Cover Story - I Want to Guide Them and Walk with Them

It’s a wintry Friday night in February and the lights in St. Basil’s Parish community room cast a soft glow against the quiet lakefront street in South Haven. While most 20-somethings are busy readying for a night out with friends, Sandra Rayas is getting ready for a different gathering: her newly launched middle school youth group. On this night she leads a few games, helps with a craft and engages the group in discussions about St. Valentine and putting God as the love of one’s life. The group’s infectious laughter and camaraderie taking place at the Parish might not be a typical Friday night out but it appears to be a successful faith-filled one.

Young Adult Leaders

Sandra represents a hopefully growing trend of young adults who are emerging as ministry leaders within the Church. They are enthusiastically being formed in the faith while giving back to their parish communities.

In the diocese, Sandra is one of three young Hispanic/Latino adults who are participants in Catholic Extension’s Pastoral Ministry Certificate Program. The need for more young adults engaged in the Catholic faith was one of the strategic goals that emerged from the V Encuentro*, explains Veronica Rodriguez, Director of Hispanic Ministry for the diocese. “We discovered many young adult Latinos weren’t receiving adequate ministry formation or leadership opportunities.”

Veronica learned about the program and secured a grant that supports the participants through the multi-year program. Participants earn a certificate (or optional Bachelor’s degree) after completing the course of studies at the Mexican American Catholic College in San Antonio, Texas.

“Generally when looking for ministry leaders the diocese has received applicants from outside the area,” notes Veronica. “I made the case —  why not invest in our own people? We have great young people who were willing to accept the opportunity.“ They are the present and the future,” adds Veronica.

For Sandra, participating in the academically rigorous program was a great opportunity to strengthen her education in the Catholic faith. “I’m learning about my faith and getting tools I can use and pass along in my ministry work at my parish.”

Sandra, who has a full-time job as a certified dental assistant, takes classes two nights a week for 2½ hours. “Sometimes I have to drink cups and cups of coffee,” she jokes, “but it’s well worth it.”

Deep roots

Sandra credits her commitment to her faith to the deep connection she has to both her extended family as well as her St. Basil Parish family. She received all her sacraments at the parish from her baptism to just last fall marrying her high school sweetheart, Alejandro. She enjoys having both her and her husband’s extended family in the area.

And while she’s been fortunate to travel to different parts of the country and South America, the South Haven native can’t imagine living anywhere else. “Everybody is so close and lives right here in the area. We go to each other’s houses and hang out. I get to see my nephews grow up and I adore all of them.”

Sandra credits her parents for instilling in her the importance of family and her Catholic faith. She explains it wasn’t always easy and remembers fondly being in middle school when the pastor of her parish, then Father Bob Flickinger, started to influence her family to become more involved. She laughs that she was an altar server “even through college.”

Ministry

Today Sandra’s ministry extends to many avenues. Her newly launched middle school youth group meets weekly; she teaches first-year First Communion religious education classes and hopes to transition into taking on even more responsibilities in the coming years.

And it’s the youth who have a special place in her heart.

“I always tell everybody — give these kids space in the parish. Tell them ‘you are important in this parish no matter how old you are,’” she says. “I want to guide them and walk with them. And I’m always like, ‘Hey, let’s get you guys involved.’”

“I’m very excited for the future. The kids want to be part of the community too,” she adds. 

Influences

Sandra’s heart for ministry can also be traced back to some “pretty special” people as she describes, her former pastor, Fr. Bob Flickinger and the Hermanas Misioneras Siervas del Divino Espiritu Sister Maria and Sister Maryud.

“Fr. Bob married my parents; he’s the one who baptized me and did my quinceañera.”Just recently Sandra interviewed Fr. Bob for a  school assignment, and while she can’t remember a time she didn’t know him, she was blown away by  his vocation story.

“Getting to know his story was just so amazing.” Another influence on Sandra’s faith has been her  special bond with Sister Maria and Sister Maryud.

“Oh, the Sisters are definitely part of my family —  I see them as aunts,” she says.

“Before they came I always thought nuns were reserved and strict and didn’t have fun; boy was I wrong! They are so much fun — they can joke around and talk about anything, and they are so down to earth.

