Karri Duerwachter
"Working with the teenagers at St. Charles gives me a reason to stay focused
on my faith and use what I know to teach and encourage them to stay true to
their faith and themselves. A lot of the time they're the ones reminding me of
the same thing! It's tough sometimes to remember that God is there for the good
AND the bad and that's something I have to remind the kids when they're having a
bad day or facing an obstacle in their life. I think anyone - parent or not -
should get involved at least a little bit with our Life Teen ministry because it's
spiritually cleansing and fun! "
Karri is an alum of Arrowhead and has been apart of the Core team since 2010. She is currently part of our IGNITE Core Team and our retreat core team.
Karri is an alum of Arrowhead and has been apart of the Core team since 2010. She is currently part of our IGNITE Core Team and our retreat core team.
Vicki Dubnicka
"Too often, youth are judged unfairly. Their walk, their talk, their style are
fodder for criticism. How difficult is it to remember teens are trying to find
their way, even despite their attempts to convince the world otherwise? They
don't need adults ostracizing them. They need adults encouraging them.
I work with teens because I believe they are full of passion and promise and that this is the toughest time in their lives. I don't want them EVER to think they are alone. I want them to know God gave us His Son, Jesus Christ to lead us, love us, and comfort us. I hope with that knowledge they'll be empowered to live life to the fullest. It is a blessing to work with these AWESOME young people!"
Vicki is on a sabbatical from the core team after serving for ten years to go back to school. She has been part of both our confirmation and retreat team. She has three college students, all of whom went to through our ministry.
I work with teens because I believe they are full of passion and promise and that this is the toughest time in their lives. I don't want them EVER to think they are alone. I want them to know God gave us His Son, Jesus Christ to lead us, love us, and comfort us. I hope with that knowledge they'll be empowered to live life to the fullest. It is a blessing to work with these AWESOME young people!"
Vicki is on a sabbatical from the core team after serving for ten years to go back to school. She has been part of both our confirmation and retreat team. She has three college students, all of whom went to through our ministry.
Bruce Lanser
"Why
do I like working with teenagers? First of all, I think that our society today
is driven by a set of twisted values that do not have Christ at the center and
are not consistent with our Catholic faith. There is too much emphasis on what
we can get/do for ourselves and not enough emphasis on what we can do for
others. Put differently, society teaches us to be self centered and not “other
centered.”
Unfortunately, teenagers are being formed largely by the values of society’s new “normal” and are not being formed in the Christian tradition. So I think that teenagers, in particular, are at a critical crossroads in their lives where they can take the path of Jesus or they can take the alternative, and frequently more attractive path, created by society which is based on selfishness. Generally, I don’t think that teenagers have selected one path or the other, and I also think that they are truly desirous of taking the more righteous path – if only there were a guiding hand to nudge them in the right direction.
And that’s where we come in – the core team. Using our gifts from God we can serve as that invisible, reassuring hand on those teenagers’ shoulders. Once one of those teenagers “gets” what we are trying to communicate to them, you see this incredible epiphany taking place as they begin to truly, perhaps for the first time ever, embrace Christ and their faith. For me, there is very little that is more rewarding then bringing one of those teenagers to Christ, renewing introductions first created at Baptism, and then watching them walk hand in hand, hoping of course that they never let go."
Bruce has been part of the core team for the past five years, mostly as part of the Confirmation and retreat core teams. He has yet to miss a retreat since Andrew first asked him in 2010. He is also part of our IGNITE ministry to spend time with his younger two daughters and also occasionally leads a Life Group with his wife. Bruce's eldest daughter is out of high school.
Unfortunately, teenagers are being formed largely by the values of society’s new “normal” and are not being formed in the Christian tradition. So I think that teenagers, in particular, are at a critical crossroads in their lives where they can take the path of Jesus or they can take the alternative, and frequently more attractive path, created by society which is based on selfishness. Generally, I don’t think that teenagers have selected one path or the other, and I also think that they are truly desirous of taking the more righteous path – if only there were a guiding hand to nudge them in the right direction.
And that’s where we come in – the core team. Using our gifts from God we can serve as that invisible, reassuring hand on those teenagers’ shoulders. Once one of those teenagers “gets” what we are trying to communicate to them, you see this incredible epiphany taking place as they begin to truly, perhaps for the first time ever, embrace Christ and their faith. For me, there is very little that is more rewarding then bringing one of those teenagers to Christ, renewing introductions first created at Baptism, and then watching them walk hand in hand, hoping of course that they never let go."
Bruce has been part of the core team for the past five years, mostly as part of the Confirmation and retreat core teams. He has yet to miss a retreat since Andrew first asked him in 2010. He is also part of our IGNITE ministry to spend time with his younger two daughters and also occasionally leads a Life Group with his wife. Bruce's eldest daughter is out of high school.
