Youth Ministry

Empowering Youth in Faith and Community

We value youth as full members of our church family. To engage them in the life of our community we offer opportunities and experiences of worship, fellowship, learning, exploration, connection, and service.

 Youth group registration (7th-12th grade) can be completed by following this link. You need to register each child individually.

All 7th- and 8th-grade youth are invited to join us each Sunday from 5-6:30 p.m. for FUJI. Together we will engage in activities of fellowship, exploration, and self-care that seek to foster connection, nurture meaningful relationships, and provide care in this difficult time. More information about this year’s FUJI is available at this link. For additional information, contact Pastor Lydia.

All 9th through 12th graders are invited to join us each Sunday evening from 5-6:30 p.m. for FUSH! Together we will engage in activities of fellowship, exploration, and self-care that seek to foster connection, nurture meaningful relationships, and provide care in this difficult time. This youth group also offers opportunities for youth to gain leadership skills as they assist in the planning and execution of programming through the position of youth moderators and the role of youth board. For more information, contact Pastor Lydia.

Quest for both 9th and 10th graders is now under way. We will always walk this lifelong journey of faith with our youth, and we look forward to venturing on the Quest journey with them this year. Quest is an opportunity to explore your BIG faith questions, experience different kinds of worship, serve others, be challenged by your peers, and learn the importance of an experiential faith. You will have doubts, you will discern what it means to be a disciple, and you will make the important decision whether you want to be a member of this church. Alongside each of our confirmands on this journey is a Friend in Faith, an adult member of the congregation paired with a youth to be a mentor during this process. For information about Quest, the role of a Friend in Faith, to enroll in Quest, or to become a Friend in Faith, contact Pastor Lydia.

Each summer, First United’s youth embark on a trip to learn about and serve in another community. We might be serving at soup kitchens or food pantries, learning about food insecurity, working with folks experiencing homelessness or building homes, or learning about systemic injustices. This is an opportunity that combines fellowship, exploration, and connection through service. Youth who wish to participate in the service trip spend a portion of the program year doing service learning activities tied to the mission trip.

Three Scout troops meet regularly at First United. Boy Scout Troop 16, a troop for boys in 5th through 12th grades, celebrated 100 years of its continuous church charter in 2016. Troop 16 meets most Friday nights during the school year and camps once a month year-round. Cub Scout Pack 16, for boys in 1st through 5th grades, was chartered by church members in 2014 and meets most Monday nights. Troop 308, our newest Scout troop chartered in 2019, is a girls troop open to girls ages 11-17.

As an Open and Affirming congregation, First United highly values the partnership the units have with Scouts for Equality, a national organization founded to advocate for intentionally inclusive Scouting in all forms, including LGBTQ, faith choice, nationality, or financial resources. We believe in Scouting for all! More information about each troop is available online: Scout Troop 16 (troop16oakpark.com); Scout Troop 308 (https://opbsatroop308.org); and Cub Scout Pack 16 (pack16oakpark.org).)