Young Life

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Young Life is the name of a Christian inter-denominational parachurch organization, but more commonly refers to the outreach arm of the organization directed towards high school students, as the other groups operate under different names and mandates, including:

WyldLife - directed towards middle school children

Urban Young Life - directed towards inner-city teenagers

Capernaum - directed towards teenagers with mental and physical disabilities

Young Lives - directed towards teenage mothers

Young Life College - directed towards college students

Asian Young Life - directed towards Asian American teenagers

National Ministries - directed towards young people in foreign countries

International School Ministries - directed towards students living outside their home countries attending English-based schools

Military Communities Youth Ministries - directed towards teens worldwide living on military bases

Amicus International Student Exchange - directed towards foreign exchange students who live with American families in order to attend Young Life events and camps

[edit] Background

Young Life in the United States of America was founded by Jim Rayburn in Texas in 1941. Rayburn borrowed the name "Young Life", with permission, from the National Young Life Campaign in the UK. It was the philosophies of this US version that inspired evangelical efforts in more than 50 other countries, reaching an estimated 1 million teenagers annually. The goal of Young Life is to be safe and non-threatening.

Young Life's ministry philosophy is called "incarnational" or "relational" ministry, the idea of which is to create friendships in order to communicate the Christian gospel with greater ease. Young Life's goals are to build mentor-like relationships with teenagers and to eventually communicate Christian beliefs about Jesus Christ. Young Life encourages teenagers to explore the Christian faith through weekly club meetings, bible studies, relationships with adults and peers, as well as a variety of camping trips.

All Young Life activities are coordinated by the Young Life area director or by volunteer Young Life leaders, who are assigned to a particular high school. These volunteer leaders are usually trained by the area director, who is ultimately accountable for their actions and whatever activities are planned. Areas are divided geographically and borders are subject to change. The training process is left up to the judgement of the area director, however Young Life has a hierarchy like most organizations where a supervising staff member is accountable for every staff member under them all the way up to the president of the organization. Young Life's current president is Denny Rydberg.

Campers relax in the pool at the Young Life camp Wildhorse Canyon, located in Antelope, Oregon.

Young Life is active throughout all 50 states in the United States of America and currently has a club present in roughly 1/3 of the high schools across the nation. More than 75,000 teenagers spend a weekend during the school year or a week during the summer at one of Young Life's camping properties in the United States and Canada.

[edit] Reaching Out To Kids

The Young Life organization has intentional ways of reaching out to youth throughout the world through what the ministry calls "The 5 C's":

Contact Work - Any instance where Young Life leaders spend time with teenagers in an informal setting. Examples of "contact work" encouraged by Young Life staff include going to sporting events, talking after school, and hanging out with teenagers during their daily activities. Contact work is the foundation for the ministry of Young Life. It was one of the founding principles and the basis to spreading the ministry.

Club - The chief event of Young Life. Club typically includes one or more of the following activities: skits performed by students and/or leaders, icebreakers, singing pop music, and a short talk (usually around 10 minutes) about Jesus Christ. Many Young Life clubs have "membership" that is a loose term, as membership is not at all required to take part in Young Life sponsored activities, but is merely a status noted when students fill out a card containing demographic information about themselves. Membership is open to all students and has no requirements.

Campaigners - An optional bible study for students. This event typically includes singing Christian songs as well. Since the study is optional, only a portion of Young Life club members attend.

Camp - Every summer Young Life leaders arrange a trip to take teenagers to one of the camps owned by the organization. Young Life camps are staffed by volunteer high school students and college students, along with a few full-time and part-time camp property staff members. Students involved as camp staff commit to a month of service. Food and lodging are provided for the volunteer camp staff. The high school students are refered to as "Work Crew" and the college students are refered to as "Summer Staff". Camps range from 5 to 7 days and include numerous voluntary activities. These events include: sports, field games, arts & crafts, swimming, Young Life club, a time to reflect on what they have heard about Jesus Christ, and role-playing dramas where Young Life leaders act out scenes and monologues as if they were high school students. Camps also include activities that may be specific to that particular camp... kart racing, ropes courses, and mountain bikes are examples.

Committee - A group of adults who are committed to supporting Young Life in their local area. Support from committee members typically includes any combination of prayer, planning, and/or donations. Most Young Life committees have a volunteer chairperson who is responsible for all committee coordination efforts. Committee chairpersons often co-sponser local fundraising efforts, as Young Life area directors are responsible for raising the vast majority of their own area's operating budget... banquets and golf tournaments are examples of common fundraising events.

[edit] Camping

There are currently 19 Young Life camps in operation across the continental United States, 2 camps in British Columbia, and 3 camps in Latin America:
Breakaway Lodge in Gearhart, Oregon
Buttercreek Lodge in Centralia, Washington
Castaway Club in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota
Crooked Creek Ranch in Fraser, Colorado
Frontier Ranch in Buena Vista, Colorado
Lake Champion in Glen Spey, New York
Lost Canyon in Williams, Arizona
Malibu Club in Edgmont, B.C., Canada
Beyond Malibu in the Princess Luisa Inlet, B.C., Canada
Mountain Lodge in Soda Springs, California
Oakbridge in Ramona, California
Rockbridge Alum Springs in Goshen, Virgnia
Rockridge Canyon in Princeton, B.C., Canada
Saranac Village in Saranac Lake, New York
SharpTop Cove in Jasper, Georgia
Southwind in Ocklawaha, Florida
Timber Wolf Lake in Lake City, Michigan
Trail West Lodge in Buena Vista, Colorado
Wilderness Ranch in Buena Vista, Colorado
Wildhorse Canyon in Antelope, Oregon
Windy Gap in Weaverville, North Carolina
Woodleaf in Challenge, California

Pico Escondido, The Dominican Republic
Fazenda Salto, Minas Gervais, Brazil
La Finca, Nicaragua