– Cody Miller

The Gathering identified the need to lift up literacy as part of the Service Learning experience. Through the many conversations with literacy-related partners in Houston, we learned that many of the students in the Houston Independent School District enter school lacking reading-readiness skills. Up to the 2nd grade, students are taught and graded on their ability to read and write; once they get to the 3rd grade, they are expected to know how to read or write at their grade level. For those who do not read or write at their grade level by 3rd grade, they are at risk of never catching up.

Image courtesy of the Barbara Bush Literary Foundation

One reason for the lack of reading readiness skills is that families struggle to provide books for their children to read at home. Some families are unable to promote literacy at a young age because of the need to prioritize financial resources on the most necessary things: shelter and food.

There is a stunning statistic from the Barbara Bush Literacy Foundation: there is one book for every 300 kids in low income neighborhoods.

Books are most beneficial to students when they are in their homes. With this in mind, we are asking all participants to bring books to Houston from a curated book list. These books will then be distributed to kids who do not have easy access to books.

During the Gathering, several groups will sort the books and take them to various locations throughout Houston for book fairs for their Service Learning Day project. During these book fairs, Gathering participants will interact with kids from the community with games and literacy related activities. The kids in the community will go home with books.

By putting these books into the hands of these students, you are helping to promote literacy and playing a role in building a more successful lives.

– Christine Frye 

I was 16 years old and out to change the world. It was the summer of 2006, and I was traveling with my youth group to San Antonio, TX for my first ELCA Youth Gathering.

I remember arriving at the convention center for registration and being fascinated by every detail. There were energetic volunteers with walkie-talkies and attendee wrist bands advertising a 24 hour info-line. There was big, professional looking signage and welcome backpacks with information about the city inside.

I remember thinking “Wow, this is no amateur operation! Who organizes all of this?”

My fascination grew as I entered the stadium for the Mass Gathering for the first time. I stared in awe at the large stage for worship, as well as the rows and rows of people. I had never seen so many Lutherans (let alone, young Lutherans) in my life.

Fast-forward to a few years later when I was changing my major in college for the third time. One late night, I came across a degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management, which had a concentration in Event and Convention Management.

That’s when the lightbulb went on! Immediately, memories of the ELCA Youth Gathering replayed in my mind… the sea of people in their brightly colored shirts walking through the streets, the dynamic speakers during the Mass Gatherings, and the police officers collecting pins from the youth who had travelled from all over the country to attend.

These memories sparked my interest in a brand new career path.

During college, I volunteered for the 2009 Youth Gathering in New Orleans with my best friend. I got a glimpse of on-site operations to pull off this massive undertaking. The experience further solidified my passion for convention and tourism management.

After graduation, I worked for two Convention and Visitors Bureaus (CVBs), organizations that promote cities as convention and tourist destinations. CVBs often need to demonstrate to their local community how conventions and tourism positively affect their local economy. I felt confident in promoting these statistics because of my firsthand experiences with the ELCA Youth Gathering.

I now work for a trade show management company where I create marketplaces for businesses to connect and grow.

I feel that God has called me to help bring people together, face-to-face, for transformative experiences. The ELCA Youth Gathering taught me firsthand about the impact that conventions and tourism can have on a community.

I am proud to serve on the Operations Team for the 2018 Youth Gathering and offer my professional skills to an event that helped shape my vocation today.

See you in Houston!

– Bp. Erik Gronberg

In July of 1991, I enviously watched the youth from my church in Austin, Texas leave for the Gathering in Dallas. I was one year too young to go with them. In 1994, I was in Atlanta, Georgia in the Georgia Dome (where months earlier the beloved Dallas Cowboys won the Super Bowl) with over 35,000 peers. I had never seen so many Lutherans in one place. It was pouring rain when we left the Saturday night mass gathering, yet we walked with the inspiring words of Coretta Scott King ringing in our ears. We were changed. My wife, also an ELCA pastor, was in Atlanta in 1994. We met years later in seminary. When we got to know one another, we immediately connected around the experiences we had at the Atlanta Gathering.

When I was in college, I volunteered in New Orleans. As pastor, I took youth to Gatherings in San Antonio, New Orleans, and Detroit. At each Gathering, I watched and rejoiced as the vision of so many young people was expanded with a realization of the size, diversity, and global impact of our church.

ELCA Youth Gatherings are pivot moments – moments of worshiping with thousands of peers, being challenged to consider another context, seeing the needs of neighbors, asking questions about vocation, engaging in service, being inspired by music and speakers, and just having plain fun. The local parish is the core of our church, yet all ELCA youth should have this mountaintop experience and these pivot moments.

As Bishop of the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Mission Area/ Synod, I am prioritizing the 2018 Houston Gathering by sponsoring a group from congregations with three or less eligible youth, emerging ministries, and communities of color. It is essential these young people have this opportunity. I am happy to take on this responsibility as a pastor to my synod.

