Emily is an enthusiastic person who believes one must love their neighbour as themselves. That belief motivates her to be very involved in the community, and it was that devotion to service that the ELCIC recognized with the award in June.

When not going to university, working as a lifeguard or participating as an intern with the Anglican Youth Internship Program, Emily is a volunteer coordinator at St Philips Lutheran Church in Etobicoke, Ont.  

St. Philips is focused on addressing food insecurity in its community. The church has been delivering fresh produce to 100 families during the pandemic. Emily has a vision of a community built through justice, stories, connections and joy.She would love to create a space in the community for people to laugh, share their life stories and advice. She would love a world where people are treated equally as God treats all of us equally with his love. Her award from the ELCIC came with a $500 gift, which Emily contributed back to the neighbourhood table at St. Philips.

The post YIP intern receives Lutheran service award from Eastern Synod appeared first on Perspective.

From the early days of the pandemic, Onochie like other workers in the hospital, had to adjust to a new routine and safety protocols. Every day of work, every worker must complete a COVID screening test to ensure they are safe and healthy to work. For many people this has meant they must come to work much earlier than the start time of their shift to ensure they have enough time to do the screening. There are many people who begin their shifts at the same time, and they must all come in through very specific doors. Onochie had to get used to wearing protective gear (PPE)  all day, which can be uncomfortable. However, those procedures help her feel safe. The hospital does a very good job at enforcing steps to follow to ensure the safety of staff and patients, she says. “I could be even safer going to the hospital than going to the mall,” she says she reassures herself.

As a pharmacist at the Ottawa General Hospital, Onochie helps care for patients in the cancer centre. During the first wave of the pandemic, many patients, especially the elderly were afraid to come into the hospital to have their cancer treated or to have minor sickness treated, presuming that the hospitals might be a likely place where one could contract the virus. They stayed home with the belief that they could overcome whatever they were facing. Some of the people who waited too long became very sick and needed to be admitted to hospital. This made it really hard for the doctors, nurses and pharmacists to treat them, according to Onochie, who was relieved that people began to feel more comfortable coming to the hospital for treatments as researchers learned more about the virus and how people could protect themselves and others.

Onochie is the  mother of two children; her son is in high school and her daughter started university in September. The pandemic has had negative effects on both of them. Onochie’s son plays competitive baseball, and it is very important to him. Unfortunately, all the games were halted and not playing ball has been very difficult for him.

 Social interaction is vital in the development of youth. Restrictions and systems such as sending students to school one day and learning online the next has proven to be a challenge… The schools have separated students into cohorts, so friends may be separated from friends in another cohort.

It’s also been a challenging year for Onochie’s daughter, who was excited about living in residence and having the full experience of her first year of university. Her excitement crashed down when she had to do all her classes online in isolation from home.

Onochie understands the challenges her children are experiencing but is thankful that they continue to be safe and healthy. Due to the increased time spent at home, they have more opportunity to share how they feel with each other. She adores their family time, and the pandemic has given their family more time to spend together.

Onochie feels that her church, Epiphany  in Ottawa, has done an amazing job providing  support to its members and keeping them all connected. When the church was no longer allowed to hold indoor services, the Rev. Alana McCord and the choir leader every Sunday came together to do a live service for the faith community.  She says that Rev. Alana also kept everyone informed and connected  by email. This spring, the Epiphany parish had a change in clergy, saying goodbye to Rev. Alana and welcoming the Rev. Arran Thorpe. “I have been able to attend a couple services with Rev. Arran.  I think he’s doing a fantastic job, especially under these circumstances,” said Onochie. “I can’t wait to get to know him more when the pandemic comes to an end!”  

That’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Until then, Onochie, like many people, continues to deal with the impact of the pandemic and to look for the good things it brings along the way.

Jennifer Omoike is a YIP intern with Crosstalk.

The post Coping with the pandemic at home and work appeared first on Perspective.

My name is Jennifer Omoike. I am a student at Immaculata High School in Ottawa, and I enjoy dancing and writing stories. I plan to study engineering at Carleton. 

