Recent Events
July 10′
- Vacation Bible School - July 26th-30th - H E R O God is my Hero! Vacation Bible School 2010 was a huge success! Partnering with Sunnyside Seventhday Advinest (SDA). Our participants and volunteers grew greatly this year and it all came together. We spread Gods word with worship music each morning at closing and opening, we showed off our superohero engery at Awesome games and the hero training headquarters, along with reciving our energy from snack time our crew leaders would help lead there group through the city in the dark hallway to the drama room where we go to better understand the bible story of the day and we got to enjoy yummy popcorn and a video in the movie room. Together we came to realize you don’t have to be a big named superhero like superman, batman, and spiderman you can be just who God created you to be and be an everyday hero by following the teachings in the bible and remembering God has given us the oppertunity to be Everyday heros at school, home and even at work. Thank you to all those who participated in VBS 2010 and for those who gave a week of service, donation, or prayers with out your support this wouldn’t have been possbile. THANK YOU. Pictures will be up soon.
- Summer Camp at Calvin Crest July 18th-25th & Shalom Camp at Mt Cross July 11th-16th - 51 youth (grades 4th-12th) from the Answer Youth Ministry at Hope Lutheran Church travled up to mountains for a Summer Camp experience they will not soon forget. For some it was there first time at summer camp for others it was one of many times a summer camp. Wether it was there first, sixth, or Tenth time at camp I believe it’s fair to say that all who went had an amazing time and experienced the power of God through teachings, bible study, nature hikes, relaxation, fun, games, and much more. For some this will be a time that has forever changed there outlook on life, on faith, and how they view the world. We are excited to offer a ministry at Hope that will continue to help strengthen that relastionship with Christ in the lives of these young people everyday. We are excited to be awaiting a Re-Camp 2010 which will include a publishing of first hand experiences written from the youth in there own words who attended a week at either Shalom Camp at Mt. Cross or Calvin Crest. Keep your eyes open for this Re-Camp Newsletter style report coming soon. Keep your eyes out for photos coming soon! A special thanks to Jacob Walker, Grace Carlock, Haley Herman, Keegan Whitsitt, Emma Wheeler, and Alice Millhollen for giving a week of there lives to be a huge part in the lives of our youth as counslers at Calvin Crest! Click Here for a blog from Shalom Camp 2010.
June 10′
- Senior Appriciation BBQ and Swim Party June 22nd - We celebrated the accomplishments of our 7 2010 High School graduates. It was an honor having them apart of our Youth Ministry and they will truely be missed but we are excited to see them to great things in this new chapter of there lives! Good Luck Seniors. A special thanks to The Little Family for hosting over 50 people at there house for this celebration. We appricate all that you do! Pictures coming soon!
- Wild Water Adventure Park June 17th - the Answer youth ministry spent the day cooling off at Wild Water Adventure Park. We enjoyed a yummy BBQ, good times together, making new friends and relaxin’ in the sun! Pictures will be up soon!
May 10′
- ’80s Gym Night w/ Flipside- May 23- We had a tottaly rockin’ time listening to 80s music and playing dodgeball & Kickball. We took it back to the ’80s in style with high energy, Big Hair, and BIG FUN! Congratulations to our best dressed lady Taylor Wright & our Best dressed guy Garrett Wright & our Judge’s choice Megan Edwardsen. We had a great time and we would hope you would take some time to enjoy the pictures from the evening on our Photo Page (Click on the Life). Or check out the pictures on Facebook and leave a comment!
- 2010 Photo Scavenger Hunt- the Way- May 23- We met at 2pm at Hope and traveled over to River Park Shopping center and split into 3 teams. We enjoyed taking crazy photos
of some pretty random things and had a great time being silly together. We enjoyed some yummy ice cream back at church while we viewed a slideshow of all our pictures from the scavenger hunt! It was a great time check out the Photo’s Page to see all the crazyness that took place.
April 10′
March ‘10
- Family Potluck & Food Drive (the Way) March 21st - We spent the afternoon enjoying lunch together & then headed out into our local communities to collect Canned food for the Hope Lutheran Church Food Pantry. We collected A LOT of non-perishiable food items that will be greatly appriciated by the Food Pantry. The Youth who attened said they had a great time. One said “I want to do this again.” It was inspiring to know that people were willing to give food to those in need. This was a great time together!