The upcoming Gathering in Houston will be my seventh. I look forward to seeing y’all there. Be prepared to be changed. As we say in Texas, “It’s gonna be a big time.”

Rev. Erik Gronberg, Ph.D. is Bishop of the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Mission Area/ Synod. He resides in Forth Worth with his wife, their three children, and their rescue cat.

– Carrie Gubsch

Do you think we should go back, Carrie? 

It seemed like an innocent question. A few weeks ago, a colleague and I were talking about the 2015 Youth Gathering in Detroit. The Gathering was a whirlwind. We left Nebraska at 6AM and drove to Des Moines. We picked up Ryan, a person supported by Mosaic, and his caregiver, Mike. We drove late in the evening, prepping Ryan for the trip. We talked through what the Gathering would be like and how important it was that Ryan was with us. His role was to share about his life, dreams, and goals with those attending the Gathering. My role was to teach parents, volunteers, and teens about the barriers people with disabilities face when they interact with faith communities and the rest of the world.

It was a beautifully chaotic week sharing stories with thousands of teens and adults who stopped by Mosaic’s booth. They learned about some of the injustices and barriers people with disabilities face. It wasn’t that long ago parents were encouraged to send children with disabilities to state-run institutions. In many places, they only received basic care. In others, they were mistreated, neglected, and abused. To this day, we hear stories from parents who were asked to leave a faith community because their children were deemed too disruptive in worship. Too often, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are missing in our communities. When this happens, we all suffer and our communities lose.

Ryan and a young woman named Sarah became fast friends. They talked about Ryan’s successes in Special Olympics, his job, and his friends. Sarah shared that she volunteered with Special Olympics and waned to study psychology and special education in college. Sarah gathered members of her group and Ryan and grabbed his selfie stick. She took a photo and shared it on Twitter, with the promise to make Ryan “Twitter famous.”

https://twitter.com/sarah_rhyne/status/621715766933606400

By the end of the week, hundreds of youth took photos with Ryan and his selfie stick. They shared them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, giving life to Mosaic’s belief that our faith communities are better when everyone can fit into God’s picture.

My carefully laid plans to teach how churches are not complete without people with disabilities couldn’t compete with Ryan and Sarah’s friendship in a chaotic sea of 30,000 strangers. These experiences at the Gathering are so important for youth. This is why Mosaic continues to attend the Gathering, even as we prepare for disastrous cuts to Medicaid, our primary funding support.

Our churches, towns, and world need people with disabilities. The body of Christ is not complete without them.

Carrie Gubsch (@cgubsch) is the Digital Communications Coordinator at Mosaic, an ELCA-affiliated social ministry that provides services to more than 3,700 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in ten states. She is a member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Tekamah, Nebraska.

– Theresa Hanley 

When I was first invited to attend the 2015 ELCA Youth Gathering in Detroit, Michigan, I was scared. Before the Gathering, I only knew of the negative connotation that surrounded Detroit. However, since my short time in Detroit, I will forever be able to speak so proudly of the city. When I went to the Gathering, I was able to see God more clearly than ever before, and the people of Detroit changed my life. The Gathering allowed me to truly listen to God’s call for me by not only speaking about social justice topics, but also acting on these issues. 

Jesus calls us to make ourselves vulnerable for those in need, and that is what the Gathering enables. My whole life, I attended a tiny church in central Pennsylvania where my brother and I are the only youth. Although this place is my home, the Gathering made me truly proud to be a member of the ELCA. The Gathering was the first time I was able to worship God with more than the forty people who attend service every Sunday.  

The Gathering is a place where you are surrounded by people who believe the same fundamental things as yourself. It is an experience that is impossible to recreate. Singing “Hallelujah” in a building filled with over 30,000 Lutheran youth from across the country and beyond makes you feel so humbled that you are a part of this church. The Gathering changed my faith journey and I am forever thankful for the opportunity.  

I cannot wait to see what God has in store for Houston.

– Heather Langan 

Hello, my name is Heather Langan and I am the assistant team leader for the 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering Community Life Planning Team.  I am so excited to be working as a member of this team as we create spaces for you and your youth to come together in fellowship, faith, and FUN while at the Gathering.   

So why should you bring your youth to the Community Life venues while you are in Houston?  What will spending time in the Community Life areas do for you?  Community Life will be the first people to greet you when you arrive in Houston at your hotel.  We will be there to help you check-in for the Gathering and to help you throughout your stay whether it be at your hotel or at NRG Park. We will be there to answer your questions to help make your experience at the Gathering be enjoyable and knowledgeable. 

When you arrive at NRG Park and are trying to figure out what to do with your youth until the “next thing” happens, we will be there to provide you lots of options. Community Life is organizing the playground which will be full of large group games, inflatables, and relaxation areas; to our concerts and youth talent showcases; to worship services and small group bible studies.  We are here to help and to serve you making your time in Houston a time to grow together as a youth group and also in your personal faith development.   

We will be in Houston to help you and to help your group have a great time whether you are at play or just spending time together. Community Life wants to serve you!