The YCL Leader Reunion was held at the Diocesan Centre on Friday 31 July.
Our Year 13 students who graduated from the Young Catholic Leader (YCL) Programme gathered with their leaders and mentors to revisit their learning and reflect on their experiences as school leaders this year. Together, they revisited the key principles of leadership and explored the application of servant leadership within the context of their secondary schools.
We are thrilled to see the learning from this diocesan programme bearing fruit in our Catholic secondary schools. The reunion provided an opportunity to reflect on both the challenges and successes of leadership, and to consider where their leadership journey might lead next.
In St Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he writes: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). Our young leaders are excited, energetic, and hope-filled as they seek to live out this call to servant leadership in the Church.
The programme included input from Nick Wilson and Jude Bell-White from the YCL Programme, as well as visiting speaker Braden Johnson from the United States. Following the reunion, the YCL graduates played an important role in preparing for the diocesan Fully Alive Youth Festival, held the following day at St Peter’s College.
On Saturday 1 August, more than 150 young people from across the Diocese of Palmerston North gathered for the festival, a vibrant day of faith, friendship, worship, and encounter with Christ. Young people from parishes, schools, and youth ministries across the diocese took part in keynote sessions, workshops, praise and worship, and opportunities to connect with fellow young Catholics.
Braden Johnson’s engaging and authentic presentations encouraged participants to discover that true freedom and fulfilment are found in a life centred on Jesus Christ. At the heart of the day was the celebration of the Eucharist and an extended time of Eucharistic Adoration, where many young people experienced a profound encounter with Christ through prayer and reflection.
The success of both the YCL Reunion and the Fully Alive Youth Festival highlights the Diocese’s commitment to investing in young people and empowering them to live and lead with faith. This is the first time we have run the YCL programme in this format and, based on its success, we hope to make it an annual event alongside the Youth Festival.
We look forward to the continued fruits of the Diocese’s investment in our young leaders. Mauri ora!
