Youth. They’re always a big part of church growth. They attract new crowds with their energy. Their fingers are on the pulse of society. They push the church to keep pace with cultural changes, allowing for more effective ministry impact.

In the 1950s, the dream of CSC began when mission-minded youth pushed for food, films and fun in a too-small church. Their choir attracted crowds from across the city. By 1958, God opened doors for this youth group to begin a church of their own in north Calgary. They called it Centre Street Church.

In the early days, CSC’s youth were led by volunteers from the church. In 1976, CSC hired our first Youth Pastor, Dave Currie. During his time at CSC, youth functions exploded in size, going from a couple dozen youth to well over one hundred! Every Friday night, Currie organized huge events, such as scavenger hunts, crazy Olympics or pizza races. Outreach activities were also a big part of the ministry, including Sunday afternoon flag football, baseball and midnight hockey. Pastor Dave’s energy was contagious and inspiring, and he instilled in the youth a desire to reach out to their non-Christian friends and bring them to youth activities.

Gail Boldt was one of many non-Christian youth who had been invited, and started attending regularly in 1977. She has been regularly attending CSC ever since. “At the end of every event, Dave always had a ‘five minuter’ (a gospel talk),” Gail recalled. “I came on Friday nights to have a good time with my friends. I never thought of it as a church thing, but Dave’s ‘five minuters’ were the beginning of my personal walk with God,” she said.

CSC exploded with youth once again after Pastor Henry Schorr’s arrival in 1981. Pastor Henry and his wife Gwen had a strong gift in hospitality and invited kids to gather in their home. Over time, their authenticity and down-to-earth approach attracted youth in large numbers. They began meeting at the church to accommodate the growing number of youth in attendance.

“The greatest sermon Henry preached was his life,” said Gordon Elhard, a CSC Charter Member whose own kids thrived in Pastor Henry’s youth program. “He had a heart for these kids like you wouldn’t believe.”

During this time, the youth began to push for changes in worship style, resulting in more diverse worship services.

In the 1990s, CSC’s youth group pushed the envelope again with a cutting drama about sensitive social issues (called Sarah’s Hope). “We took a huge risk doing the play during our weekend services. Nobody knew it was coming,” recalled Family Ministry Pastor Matt Schorr, who was a youth at the time.

In the end, the play was a success. “It was during that period of crazy growth that we signaled to people, come as you are. You don’t need to know or wear or be anything specific,” said Matt, adding that CSC became a safe place for people from all walks of life. CSC started to become a “seeker-friendly” church.

As the youth group continued to grow and diversify, the ministry shifted and transformed to grow with its youth. By 2000, our Youth Ministry included a Saturday morning program for junior high students called JHAM (Jr. High A.M.), a Sunday night worship service for senior high students, Create Ministry affinity groups for kids who wanted to be part of the tech team, set design, acting, painting, etc., Crossover Sports Ministry, and small groups.

“With the Youth Ministry, God used the giftedness and the calling of passionate individuals to reach kids where they were with their own uniqueness,” said Pastor Wayne Smele, reflecting on the diverse youth opportunities while he served as Youth Pastor in the 2000s. “God moved by helping students find their identity both in Christ, in community and their own unique giftedness — because there was room for everyone to experience God where they were. We did four missions trips a year. We delivered shoe boxes. We built houses. We ministered to the homeless. These unique opportunities developed students’ own identities and who they could be in Christ,” he said.

By 2010, our Youth Ministry started to notice a new trend. “The thinking was that young people just wanted to talk about real life issues and have real conversations in a less structured, small group environment,” said Mike. While he believed there was a lot of truth in youth craving those deeper relationships, he also sensed there was more to the story. Perhaps, he thought, youth leaders were defaulting to youth “hangout” events, without having the resources or time for the really important stuff — quality programming, Bible studies, meaningful small group experiences and worship. “An intense team effort was needed to not just disciple youth, but also to create a fun and exciting environment that youth would bring their Christian and non-Christian friends to,” said Mike.

With a clear vision, good old-fashioned hard work and thousands of hours of volunteer efforts, Mike and his team crafted a youth ministry that blended the traditional with the new. Three monthly fun gatherings attracted large numbers of youth on Fridays. Weekly Wednesday gatherings hosted in larger homes brought youth together in small groups where they learned to work out their faith and follow Jesus with their peers. Youth leaders rolled up their sleeves to disciple youth in small groups, but also have one-on-one time with them, going for coffee, meeting their families, and just being in their lives.

What started with just a handful of youth, grew to over one hundred, with many of them bringing their parents and families to Sunday services at NW campus.

And just as they have always done in the past, our youth are pushing the envelope once again, this time bringing our diversity of worship services to the next level. At Central Campus, our youth-driven, and Holy Spirit driven Night of Worship brings a concert like experience to worship, drawing in people of all ages, cultures and backgrounds.

It’s no doubt that CSC’s youth are on fire for Jesus.

BUILD more room for youth and young adults

At CSC, our youth and young adults have incredible passion for Jesus. They bring energy and enthusiasm to the mission. They also face some of the most difficult social challenges and life obstacles. Christ-centred family, community, and discipleship can help youth and young adults stand firm against the destructive counter-identities the world will offer.

“The biggest challenge for youth and youth leaders today is church and Biblical relevance…they’re facing a non-Christian culture,” said Pastor Wayne. “Parents need to be equipped to disciple their kids and to live a life worth imitating in front of them. Kids need to learn how to read their Bible by watching their parents. Parents should never abdicate that responsibility to pastors, and that is even more magnified in this society. Pastors come alongside families and they are phenomenal, but the old saying ‘It takes a village to raise a child’ is true — specifically, it takes a Christian village to raise children who want to love and serve Christ. It isn’t just about passing along information, it’s about giving them an imitable life style,” he said.

At each of our five campuses, our youth and young adults meet in missional communities, apprentice on worship teams, volunteer in ministries, and serve overseas.

The reality is that the sale of our West Campus will displace our Youth and Young Adults Ministries, and many other discipleship ministries, to our Central Campus by 2021.

Additionally, our Northwest Campus is bursting with youth and young adults on mission. The Youth Ministry alone has grown to over 100 people! They need a space to gather all week long for fun, community and discipleship.

Simply put, we need more room so that our Youth and Young Adults Ministries can continue to grow and thrive in their passion for Christ. It is our vision that through a Central Campus expansion and a permanent NW Campus, we will build multi-use ministry environments, including recreation space, classrooms and breakout spaces for effective ministry to youth and young adults all week long.

Our youth are our future. Will you help us as we build more room for them and their future at CSC?

(With files from Elsa Henderson’s Stones of Remembrance)