- Acquire the Fire 7th-12th (the Truth) March 5th-6th- This was a 27 hour life transforming event that was built around hearing Gods voice and Encountering Gods Love f
or us! Youth who attended were impacted in many ways. This event included real life dramas that touched home for many and made real life issues of Teens in todays world come to life. We spent hours in Worship with other Christians and learned that God is pretty Smitten for us and LOVES us more than anyone could in this world. Please be praying for those who atteneded this weekends event that God will continue to work in there lives and hold them strong in the commitments they made. God is LOVE! Check out pictures coming soon.
February ‘10
- SPSYC Weekend Retreat (the Way) 4th-6th Grade-Feb.26th-28th- We headed over to Mt.Cross for a weekend in the great outdoors experiencing God in nature away from the Hustle of the City. The theme was “Jesus meets us… ” we learned that Jesus meets us where the wild things are, when life lifts us up, and at the giving tree. We really enjoyed the weekend spending it together as Christians growing in our Faith. Despite the wet weather God provided and we were able to make a Movie , play games, and learn several Bible Verses. This was truely a blessed weekend and if you would like to check out some photos from the weekend click here.
- Dodgin’ it Old School Jr.High City Wide Dodgeball Tournament (the Truth) - 2/19/10 We had an exciting night rockin’ out, showing off our dodgeball skills and our totally 80’s outfits. This was a fun time spent with eachother at a very fast pace event that kept everyone on there toes! If you were apart of the fun
check out the pictures (look at “the Truth”). If you just want to take a look at how much fun we had together with many other churches from the Fresno/Clovis area then you should look there too!
- All Youth Snow Day (the Way, the Truth, and the Life)- We had beautiful weather for a day at the snow on Feb. 15th. This was a great way to spend a day off from school, toge
ther as the body of Christ having fun and living it up in the nature that God created. We drove up to the 3rd snow park past Shaver and rode the icy hills and is spite of our braveness (by the grace of God), we all survived. Nothing more than some scraps, bumps and bruises and in our rule book that is a successful day at the Snow! Check out some pictures here.
- All Youth (the way, the Truth, and the Life) Pastor Roger’s Birthday Bash & Youth Missions fundraiser Dinner (Feb.13th)- With the help of our congregation and t
he willingness of Pastor Roger to use him in an amazing way for the benefit of Youth Missions at Hope Lutheran Church we raised a little over $4,000 during our night of fun, dinner, and festivities. A special thanks goes out to all those involved in making the evening a huge success and to those who attended the dinner and helped to support Youth Missions through Hope Lutheran Church. We are looking forward to reaching out to do God’s work with our hands. Thank you again!
- “the Life” (9th-12th) Winter Olympic Lock-In (Feb. 5th-6th) This was a night full of fun and craziness. We spent the entire night competing in Olympic games such as short track speed scootering, Bobsleigh, Skeleton, Ski Jumping, Ice Hockey, Curling, and Pairs Figure skating. After the games a ceremony was held where all 6 countries from the night received a variety of medals in different events. We were happy to host the 2010 Hope Lutheran Winter Games and we want to say congratulations to the following participating countries; Ireland, South Vietnam, Laos, Mexico, El Salvador, and France. Your teamwork, dedication, and Christian attitudes made for a very successful and wonderful night at the Olympic games. Pictures will be up soon. Click Here to check out this video if you would like to see the torch relay that started off the Olympic Games at Hope Lutheran Church.
January ‘10
- “the Life” (9th-12th) United Winter Camp- See the blog United Winter Camp for details about what God did during this weekend and how amazing it was! Check out some pictures here. And for more from United Fresno check out this website.
- “the Way” (4th-6th) Semi Lock-In (1/8/10) - We stayed up late and had some crazy fun! We started the night by playing Wii then quickly switched to Reserection ball
and Dodgeball. Later on in the night we continued in the fun with our special version of Sardines with a little more light and awesome glow sticks to guide us through the dark rooms. We enjoyed yummy Happy Meals from Mcdonalds and when we finished we played Disney Scene it, followed by a couple of worship songs together led by Arty and then to finish the night we had a chance to build our own Ice Cream Sunday! It was such a fun night check out the pictures here!