I am doing my YIP work placement with Crosstalk, and in this article I would like to introduce you to this year’s YIP participants, their mentors and the people that work hard to support this program.

Donna Rourke, who manages this program for the Diocese, is the one who brings us all together. She visits parishes, speaks to groups and encourages new young people to join the program. YIP gathers youth aged 16 to 21 of diverse ethnicities and beliefs with different interests, goals and career paths.

Thomas attends high school and has a strong interest in world history and military history.

Emily lives in Toronto and is in university. She loves being involved with her school’s model UN team, teaching swimming lessons and reading. 

Freddy and Jefferson are students at Carleton. Freddy is studying electrical engineering; Jefferson is in the criminology program. 

Alex is a Grade 12 student attending Immaculata High School and Naomi is in Grade 12 at De La Salle High School. Alex plans to attend Carleton University in September, hoping to study software engineering and follow her dream of learning computer programming. Naomi is part of the dramatic arts program and plans on taking a gap year in September. 

Caleb and Caroline are Grade 12 students. Caroline is a former student of Longfields Davidson Heights Secondary School, now attending Ottawa Carleton Virtual Secondary School (due to the COVID-19 pandemic). In September, Caroline plans on pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce degree in university. Caleb lives in Markham with his brother, sister, parents, and grandparents. He attends Markham District High School. He has been playing soccer for as long as he can remember and is the goalkeeper for his team.

Izzy and Greg both took a gap year. Greg hopes to attend Algonquin College in September to take a degree in hospitality, and Izzy began attending Seneca College in January for early childhood studies.

There is always room for past participants who want to continue in the program. Calum and Maritsa are YIP alumni. Calum is a Grade 12 student at Earl of March. He has been playing in concert and jazz bands in and out of school for four years. When he is not playing his trombone, he is playing his guitar (electric or acoustic) or participating in remote musical theatre sessions. Maritsa is a first-year student at the University of Ottawa in the Honours Bachelor of Health Science program. Maritsa has a passion for science and health care. Her goal is to enrol in the University of Ottawa Medical program and pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a physician.

YIP helps participants walk towards their dreams by providing experiences and helping them acquire skills in relevant work site placements. This year, there are placements with St Albans Church doing children’s ministry; KAIROS; PWRDF; The Parish of Blackburn, Navan, Bearbrook: website development and communication through social media; Epiphany Anglican Church/ local Food Bank;  Ottawa Police Services; The Glebe Wellness Centre; Crosstalk; St. John the Baptist in Richmond and YIP’s faith formation team. 

YIP offers participants a safe place filled with people ready to listen and help in whatever way they can. Donna is available to the interns not only for work and life coaching but also as a caring and interested adult/mentor/coach. 

YIP provides every intern with their own personal mentor, a person with whom they can talk and relate. These mentors are good listeners and become part of the intern’s networking team. This year’s mentors include: Dave Kim, Michael Farrell, Beth Hughes, Isobel MacFarlane, Anke Rohleder, Robert Rourke, the Rev. Linda Privitera, Emily Savage, Aimernace (Aimé) Ligbongbo, Charles Jean, Dr. Susan Farrell, Lizzy Jones and the Rev. Michel Gagné. They are always ready to listen.

The YIP faith formation team this year includes a YIP intern, Donna Rourke and the Reverends Arran Thorpe and Geoff Chapman.

Breanna Pizzuto, Tatanisha Riggan, Eliot Newton and Donna Rourke are the leadership team.

YIP is very fortunate to have a wonderful prayer team and a supportive and caring advisory committee. The Rev. Alana McCord, Bob Albert, Izzy MacFarlane, Executive Archdeacon Linda Hill, Ron Chaplin and Sarah Simkin make up the advisory committee. 

If you have any questions about YIP, or would like some information about the program, being a mentor or being a part of our prayer team, please contact Donna Rourke at donna-rourke@ottawa.anglican.ca

Caleb, YIP intern for KAIROS: 

My YIP experience so far has been extremely beneficial and valuable to me in many ways; Faith Formation sessions allowed me to ask important questions about many topics including the Church, Jesus, and God. It has strengthened my faith tremendously, and I am looking forward to learning even more in the sessions to come. 