“The best moment I’ve had with them is when we went to World Youth Day in Panama [in 2019],” explains Sandra who describes the experience as “a party with Jesus.” She credits the sisters for making it a reality.

“We did so many fundraisers, and we worked as a great team. I made a ton of tamales,” she laughs.

“My faith is so much stronger just because of that experience. Being with other people of my faith made me feel capable that I can do so much more.”

It’s an experience she hopes to someday share with her youth group so they may be motivated to follow  in her footsteps. 

Challenges

There’s a plethora of statistics, articles and studies on the need to engage young adults in the life of the Church. And yet when they do become involved, they can sometimes encounter resistance and obstacles. For example a recent CARA survey* notes that pre-pandemic less than 15 percent of young adults were attending weekly Mass. And when the non-Mass going 85 percent were asked why not, the majority cited having too busy a schedule.

“People don’t always take me seriously because of my age,” says Sandra. But she admits her positivity and persistence as well as her strong support network keep her going when others may be discouraged.

“I’m not afraid to take those risks, and now I feel like I’ve earned some trust in the community,” she adds. “They text me, call me and ask me about things I’m involved in — I love that.”

And is there ever a time that her faith is tested?

“People always test my faith,” she says without hesitation. “People not thinking you’re capable of doing things and it hurts you along the way.

“But I never tend to dwell on those situations, and I let them go. I’ll do my best. I know I’m not perfect. Sometimes I’ll start thinking: ‘What’s my purpose? Why am I doing this?’ But I’m lucky — I have a good support system — if I didn’t have that support system — you’d probably not be talking to me right now.”

A new ministry on the horizon

In addition to daughter, sister, wife, aunt, youth group leader, catechist and student, Sandra will have a new title come this fall: mamma. She just found out she’s expecting her first baby, who will be due  in September.

“It’s a scary thing,” admits Sandra. “I’m so involved with the Church, and I’m scared of not being able to be as flexible to help. But I’ll just keep praying and hope for the best.

“It’s so funny to think about now but at one point when I was a teenager I didn’t want this [type of life],” remembers Sandra. “I was going to move far away. But now I can’t imagine living anywhere else. I wouldn’t change anything in my life — everything is there for a purpose.


*Faith and Spiritual Life of Catholics in the United States, CARA (Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate), Georgetown University Washington, D.C., November 2021 https://cara.georgetown.edu/youngadults2020.pdf


Catholic Extension in conjunction with Mexican-American Catholic College offers pastoral leaders from mission dioceses working with the Hispanic community, who have not started or completed their higher education, this B.A.-level Scholarship at Mexican-American Catholic College to obtain a Certificate in Pastoral Ministry. Catholic Extension is a fundraising organization that helps ensure that all American Catholics can practice their faith within vibrant faith communities. The non-profits mission is through support from its donors to connect poor and remote Catholic communities with essential financial support, educational partnerships, and infrastruc-ture. For more information visit: catholicextension.org.

V ENCUENTRO

The V Encuentro was convened in the context of the New Evangelization and emphasized the importance of involving young, second and third generation Hispanics/Latinos. Implementation began in 2017 with diocesan, regional gatherings culminating in the national gathering in Grapevine, Texas in 2018. Visit https://vencuentro.org/results/ for more information.

DID YOU KNOW:   

• According to the 2020 census, there are 62,080 Hispanics/Latinos in the Diocese of Kalamazoo and according to the  State of Michigan around 19,000 migrant farmworkers come in the summer.
• Studies from V Encuentro show that 52 percent of Hispanics/Latinos are Catholics; translated to the Diocese of Kalamazoo would mean there are approximately 32,281 permanent residents and 9,880 migrant farmworkers that are Hispanic/Latino Catholics in the Diocese of Kalamazoo
• According to the 2019 Census Estimates, the median age for Hispanics/Latinos in Michigan is 25.6 yrs.
• 11 parishes provide Mass and other services in Spanish
• 12 parishes provide visits and other services to the migrant farmworkers who come during the summer to harvest our crops
• 220 individuals have graduated from ISAK (Instituto San Agustin – Hispanic Pastoral Leadership Formation Program), a three-year leadership formation program
• 70 students are currently enrolled in ISAK