- Broomball: January 3rd-We had a blast playing some good ol’ fashioned broomball on ice @ Gateway Ice Center in Fresno. It was an amazing evening of crazyness and fun! We had nearly 50 High School youth there ready to have fun on the ice and show off there skills! We were blessed to have Joe & Vicki Ruiz to capture the action of the night with there skill in photography (A huge thanks to Joe and Vicki). Check out the pictures here. Even though there was massive amounts of falls during the night, the next day’s bumps and bruises were well worth it in the end… it was a great evening and God blessed our group with NO serious injuries. (That is always a Major blessing)
December ‘09
- Food Pantry Christmas Party (12/22/09)- Gods work our hands… Hope’s Food Pantry gives back to the community every Tuesday morning and on this special Tuesday Morning it was more then just a Food Bank Site it was a Party! We were celebrating with our community and brothers and sisters in Christ the Holiday Season! Youth put there hands to work by helping at game stations, face painting, chatting with people, calling numbers, packing chickens in bags, and just helping to put a smile on someones face. This was truely a successfull morning tha
t our Youth from all ages were working together and doing Gods work with there own hands.
- Voices of Presence Worship Service (12/20/09)- VOP. Was Back by popular demand at Hope Lutheran Church for another blessed time of worship together to prepare our hearts for the holiday season. The Answer (HLC youth Ministry) worked hard to prepare a night of worship that was powerful and meaningful all for the glory of God. The Night was full of contemporary worsihp, dramatic readings and other special worship offerings (Blacklight Drama Team), that helped us focus on “Coming back to the heart of worship.” Check out the Blog for a neat clip from the evening.
- Christmas Cookies w/ the Way (12/20/09)- Once again a group of the Way cool Youth came together on a Sunday afternoon to bake cookies for the food pantry Chirstmas Party. They rolled, cut, frosted, sprinkled, and made yummy cookies! It’s always fun to giggle and laugh with the Way and cookie making is a time where everyones inner child comes out! It was a lot of fun and we all can’t wait to do it again next year! A huge thanks the Alice Millhollen and Kristina Garabedian for all there gracious help in the kitchen.
- Youth Christmas Extravaganza (12/16/09) - We had a great evening together. We started off by heading over to San Joaquin Gardens where we sang Christmas carols for their residents and it was nice to bring smiles to so many faces and to see people enjoy singing along with us. Returning
to Hope, we had a great dinner served by Barbara and her skilled team. We had a fun time playing “Chicken in Santa’s Workshop” where Aubrey and Cara were the top team. Snacking on some tasty treats made by Kristina, we enjoyed the “The Tale of Three Trees” told by Pastor Al. After a great time of worship all together, we headed off, but not before receiving a beautiful Christmas card featuring our youth staff. The evening wasn’t just for us either. Instead of gift exchange, many youth brought money to give to support Crisitan, our Compassion child in Columbia. We collected $162! This is great and will cover 5 months of sponsorship. It was a great evening.
November ‘09
- “the Way” Bowling & Food Pantry Out Reach November 24th- We enjoyed a morning together using our hands where ever the Food pantry needed our help. We provided cookies, Lightly used clothes, board games, and smiles for those who came. After serving we headed over to Cedar Lanes for a great time of bowling and fun fellowship together. We had an amazing time with some amazing people! Check-out the pictures.
- “the Life” Mystery Night/Clue Night November 8th- Click here to read Blog.
- New Life Band- Concert & Dinner (All Youth & Family) November 7- This was a time that those who attended will not soon forget. We were blessed to hear TRADITIONAL AND CONTEMPORARY GOSPEL MUSIC OF TANZANIA by the New Life Band. They were extremely talented musicians, who are easily able to reach out to people through their wide range of music, including traditional African drum rhythms, close harmonies and contemporary Christian music of Africa. During the Concert an offering was taken to support their programs to the youth of Tanzania. Many of our own congregation members were on there feet moving to the rhythm and sound that they brought straight from Africa. It’s amazing to know that they worship the same exact God we do in a different and fun way! God is GOOD !
