To wrap up this season on Youth Ministry, Fr. Victor shows how “youth ministry” is not a modern reality but something that goes all the way back to the heart of Jesus Christ himself. Jesus saw how vulnerable and formative our youth are and was very serious about caring for them and protecting them from sin. Fr. Victor shows how Jesus’s heart for the youth has lived on in the lives of the saints over the years—St. Benedict, St. John Bosco, Servant of God Luigi Giussani & Blessed Carlo Acutis.

Joy Lang is the Youth Minster at Little Flower Parish in Mobile, AL. She grew up at Heart of Mary Parish and attended McGill. She really encountered the Lord in a new and life changing way a couple years back when she took her youth group to ACYC. Learn how the Lord brought Joy to this moment and how it has affected her entire life moving forward.

Today you will meet a rather unique woman—a person who is half Hungarian and half Chilean who grew up in Puerto Rico, lived for a time in Chile and Hungary and left her Native Soil when a friend invited her to take a job in Mobile! Andrea offers a compelling testimony to God’s Providence and the blessings that come when we trust the Lord. She shares a unique perspective about ministering to youth in a diverse parish setting and reflects on the particular needs of the Hispanic families in feeling comfortable with their children participating in youth ministry. Also, she talks about her role as “Youth Ministry Coordinator” serving alongside Fr. Connor Plessala the “Youth Minister.”

Fr. Victor and Fr. Peyton Plessala enjoy filming with a live audience at Well Red in Auburn, AL on November 9, 2022.

Meet Ann Palamara. Again, appreciate the lengths God has undertaken to bring just the right people to live out the faith here on our Native Soil. Originally from a dairy farm in upstate New York, marvel as Ann shares how the Lord brought her to Eufaula, AL because of its “soil!” Literally, its SOIL! The Lord would get Ann involved in Church ministry quickly upon arriving and would end up serving the youth at her parish for years. She now claims “Eufaula” as her “Native Soil” and her parish as her truest “family” on earth.

Today we meet a former member of Fr. Steve Williams’ youth group at St. Pius—Jami Graham. Jami servers as youth minister for several years at Christ the King in Daphne and, this past year, began to serve the youth at St. Dominic in Mobile. Jami shares how the Lord led her into this ministry—not something that she set out to do! Over all the years, she shares her philosophy of “youth ministry” and what important aspects are necessary to help nurture teens in the faith at this formative time in their life.

Today Fr. Victor shares about a Catholic Service Mission Trip he participated in for five summers straight growing up. He reflects upon the great impact it had on him and the elements of that experience that reveal what effective youth ministry looks like. He points at three components in particular that helped to make his faith come alive and be put into practice.

Last week we met Todd Sylvester—former youth minister at St. Ignatius in Mobile and St. Lawrence in Fairhope. Today we meet one of Todd’s former youth group members from St. Ignatius—Fr. Connor Plessala. Fr. Connor shares how youth ministry made an impact not only on him but his entire family. He also relates how it led to him discovering his call to be a priest. He shares now what is like to be on the other end of youth ministry—being a youth minister himself now at St. Bede’s. Share in his passion to call our young people today to Holiness.

Today meet another “Godfather” of youth ministry here in the Archdiocese of Mobile—Todd Sylvester. He shares his story of conversion and how the Lord Providentially brought him down to Mobile to do youth ministry. Listen in to how the Lord gave him the grace to serve in that capacity for over 20 years and the lessons he learned along the way.

You heard about him vicariously last week…time to meet the man face to face! Meet one of the “Godfathers” of youth ministry in the Archdiocese of Mobile. Youth ministry was a big part of his teenage experience, his discernment of the priesthood and has been a consistent thread in his priestly ministry for more than 25 years! A great well to draw from as we dig into this topic!

Today Fr. Victor reflects upon the great impact that two people, in particular, had on his faith throughout his teenage years. His youth minister was a Mom who simply responded to the need of the parish to provide a place for their youth to engage their faith. The priest only served in his parish for one summer but opened his horizons about the role of a priest in the lives of young people and connected him to the larger Catholic world in the Archdiocese outside of Montgomery. Both influences proved to be life-changing.

Meet Silvia Stroud. Wife. Mother. Disciple. Middle School Religion Teacher. Marvel at how the Lord brought her to Alabama and once here drew here deeper into her Catholic faith. Share in her enthusiasm as she shares her passion for transmitting the faith to her middle school students at Christ the King in Daphne. She shares a number of good practical tips for catechesis as well.

Meet Tex Phelps—our one year old Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry. Learn about his conversion to Catholicism, how the Lord reeled him into youth ministry, how his “yes” has taken him around the Southeast and finally brought him to our Native Soil. He offers a story of “trust” that challenges us to “walk by faith and not by sight.”

Today Fr. Victor shares about seeing Pope St. Paul II in St. Louis as an eighth grader. The excitement, energy, enthusiasm and diversity of the experience was not something he was expecting. It blew the lid off what he understood to be “Catholic.” Hopefully, his story…along with the help of St. JPII…can do the same for you!

To Kick Off Season 5, join us in welcoming back our first-ever repeat guest—Archbishop Rodi! Listen in as he shares about he experience in youth ministry as a young priest and reflects upon how he has seen the nature of youth ministry evolve in his own lifetime. He also shares why “youth ministry” has been such a priority for him in his ministry as our Archbishop.