Episcopal Mark Kiessling, Lutheran Church Missouri Synod Willa Ross, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Agency Representatives: Patti Garibay, American Heritage Girls Charles Holmes, Boy Scouts of America Mark Scott, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America P.R.A.Y. Board Members: Rusty Cowden, Sheri Levingston, Marion Long, Joe Mueller, Brad Nesheim, Ellyn Schleiffarth, Steve Taylor, Jeanne Wurm Guests: Ken Lyons (UMC), Amanda Vogt (National Venturing President), Bob Vogt GOD AND CHURCH RECIPIENT COMPLETES “BAPTISMAL CROSS PROJECT”  Dan completed a “Baptismal Cross Project” as part of his Confirmation and God and Church requirements. He and a friend constructed 40 crosses out of old, wooden, shipping pallets. The wood had to be cleaned, cut, sanded, and stained. Their fathers helped supervise the use of the power tools, but the boys did all the work. By using recycled pallets, the boys hope that the crosses will have added meaning of hope, renewal, and new life. The boys gave the crosses to Immanuel Lutheran Church so that the church can present a special cross whenever an infant is baptized. The background of the display at the right is an old wooden pallet to show the stark contrast between the dirty, gray pallet and the clean, recycled wood of the crosses.
2008 P.R.A.Y. USAGE Usage of the P.R.A.Y. programs increased slightly in 2008. As the charts and graphs show below, this increase came primarily from the Boy Scouts and Sunday Schools and was focused at the God and Family level. Usage by Program
 Usage By Agency
 COUNCIL USAGE Here are the top ten Boy Scout Councils from 2008:
Here are the top ten Girl Scout Councils:
UPDATES FROM P.R.A.Y.
Please forward this email to other people you feel may benefit from this P.R.A.Y. Bulletin. You could share this information with your pastor, youth group leaders, Sunday school teachers, Scouting leaders, and others. To sign up for our P.R.A.Y. e-mail list, please email JenniferH@praypub.org or use our signup form on our website. (If you received this as an original email from P.R.A.Y., you’re already on our mailing list.) UNSUBSCRIBE If you feel that you have received this email in error, or would prefer not to receive these emails, please reply to this email with “Unsubscribe from P.R.A.Y. Bulletin” in the subject line or use this link to send an email directly to jenniferh@praypub.org to be removed. Thank You! |
CLARIFICATION
ON NEW ADULT RECOGNITION