- SPSYC- Jr. High Mt. Cross Weekend Retreat November. 13th-15th- 15 Jr High youth headed up to the Santa Cruz Mountains for an amazing weekend. 4 Boys and 11 Girls got a chance to know each other more and deepen their relationships with God. We heard from an inspiring speaker Vance Blackfox and we explored ways to LIVE our Lives of faith more fully in God’s loving Grace. LIFE in God’s GRACE is more than just a GAME. This was surely a weekend full of fun, including a life-sized version of the board game Life, a life-sized game of Clue on the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz, two intense games of Laser Tag and much more. Click here to check out the Blog for pictures and more about the weekend. A special ”Thank You” to our drivers and chaperones for the weekend Mr & Mrs. Bob and Natalie Teague.
October ‘09
- SPSYC High School Retreat @ Mt. Cross (the Life) Oct. 16-18 - This was a great weekend for our group to just get away from the normal routines of life and to spend some time together with other youth from around our Synod. Kyle and Andrew did a great job helping to provide leadership for the event as members of SPSYC and Jennifer and Emma were elected to new terms on the committee as well. We had a great time worshipping together and Arty did a fantastic job working with the committee to lead worship. We were able to get better connected to Jesus and to each other. It was a good weekend. Check out a few amazing pics of our Group and our Ladies.
September ‘09
- See You At the Pole (All Youth) September 23 - This was a great day for the students who participated. Kids met around school flagpoles all across the country for times of prayer and worship. Gatherings as small as two people to large services of worship with music, prayer and praise - all combined to set our hearts and minds on God’s plan for our lives, our country and our schools. The day was capped off with a powerful rally at Peoples Church. We experience the power of God through prayer and worship and learned of an effort to unite Christian Youth from across our city for worship, evangelism and social justice. Check out www.unitedfresno.com for more information.
- RECESS (the Life) September 20 - This was a super-fun event where we all got to go back to the “good ol’ days” of recess. We packed our lunch boxes, dug out some old clothes and came dressed like our we did when our parents sent us to school in our early elementary school years. We jumped roped, played hopscotch, 4-square, tetherball and all the classic playground favorites. This was a really fun evening- GREAT JOB ALISON!
- Pizza, Games & Parents’ Meeting (the Way) September 13 - This was a cool afternoon of hanging out and enjoying the debut of “Rock Band - The Beatles” on our big screen. We had lots of kids and lots of fun and the parents through up some great events and service projects on the calendar for the coming months. Make sure you don’t miss another Youth Group on Oct. 11 and the Trunk-or-Treat on Oct. 28. We’ve got lots of cool stuff planned, so check out our CALENDAR and make sure you don’t miss out.
August ‘09
- Fear the Freshmen LIVE- the Life (9th-12th) August 30, 2009- This w
as a night of fun at Youth Group where the Freshmen came to dominate the upper-classmen and to prove that “fear was not a factor for the freshmen class of 2013!” They faced each other in 3 challenges “Dodge This” “Eat it” and “Fear Finale.” It was a tough competition that ended in a Tie! It’s always 2-2… The Freshmen were welcomed with a gift for coming and are encouraged to join us from now on for fun and craziness every Sunday Night with the Life. The freshmen are officially apart of the LIFE we welcome you! 
- Vacation Bible School - all youth: August 3-7, we had an awesome week with the Studio Go gameshow. Learning about how we can Go Serve! Go Tell! Go Obey! Go Risk! and Go Lead! Our lives of faith and our relationship with Jesus Christ affect how we live and it’s exciting when we share this good news with others.
July ‘09
- Shalom Camp “the Truth” (7th & 8th): July 12-17, We had an awesome week at camp bonding with our youth group and meeting new kids from all over the Synod. It was a very moving experience for many of us and God was definitely present with us during this week at camp. Check out the Blog: We’re at Shalom Camp! for a bit more.
- National Youth Gathering “the Life” (9th-12th): July 20-26, We had an amazing experience in New Orleans with thousands upon thousands of other Lutheran youth from all over the country. This website has videos, pictures, testimonies and more, so simply read through some of our Blogs and you’ll get an idea of what we were up to.
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