Social Justice

I try to bring the notion of social justice to the kids in my youth group in ways that they will understand and appreciate. All year we have sponsored a group in the parish who serve the poor in our own neighbourhood, usually by helping out with clothing and toy drives. Today we raised some money for the organization by shooting hoops -- something the kids already love to do -- for charity. The kids sought sponsors to allow them to participate in our freethrow competition. There were donated prizes for the most baskets made in 5 minutes, the most money raised, and so on. I also ran some ads to get parishioners to donate and help those who had a hard time getting sponsors. One donated to the shortest young person in the group, and three others donated to whoever didn't have a lot or any sponsorships. At the end of the day, the group raised about $400. I was so proud of them! They seemed to have fun as well, with one girl commenting, "This is great! We should do this every year." I agree wholeheartedly, and I hope that the tradition will continue in years to come, and their commitment to social justice will continue to grow as well.