COOPERATIVE YOUTH MINISTRY (CYM)
Hello everyone!
A heartfelt welcome to our returning youth and our incoming new members! We’re elated to have you all join us!
For additional information about the Cooperative Youth Ministry (CYM) program, please scroll below.
If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Claire Barry (cisbarry@gmail.com) or Rebecca Adams (rebecca_adamstaylor@yahoo.com).
Cooperative Youth Ministry (CYM) Overview
Cooperative Youth Ministry (CYM) explores youth-centered “faith that seeks understanding” in rapidly changing environments, including social media.
Middle and high school youths are offered opportunities for fun outings, service projects, and spiritual formation with a focus on inclusion and community connection. Youth church school on Sunday morning, joining in the life of the church by helping in and around the service, activities after church or on Sundays evenings, and partnering with other local congregations are all part of the rich CYM program this year.
In the summer, there is always a mission trip to serve a community in need. Past trips include home repair projects in West Virginia; Neptune City, NJ; and Juna Diaz, Puerto Rico. We also take other trips. In 2022, we took a short trip to experience the themes of “immigration” (Ellis Island, NYC’s Little Italy, Chinatown, St. Patrick’s Cathedral), “freedom,” and other formative issues that bring witness to faith and values.
In the fall, we look forward to the annual retreat in WV at our church’s Retreat Center. We unwind and recharge to restore our spirit, mind, and body!
We welcome you! Please come, check it out and visit with us. Explore your imaginative faith and discover God. If you can, stay till after you graduate from high school. You’ll experience a lasting chapter of your life. You’ll always have a spiritual home to return to.
Registration Forms
CYM Values
- Connection of Gospel and faith to social justice and service projects
- Developing commitment to faith, hope, and love through lasting friendships
- Inclusivity, acceptance, and encouragement
- Reflection, fellowship, and youth being youth
- Integration of the relationship, sexual education and ethics program Our Whole Lives (OWL) into youth development
- Building intergenerational opportunities for worship
If you are a youth leader of a church, and you would like for your youth to join CYM for any activity or program below, to further build youth communities, we invite you to reach out to Claire Barry (cisbarry@gmail.com).
Upcoming Events
A new Sunday school class using the Generation Why curriculum from Shine started on September 8th. This class will be open to all youth in grades 6th-12th. Class will begin at 10:30am in the Conference Room (don’t go to church with your families!). This class will meet twice a month. The next meeting after September 8th will be on September 29th at the same time, followed by October 20th and November 17th.
More CYM events:
September 22nd – 6:00- 7:30pm CYM Bible Study at SSUMC with Pastor Daniel.
September 29th – Youth Church School (morning). Afternoon-1-3pm: Sweep the Creek clean up, Middle Long Branch section. Rolling Terrace ES at 1pm. Brown bag lunch at church and carpool over. SSL hours. SSUMC invited.
October 6th – World Communion Sunday, bake breads, lay reader, set up and serve communion, help on a team before church/during/after church. Evening: 5:30pm Meier’s house.
October 13th – Morning: Plan for Fall Festival during the service or help on a team before/during/after church. Afternoon: 3pm Ziplining, Sandy Spring Adventure Park, SSUMC invited.
October 20th – Morning: Youth Church School. Fall Festival after worship. Youth to assist at the festival (SSL hours).
October 27th – Morning: help on a team before church/during/after church, Afternoon/Evening: Orchard visit with SSUMC.
November 2nd-3rd – Saturday to Sunday Youth Retreat @ the Retreat Center in WV.
November 10th – Morning: Food Justice DMV Food Drive – make posters during the service. Provide reminders in services and then drop off donations at end of drive (SSL hours). Evening: Combined activity with SSUMC (TBD).
November 17th – Morning: Youth Church School.
November 24th – Morning: help on a team before church/during/after church. Evening: Decolonized Thanksgiving 6:00-7:30pm at SSUMC with Pastor Daniel.
December 1st – Morning: Communion Sunday, help on a team before church/during/after church. Afternoon: Pancakes with Mrs. Claus and Advent Wreath Workshop.
December 6th – Friday night Lock-In at CCC and then help put up Christmas decorations Saturday morning from 10am to noon.
December 8th – Morning: CCC 80th Anniversary service and celebration.
