Delco Young Disciples, a Delaware County ministry for students in grades seven through 12, invites young people to grow in faith, meet other local Catholics and put their skills to good use both inside and outside of their parish community.
Five neighboring parishes sponsor Delco Young Disciples: St. Andrew the Apostle in Drexel Hill, St. Bernadette of Lourdes in Drexel Hill, St. Charles Borromeo in Drexel Hill, Annunciation BVM in Havertown and St. Laurence in Upper Darby.
Because some of the parishes have fewer young parishioners than others, they merged together to provide ample members for the organization.
“It has done a great job at bringing young people together,” said Tina Angelo, a St. Andrew’s parishioner. “If we got together as a group, we could present more people.”
Angelo and Sue Killeen, a member of St. Charles Borromeo, had organized a PREP class (Parish Religious Education Program) in 2022 for eighth and ninth graders.
Starting with just four students from St. Andrew and St. Charles, the students met for Bible study and performed community service around various holidays such as making Easter baskets for the needy during the Easter season. They also began serving homeless people.
Angelo and Killeen wanted to expand the group so they broadened the age range and found more young people from the neighboring parishes began taking part.
“We put our heads together,” said Killeen, who organizes most of the group’s service opportunities.
Delco Young Disciples began in January 2024. Members gather and grow through “Sunday Dinners with Jesus” that are usually always held on the third Sunday of the month at rotating parishes.
Monthly service projects include working with residents of St. Edmond’s Home for Children in Bryn Mawr, a ministry of Catholic Charities of Philadelphia.
Lenten projects such as working in the garden at Annunciation BVM and filling holy water bottles at St. Charles are other ways to grow in faith and service.
“We welcomed help from all parishes represented,” said Angelo.
Part of the group’s mission is a reminder that once young people are fully initiated into the Catholic Church through the sacrament of confirmation, they are just starting their journey in faith. While some of its members attend Catholic schools, Delco Young Disciples has drawn more public school students than originally expected.
Many parishes only offer PREP classes for their members until they are confirmed, so the group offers a way for public and non-Catholic private high school and junior high school students to continue practicing faith outside of Mass.
“It’s to keep them motivated and keep them learning,” said Killeen.
Among those who have participated in Delco Young Disciples since it began is Eliana Karasavas, a parishioner of St. Andrew Parish and a junior at Villa Maria Academy in Malvern. She especially enjoyed the dinner this past March when several priests including Father Paul Stenson of St. Charles Borromeo, Father John Masson of St. Bernadette and Msgr. Albin Grous of St. Andrew brought along relics of saints from their parishes and shared some information about them.
“It was a really great night,” said Karasavas. “The priests talked about where they got (the relics).”
Last fall turned out to be a busy one for Delco Young Disciples. Its opening activity was held at Malvern Retreat House where they visited the Blessed Carlo Acutis Shrine and Center for Eucharistic Adoration.
They concluded the year in May with a tour of the National Shrine of St. Rita of Cascia in South Philadelphia.
“It was a beautiful day and a beautiful way to end our season,” said Angelo.
Last year focused on “Improving prayer life with a little help from the saints.” This third season will focus on “What does it mean to be a young disciple?”
The season kicks off on Sunday, Oct. 19 at the St. Katharine Drexel Shrine at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul in Philadelphia where Father G. Dennis Gill, rector, will speak with the young people.
“These teens are the future of our Church,” said Angelo. “We encourage them to share their faith with others.”
Delco Young Disciples invites new members to register at sites.google.com/view/delco-young-disciples/about.
“I love it,” Karasavas said about the group. “I get to meet a lot of friends, a lot of Catholic teens not only from my parish but from different parishes. We get to connect. It’s really great.”
Share this story