A Newsletter for Friends and Alumni of the Duke Youth Academy for Christian Formation SPRING 2007 VOLUME 5, ISSUE 3
An Update on the Life of the Duke Youth Academy It has been a busy spring for the Duke Youth Academy! We enjoyed a fantastic reunion in February and a great workshop at St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Tallahassee, FL in March, all while recruiting and selecting the next amazing class of DYA participants! Here are some reviews of the season’s events: 2007 REUNION: 70 former DYA students and staff converged on Camp Chestnut Ridge in Efland, NC for the third annual DYA Reunion. Despite the chilly weather, all had a fabulous time renewing old friendships, making great new friends, and remembering the good times of DYA. Dr. Emmanual Katongole gave a wonderful plenary session on the church in Africa, and participants enjoyed helping restore rustic camp sites at Chestnut Ridge. [Pictured, a group of reunion participants enjoys the lakeside chapel at Chestnut Ridge.] WEEKEND WORKSHOP AT ST. PETER’S: by Mike Boone, DYA ’02, RA ’04, Mentor ‘07 During the first weekend of March, some very talented DYA staff traveled south to the Duke Youth Academy outpost known as St. Peter's Anglican Church in Tallahassee, Florida to create a mini-DYA weekend. Thanks to the help of a number of DYA alumni (Ali Mica (’06), Kurt Spitzer (’06), Katherine Dudley (’06), Caroline Campbell (’05), Thomas Bowers (’04), and Forrest Boone (’04)), the St. Peter’s staff, and some dedicated volunteers, we had a wonderful weekend! The workshop opened on Saturday morning with a plenary session led by Dr. Edie. A diverse group of 40 adults, teens and youth workers immersed themselves into the habits of following the way of Christ that the youth academy has modeled over the years for all of us. Group discussions were lively, long-held assumptions were challenged, and at the center of the workshop, a worship service was built. Small groups helped to bring together the pieces for Saturday afternoon’s service of Holy Eucharist through story-telling, music, prayer, and the visual arts. The Sunday morning worship service at St. Peter’s was highlighted by the excellent Old Testament storytelling of Tracy Radosevic, and the preaching of Dr. Edie. It was a true gift for the youth academy to be able to share with a local community like ours, even for just a weekend. The weekend was a resounding success! 2007 DYA STUDENT ADMISSIONS: The Duke Youth Academy had a record number of 102 student applications for 2007! These applicants represented 23 US states and 15 Christian traditions. All of the applications we received were outstanding, and we were sad that we could not invite all 102 applicants to this summer’s program. We are excited, though, to welcome 63 new students to the 2007 DYA!
News and Reviews
Reflections on the Virginia Tech Tragedy by Andrew Phillips, DYA ‘06 Jesus wasn’t kidding. We have seen over the last few weeks the tragedy at Virginia Tech—the loss of 33 lives, the physical injury of scores of professors and students, and the mental, emotional, and spiritual turmoil of an entire university and, increasingly, an entire nation. And today, I heard from a dear friend about an illness in her own family. I can only imagine how painful it must be to have a relative in the hospital, and how much more painful it must be not to know what’s wrong. Jesus said that in this world, we would have trouble (John 16:33). And we need only to look at the events of the last few weeks to see that he could not have been more right. Although Good Friday has come and gone, I am still reminded of what the Prophet called Christ: a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering. And I remember that Jesus knew pain and suffering and grief firsthand. Even more, I remember that he knew of his fate before he ever stepped a foot in Gethsemane. But he did not stop there—either in the garden, or in the 16th chapter of John. He continued on: he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! But death could not and can not hold him, and the empty tomb cries, “Death: where is your victory? Where is your sting?” He continued: “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” And as I sit here today in sadness, wondering why, uncertain, and tired, that is where I wind up. I remember that the poor in spirit will inherit the kingdom of God; that those who mourn will be comforted; and that the pure in heart will see God, yet I feel I need more. And I receive more—a love which is stronger than my fear, a love which conquered death, and a love which knows no bounds. As we live through times like this, all I can think to do is trust the One who loves us more than we could ever ask or imagine, and take comfort in the fact that He will wipe every tear from our eyes and that one day there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain. So let us pray: for the Virginia Tech community, for our own communities, for our families, and for each other. And take heart my friends, because even though we will have trouble, we also have a Savior who has overcome the world. Jesus wasn’t kidding. Andrew is a junior at Woods Charter School in Chapel Hill, NC. He is a member of Hope Creek Church in Durham, NC.
UPCOMING DATES & EVENTS: Spring Ministry Coordinators Meeting 2007 DYA Staff Training DYA at Youth2007 in Greensboro, NC Summer Ministry Coordinators Meeting 2007 Pre-DYA Staff Preparation 2007 Duke Youth Academy!!