Emily, YIP intern for PWRDF:

The Youth Internship Program has been the combination of meaningful work, connection, and learning that I have been looking for. This year, I am the YIP intern with the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, and I am working to create a podcast series telling the social justice stories of PWRDF. The first episode is on gender equality in the Anglican and Lutheran churches. Receiving an email from the Primate, Archbishop Linda Nicholls, supporting this project and a commitment to be in conversation together has been SO exciting. I look forward to hearing from the Lutheran National Bishop Susan Johnson when she returns from a sabbatical. It’s rewarding to see my work grow as the weeks go by and know that I am creating something that people will hear and enjoy. The work of my internship connects well to our YIP leadership sessions where we get to learn from a diverse set of people on pressing issues that I and other young adults care about. We have sessions on gender diversity, anti-black racism, effective communications, and the importance of mental health. I am also blessed to have a fantastic mentor with this program! Anke’s excellent questions always find a way to help me dig deeper into my faith in God. Through this supportive community where so many people are praying for us as interns but also in our times of need, you cannot help but see the love of Christ in our meetings and friendships.   

Maritsa, YIP Intern for the Parish of St John the Baptist:

The YIP program taught me professionalism, the basis of a healthy community, and allowed me to learn more about God and church. Equally importantly, the program expanded my network and allows me to belong to a wonderful community. 

I came back to YIP for a second year because I felt that there were more things to learn and discover. That was a great decision because no two experiences are the same. So far, I have met new people, learned and been introduced to new topics in our leadership and faith formation sessions including racism, God’s image, and gender diversity. As a second-year intern, I had the chance to work on myself to develop my leadership and communication skills and learn more about myself and the world around me.

I’m grateful to have the opportunity to take part in such an amazing program for a second year. Being an intern in the middle of a pandemic has been one of the most meaningful experiences because I always feel supported and heard by Donna, the other interns and my mentor Susan. Donna works hard to be there for me and all the other interns in every way possible.

Naomi –YIP intern for St Albans Youth Ministry

I am enjoying being part of the 2020-2021 YIP internship. I find the faith formation sessions valuable and informative. I particularly enjoy being able to ask any faith related question to the Faith Formation team in the section ‘Faith Leaders on the Hot Seat’. I think that a YIP community is important because we have standards to which we hold each accountable and therefore create a safe and encouraging environment that helps us all grow.

Ujuamara (Alex), YIP intern for the Glebe Osteopathy and Wellness Centre 

My relationship with Donna means that I have a caring adult in my life who genuinely want to see me happy and succeed. She advises me, checks in with me, worries about me and even helps me out whenever I am in any form of crises. She is the person I turn to whenever I need anything and she is always there for me.

Having a mentor has helped me discover a lot of things I never would have realized on my own. My mentor, Dave, listens to me and we talk about my school, my work and my future career.  Dave does the same kind of work that I hope to go into in the future and he tells me about the mistakes he has made and suggests how he might have avoided making them. 

I am learning through them to become a better person.

Freddy, YIP intern at the Anglican Parish of Bearbrook, Navan and Blackburn and Vars Chapel.  

My work includes designing and creating a website for the parish as well as maintaining its social media platforms. A part of the YIP program is having a mentor. I find great value in a mentor because I was able to be connected with someone who is in the same field that I am and is well respected in his position. I am learning a lot from him and gaining insight in the work field. Combined with my work placement, I am  gaining  lots of good experience and knowledge.

Jennifer Omoike, YIP intern for Crosstalk

In monthly Faith Formation sessions, we meet virtually and spend time speaking about our own faith journeys. Here we are safe to share our many perspectives on the belief in God. As Christians, we believe in God; our faith and belief system is centred on Him.  Many people do not know or feel comfortable talking about God, and that is why I feel that  our Faith Formation sessions are important. We gain confidence to speak openly, and our knowledge becomes broader. Sometimes in life, especially in this COVID time, we can forget God or we have questions—questions like “Is He still there?”  These sessions help all of us to build a stronger relationship with God and to learn and build community with each other.

The post Getting to know the 2020-2021 Youth Interns appeared first on Perspective.