Ongoing faith journey brings parish closer, increasing the interest of the youth in their faith

Friday, Aug. 12, 2016

PARK CITY — Four years ago the faith formation program at St. Lawrence Catholic Mission started with around 150 kids; this year the program has 230, 47 of whom are Confirmation candidates between the ages of 14 and 17.

“For us it is a huge number that we got these kids to come back to the Church,” because the majority of youth stop their faith formation after they receive their First Communion, said Julianne Wunder, who is in charge of the parish’s religious education program.

This year a mentoring segment was added to the Confirmation program, which pairs the youth with St. Lawrence parishioners in addition to their sponsors.

“I’m assuming these kids will have their sponsors, and a lot of them do, but because there are so many I thought it would be a great idea to have mentors,” said Wunder. “Sometimes sponsors are out of town, so someone from our church will follow these kids on their journey. … It is sort of giving our parishioners a little more connection with our youth.” 

This has provided a tremendous opportunity to involve parishioners in the religious education program, she added.

“It brings everyone close together. It brings more accountability of the church to our Confirmation candidates, and gives our parishioners a great opportunity to get together with our youth,” said Wunder.

Although the physical space of St. Lawrence mission might be small, with the participants’ positive attitude and ability to find solutions, the religious program keeps growing and accommodating everyone.

“Part of our mission is to make the kids come back. Typically, after First Communion they take it as a form of graduation, so now our First Communion program is a three-year process, and so is the Confirmation one,” said Wunder.

The classes have been full and the kids and parents have been involved in many ways.

Members of the Confirmation class and their parents do 20 hours of community service, 10 in the community and 10 at the parish, which translates to 47 youth and their parents being involved in the Heber community, representing the Catholic Church, Wunder said. 

A peer tutoring group also has been established in which the 47 youth in the Confirmation class have become tutors for younger kids.

Wunder said that Connie Hauregui, the Confirmation coordinator at St. Lawrence has done a good job engaging the youth. 

“She makes them feel at home and that this is their parish. St. Lawrence is such a beautiful family,” said Wunder.

Recognizing, welcoming, thanking and acknowledging that the youth are the future of St. Lawrence Mission, Wunder and Hauregui frequently supplement the program with new material and with suggestions made by the youth.

“We are making a presence in our community and our kids are realizing how important they are. We are not just a sacramental preparation program, we are a faith formation program,” said Wunder.

Heber is a small town, but according to the United States census, it is one of the 10 counties with the most growth in the country.

“That is also part of why St. Lawrence has seen the increase” in the numbers attending the Confirmation class, said Sandy Foley, director of Religious Education and Confirmation at Saint Mary of the Assumption Parish, which serves St. Lawrence Mission.

However, she also acknowledged the benefits of “this mentoring program, so that the candidates can have someone special in their lives that they can count on.”