CBOQ Youth | Blog

July 2020

Gap Year Options

By Alvin|2020-07-18T16:18:10-04:00July 20th, 2020|Alvin Lau, best practices|

High school grads in the 2020 cohort will experience a summer and fall unlike previous generations of grads. Grads who are continuing to post-secondary studies will experience orientation events and the first weeks of classes (if they exist in person at all) in completely new ways. Some grads are deciding to defer their acceptances for a year. (Note: If you are looking to defer but haven’t done so already, you’ll need to check with your respective institution to see if any conditions apply to that deferral.) Other grads made the decision to defer a while ago. If you

20th anniversary interview answers

By Alvin|2020-06-30T23:00:00-04:00July 1st, 2020|Celebration|

Congratulations to Jane Manuel for winning our 20th anniversary interview game! (If you didn't see the roundtable interview, click on the video to watch it yourself.) TRIVIA ANSWERS There’s one scene that has the most Sharkey logos appearing at the same time. How many are present in that 1 shot? 4 Bonus: At what time in the video does it happen? At the 1:27:14 mark When does Matt

June 2020

With Your Grads … From Your Church

By Alvin|2020-06-11T21:51:04-04:00June 15th, 2020|Alvin Lau|

For the class of 2020, this will be a transition unlike others in recent history. No prom. The graduation ceremony won’t be until the fall. These students won’t have the chance to say goodbye as a group. The move towards post-secondary life will be just as different for them, although for those taking a gap year or working, the shift may not be as drastic. (Students taking a gap year may find our Gap Year Template helpful.) Life will continue to be different than usual for those going

A Summary of Learnings

By Alvin|2020-06-04T23:37:11-04:00June 8th, 2020|Alvin Lau|

COVID-19 LEARNINGS SUMMARY Over the last few weeks, I had the privilege of engaging with 16 of our CBOQ youth leaders, uncovering what they’ve been doing and learning since March break when the pandemic lockdown started. Here’s what I took away from each leader: John: Creative outlets like puppets allow students to focus on a project with purpose and can bless the rest of the congregation. William: Managing larger groups online takes multiple

Interview: Marco Gil

By Alvin|2020-05-25T16:21:09-04:00June 3rd, 2020|guest post|

Marco Gil Children, Youth and Family Pastor King's Community Church (Edited on May 25, 2020) INSIGHTS FROM MARCO Providing materials beforehand gives them a chance to review before meeting on Zoom. His role has been adjusted with the circumstances and is learning new skills to adapt. Think "way" outside the box. Try new things you haven't done before. Adjust as you go along. Keep doing what

Interview: Curtis Sheen

By Alvin|2020-05-23T15:54:08-04:00June 2nd, 2020|guest post|

Curtis Sheen Volunteer Youth Coordinator Little Bethel Community Church (Recorded: May 23, 2020) INSIGHTS FROM CURTIS He's relating through "drive by" visits with his youth. He's learning from others (e.g. through the other interview videos). His videos are a way to ground them back to the church building, which is a central locale in their relation to faith. Be yourself and trust God in what he's

Considerations for the Summer Months

By Alvin|2020-05-30T16:28:51-04:00June 1st, 2020|Alvin Lau|

This summer will be different from the ones we’re used to. It will unlike anything we’ve experienced before! With the lingering effects of COVID-19 still around, what might the summer hold for you and your team? School is cancelled for this rest of this year. (Enhanced e-learning summer school is available, and although some of your students are itching to get into those programs, likely most will not). Graduations and other celebrations are on hold. There will be no overnight camps. There will be significant restrictions to

Interview: Dinal Perera

By Alvin|2020-05-23T14:52:02-04:00June 1st, 2020|Uncategorized|

Dinal Perera Youth Pastor Malvern Baptist Church (Recorded on May 22, 2020) INSIGHTS FROM DINAL There's balance of how much social media is used. Virtual allows for "filling in the gaps" with who didn't always attend in person. Also allows students to share and encourage their peers with those resources. Listening is a key part of communication. Time management is important in terms of making good

May 2020

Interview: Jacklyn Rondini

By Alvin|2020-05-20T10:52:21-04:00May 29th, 2020|guest post|

Jacklyn Rondini Volunteer Youth Leader New Horizons Baptist Church (This is an email interview with Jacklyn and Alvin on May 20, 2020.) What's changed in your youth since March break? I’ve noticed a deeper desire for youth to commit to reading the Bible and understand scripture. Desire to have Bible Study and an inner desire has increased. What successes have you experienced? What struggles? Definitely a major success is having

Interview: Maxine and Dean Bender

By Alvin|2020-05-20T13:14:19-04:00May 28th, 2020|guest post|

Dean and Maxine Bender Pastor and Youth Leader Chesley Baptist Church (Recorded on May 19, 2020) INSIGHTS FROM MAXINE AND DEAN Some kind of in-person (appropriately physically distance) meetings are still vital. The youth seem to be getting tired of looking at their devices; they're looking for physical interaction. One-on-one connections are still key for open dialogue. Stay in the truth and keep plugging along; God

Load More Posts