_ I’ve just spent my first 24-hours-straight at MAYC. Now, all is quiet, all is clean, all is calm, all is bright… a slight variation from the way things were for the last 18 hours. That’s right- we had a very successful first lock-in at MAYC last night. Venture Crew 471 (look them up on Facebook), a co-ed branch of Boy Scouts chartered by Saint Mary Catholic Church, facilitated an activity-filled all-night event for 20 teens who were invited to the lock-in as a reward for good or improved behavior and for pitching in with daily cleaning at MAYC.

Being a looong-time veteran of youth group lock-ins myself, attending them since I was 10 and leading them since I was 18 , I looked forward to a fun event that would validate students taking ownership in daily living at MAYC. My husband gave me a different perspective, however, when he said, “A lot of these kids have never been to anything like this before. We’re providing a new opportunity for them and a new way for mentors to share a positive influence.” And he was right- most of the kids had never attended a positive, structured overnight activity. Venture Crew 471 gave them all an excellent example of having a great time within the boundaries and guidelines provided by leadership. Thank you Crew!

Simple ideas like listening carefully to instruction, respect, and realizing the importance of teamwork were demonstrated throughout the evening’s activities as six adults and ten college and high school students engaged MAYC’s teens in pool and ping pong tournaments, tug of war, relay races and table games. They also provided an abundance of great food donated by local businesses. Thank you also to those businesses!

My favorite moment came this morning when we were about to eat a delicious breakfast of pancakes and sausage. I asked the kids if anyone wanted to say grace, fully expecting to hear the sound of crickets as an answer. Instead one boy piped right up and volunteered. Even as I bowed my head I expected to hear “Grace,” or “God’s neat- let’s eat,” or something equally irreverent that I hear from time to time, even at my own dining room table.  But instead this young man prayed a very heartfelt prayer, saying “Thank you for the great time we’ve had and thank you for the people who came to do this for us.”  Amen!