Young Lasallian Assembly 2022 (YLA2022) is in session at Saint Mary’s College of California in Moraga. It opened on June 19 and will run through June 24.
Under the theme of, “Celebrate-Renew-Connect-Act”, high school students and moderators from across the San Francisco New Orleans District (SFNO) have gathered to “make significant time for formal and informal relationship-building and provide tangible opportunities to experience the power of ‘together and by association.’ Participants will consider the roles and responsibilities they have in helping to create communities of welcome.”
YLA2022 will be the only Young Lasallian District program this summer, replacing the traditional Lasallian Youth Assembly and Lasallian Student Leader gatherings. A similar approach was taken in 2019. The adaptation was determined after input from SFNO schools’ campus life personnel.
According to Young Lasallian director Kenenna Amuzie, “Participants in YLA22 will be invited to broaden their understanding of the Lasallian family through the context of their lived experience of the charism, consider their spiritual and faith journeys, and the call to live lives of purpose.”
Structured in conjunction with Lasallian core principles, major components and program outcomes for YLA2022 will be to create a renewed sense of Lasallian Catholic identity; to inspire faith; to embolden the call to serve; and to celebrate inclusive community.
Participants will follow a daily itinerary of prayer and liturgy, presentations, breakout sessions, group work, service, and recreation. Also scheduled are keynote speakers Ashanti Branch, Founder and Executive Director of Ever Forward in Oakland, CA; Josh Packard, Executive Director of Springtide Research Institute, Winona, MN, and Peg Hodapp, Lasallian Animator, De La Salle High School, Minneapolis, MN.
“The Assembly,” states Amuzie, ” is an opportunity (for Young Lasallians) to reflect on their role in their local and global community as Young Lasallians and how they can mobilize their potential in an ongoing response for the need to create a more just world today and in the future.”