December 15th – Evening: Christmas Party combined with SSUMC.
December 22nd – Morning- Christmas Music Sunday
Caroling – date TBD
January 4th – help take down Christmas decorations 10am to noon
January 20th – Monday MLK Day of Service
Past Events
Bowling in College Park, ice skating and a cooking competition were among the many fun activities in 2023! We also brought back our annual Spaghetti Lunch in February. This has become an annual fundraiser for our summer mission trip. Last year we were able to raise approximately $800 toward our trip!
2023-2024:
- September 10th – Beach trip!
- September 17 – Special Guest Speaker Event: “A Potluck and Parenting Journey” with Esther Schwartz-McKinzie, Ph.D., a passionate advocate for inclusivity, women’s voices, and LGBTQ+ rights, and author of “Speaking Out: Families of LGBTQ+ Advance the Dialogue,”. Parents of teens participated in a special workshop led by Esther (topics: Understanding Youth Sexuality and Gender Identity, Positive Parenting for LGBTQ+ Teens and Allies, and MCPS: The State of Inclusive Education), while teens had a fun, interactive session with Pastor Matt filled with games, fellowship, and spiritual exploration, and had a blast.
- October 1 – CYM volunteered to distribute food for those in need at MUM’s Mobile Pantry
- October 8th – Visited Riderwood retirement community; pizza dinner with friends.
- October 15th – CYM prepared sandwiches to give to Shepherd’s Table for homeless people
- October 22 – CYM volunteered with the CCC Fall Festival
- October 29 – Ziplining on the ropes course at Sandy Spring Adventure Park!
- November 4 & 5 – CYM fall youth group retreat, led by Pastor Matt, held at the Retreat Center in West Virginia
- November 12 – CYM Focus Group and Games
- November 19 – CYM Career Day!
- December 3 – CYM volunteered to distribute food for those in need at MUM’s Mobile Pantry
- Dec. 10 – CYM went ice skating at Wheaton Ice Arena!
- Dec. 17 – CYM Christmas Party with Pastor Matt and white elephant gift exchange!
Jan. 7 – Making sandwiches for Shepherd’s Table + Potluck Dinner. Thanks to CCC member Kristen Brown for organizing our efforts to make 200 sandwiches for people in need.
Jan. 21 – Indoor Rock Climbing! We had a great time rock climbing at ClimbZone in Laurel. We had 11 preteens and teens who were worn out by the end.
- Jan. 28 – What does it mean to love your neighbor? We discussed ways to do this before making friendship bracelets for pediatric patients (SSL hours available) and a round of games and a potluck dinner.
Feb. 4 – CYM volunteered with the mobile food pantry run by Mid-County United Ministries (MUM) in the afternoon. Aspen Hill Christian Church, 13501 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, MD (at the corner of Georgia Avenue and Hewitt Avenue).
- Updates to this list coming soon!
We also routinely make sandwiches for the homeless, go into the community to volunteer with organizations like A Wider Circle or Shepherd’s Table or MUM (and earn SSL hours), build disaster relief kits for other areas, and participate in outdoor clean-up events.
Expectations & Volunteers
Expectations
We expect youth to:
- Participate wholeheartedly
- Adhere to the safe church policy, including language, behavior, and respect for church property
- Let us know how we can better serve them.
The same for parents!
Our Key Values in Youth Ministry
- Developing faith, hope, love and friendship among young people.
- Inclusivity
- Provision for “multiple intelligences” in activities and worship
- Connection of Gospel and faith to social justice and service projects
- Intentional experience with spiritual practices
- Fellowship and recreation
- Integration of youth with all aspects of church life
- Building inter-generational opportunities for worship and mission
Youth Officers
CYM will have elections in mid-September for youth officers. We will rotate every four to six months to give as many youth opportunities to serve. Please encourage your youth(s) to get involved and serve. Officers will meet once a month, about two hours before our regularly scheduled meeting and help plan and execute our ministry.
Parent Volunteers
Our parent volunteers are “ROCK STARS!” They really make our program run smoothly and effectively. We strongly encourage you to volunteer throughout the school year (e.g., chaperones), and would love for you to get involved! We also have a set of parent leaders who help with the ins and outs of our program. We will remind parents regularly about volunteer opportunities.
Summer 2023 Mission Trip