Of Hokies and a Galilean
May 17, 2007 May 18-19, 2007 July 11-15, 2007 July 12, 2007 July 13-14, 2007 July 15-28, 2007
The Aquatic Herme-news-ticker
Reporting baptismal news and other DYA phenomena COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY NEWS: Here are some updates on DYA folks! Lots of DYA friends are making college/grad school decisions for Fall – here’s a sampling of where they’ll be: Jonah Bass (’05) – Santa Barbara City College... Matthew Locklair (’06) & Andrew Cannon (’05) – Furman U... David Woodington (’06) & Caroline Campbell (’05) – U of Alabama... Tess Muggeridge (’06) – Arizona St. U... Chelsey McElwee (’06) – Elon U... Carissa Moore (’05) – Cedar Crest College... Russell Burton (’05) & Daniel Childs (’06) – NC St. U... Taggart Wall (’06) – Southwestern College, KS... Rachel Malcolm (’06) & Lizzy Simmons (’06) – UNC-Chapel Hill... Elyse Martin (’06) – Smith College… Zach Painter (’05) – Appalachian St. U… Annie Kinney (’05) – Duke U… Meredith Workman (’05) – UNC-Charlotte… Jordan Bucey (’05) – Rutgers U… Stephanie Liechty (’05) – Ohio U… Lauren Hilton (’06) – U of Illinois… Emily Johnson (’06) – Penn St. U… Alethia Bartley (’05) – U of Oklahoma… Nathan Bedsole (’05) – Wake Forest U… Robyn Coleman (‘05) – U of IndianaBloomington… Bobby Hadzor (’01) – Duke Divinity School... Emily Shore (Mentor ’04, ’06) – Duke Divinity School... Kevin Dirksen (’02, RA ’04-’05, Mentor ’06) – Boston U School of Theology... OTHER NEWS AND CELEBRATIONS: Emily Dueitt (’01, RA ’05, Head RA ’06), Stephanie Baxter Dunn (Mentor ’05-’06) and Dave Barkalow (Mentor ’06) have successfully completed their first year of seminary… Meredith Stewart (Mentor ’05, MC ’06) is graduating from Duke Law School and Duke Divinity School in May… Sheri Symanski (Mentor ’05) and her husband, Bob, welcomed a beautiful baby boy, Scott Philip, into their family February 13... Jessica Massey (’04) was married to Jesse Matthews on April 7th – DYA friends served as her bridesmaids... Carissa Moore (’05) gave the meditation at her church’s Easter sunrise service and directed the student production of “Hello Dolly” at her school... Taggart Wall (’06) gave a great showing as a candidate for his local City Commission race, and only fell a few votes short of being elected... Lara Musser (’06) preached her first sermon this spring and found that she loved doing it... Andrew Realon (’05) is playing on his high school’s tennis team... Brittany Pleasants (’06) is playing on her high school’s softball team... Alison Kibbe (’06) and Sarah Barnwell (’05) led a youth conference on baptism in January... Grant Collier (’06) is working for Americorps in Sacramento this fall... Chrissy Moretto (’02) is serving as a US Navy Hospital Corpsman out of Everett, WA... Demarcus Newton (’05) will serve an internship this summer at the Army Research Lab in DC... Andrea Voll (’05) will go to Europe in May with the Indiana Wesleyan University Chorale... Marcus Smith (’04) is moving to the University of Central Florida for the fall... Hannah Cartwright (‘02) is spending the spring semester in Morocco… Kevin Dirksen (‘02, RA ’04-’05, Mentor ’06) will marry Bethany Allen on June 15... Cameron Mason (Mentor ’06) will marry Garrett Vickrey on July 1… If you’re a senior in high school or college, let us know your future plans so we can share them in the next edition of In the Flow!
Fundraising and Development News As we prepare for anther incredible summer at the Duke Youth Academy, we are confronted with the reality that our ministry is severely limited by our budget! We would love to expand the DYA to reach more youth in more churches around the globe, but we cannot do this without your help. We are halfway to our $10,000 annual fund goal, but we need your help to hit this important target! If each of our alumni sent only $17, we would reach this goal! Or, of course, we could also reach the goal with 50 gifts of $100, 10 gifts of $500, or 5 gifts of $1000. Please consider making a gift, large or small, to the Duke Youth Academy as you remember the ways DYA has touched your life or the life of someone you love. You can always send a check to our office or, if you’d prefer, you can make a gift online through the DYA website. Click on “Make a Gift” at the bottom of the screen, then mark your gift as “Divinity School” and type “Duke Youth Academy” under “other designations.” It’s that simple! Thanks to all of our faithful friends for your prayers and support!
The Development Corner
Important News!
Introducing the new DYA Assistant Director Hooray! The Duke Youth Academy has a new assistant director! Elizabeth will be moving to Seattle, WA this summer, and we are delighted to have a fabulous new assistant director: Katherine Hande. Katherine and Elizabeth will both be present for the 2007 Duke Youth Academy: two assistant directors = twice the fun! Here’s a little info about Katherine: Katherine Hande is a native of Music City, U.S.A. (aka Nashville), which she didn’t fully appreciate until she lived in central New Jersey for seven years! After earning a degree in English at Princeton University, Katherine served for three years with a non-profit civic leadership organization affiliated with the university, having fun helping college students discern their calling. Then she discerned a calling herself and made her way to Duke Divinity School, where she is finishing her second year. When she’s not running, drinking milkshakes, or traveling around the country visiting friends, Katherine enjoys spending time with her 3-year-old niece and baby nephews. When her theology classes get a little intense, she enjoys freelance writing for Duke Athletics (go Blue Devils!) and local sports papers. She’s currently pursuing ordination in the Presbyterian Church (USA). You can make Katherine feel that warm DYA welcome by sending gifts of chocolates or other sweets, or by simply responding politely to the numerous emails that she will undoubtedly send over the next few years. We are blessed to have such a gifted woman leading the Duke Youth Academy!
Would you like to write for In the Flow? Send your news, thoughts, or reflections to duyouth@div.duke.edu. In the Flow is now available online! Go to www.duyouth.duke.edu and click on “For Alumni.” If you would like to continue receiving mail from DYA, please update your contact information by calling 919.660.3542 today!