YMCA Norfolk encourage Christians to get involved

When Connect Norwich met at the YMCA community hub in Norwich this month, they were encouraged to consider the ways in which their churches could be part of the lives of young people.

Connect Norwich gathered leaders from across churches and charities in Greater Norwich to share lunch at the Aylsham Road YMCA community hub, build relationships and hear about the work of the YMCA Norfolk.

John Lee, Chief Executive Officer of YMCA Norfolk, spoke about how churches have been the great supporters of YMCA Norfolk since its inception in 1856. YMCA Norfolk has since grown so that it has been able to provide 368 young people with accommodation this year and over a thousand therapeutic or counselling sessions, as well as support across numerous other areas of their lives.

But John encouraged churches that there is more to be done and many different ways to get involved. One example is through the youth trustee programme. John explained that this is “a great opportunity for someone between 18 and 30 years old who might be in your church, who cares about justice, who cares about the outworking of their Christian faith, who cares about supporting local young people. It's a fantastic professional development opportunity. I'm actually probably doing the work I'm doing today because I was a trustee many, many years ago.  I learned a lot about leadership, a lot about management through being a trustee. So it's probably why I'm so passionate about this. There is mentorship provided, there is training provided, there are residentials provided.”

John also talked about the role which Christians can play in providing supported lodgings: “it's a really practical and tangible way of supporting young people. We take great care and attention in finding the right young person for the right host family. And so if people in your church have got a spare room, maybe their kids have fled the nest, or maybe they're retiring and they've got spare rooms, this is a great opportunity to take a young person in. We see some of the best outcomes for young people in this setting, because we're out teaching them life skills. You are paid rent, you get training from us, you get ongoing weekly support.”

Megan Saunders, Chaplain for YMCA Norfolk also spoke about the things she has learned over the last year in her role working with young people, including the importance of consistency and relying on God.  Megan summarised what she has learned as “a flexible approach, being at our sites on a regular basis, and being able to listen and just have those small chats, remember those little bits of information, and just pray, God, would you multiply whatever I've got to do today.”

Megan explained that she is also looking to expand the chaplaincy team at YMCA Norfolk and would be pleased to hear from anyone who might  be interested in joining as a volunteer.

To find out more about YMCA Norfolk visit https://www.ymcanorfolk.org/
 
The  next meeting of Connect Norwich will be on September 11 at the Matthew Project.

You can read more about the purpose of Connect Norwich and how donations can be made here. Please contact Anna Heydon with any questions: connectnorwich@networknorwich.co.uk



Photo of John Lee speaking at the Connect Norwich lunch taken by Anna Heydon