Blessed Sacrament Teen Center

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

2010-06-24T16:28:00.001-05:00

The Teen Center made another trip to see the White Sox win their 9th game in a row yesterday June 23rd! After a rain delay and tornado warnings, we loyal fans toughed out the weather for a good night. We cheered on the team and their 4-2 victory against the Atlanta Braves. The group enjoyed the game and the firework show that followed. No better way to spend your evening than with friends and watching another win! Go White Sox!

White Sox Game

2010-05-25T12:16:00.001-05:00

Youth and Staff took a little trip down 35th Street to U.S. Cellular Field to cheer on the Chicago White Sox last Thursday as they played the LA Angels. Tickets were half price due to their Legacy Brick Night discount, which was much appreciated. It was a nice night for a ballgame and the kids were all quite content, until the final score, Angels 6, Sox 5. Baseball games are a big part of summer, so we are all looking forward to more in the coming months. GO WHITE SOX!

International Night

2010-05-04T12:41:00.002-05:00

As a community celebration, Blessed Sacrament Parish hosted International night on Saturday April 24th to show off the various backgrounds of the parish and the McKinley Park Community. Youth came out to help lead games for children and served chips and hot dogs at the American Booth. They also helped enjoy the snacks at the dessert booth. Other focuses of the night were Italian, Polish, Irish, and Mexican food, some of which people mixed and matched so that they could enjoy a little of everything. Live entertainment included a DJ, live accordion music, and singing by one of the church choir directors. Throughout the night people had the opportunity to win various raffle prizes, like sports memorabilia, tickets, decorations, and even small appliances. The evening was a success with a high turnout.

Clean & Green Service Day

2010-04-28T14:34:00.012-05:00

Mayor Daley asked the city of Chicago to help out on April 17th by committing to service for Clean & Green. In an effort to clean-up the McKinley Park neighborhood, youth from the Blessed Sacrament Teen Center came out to help for the day.

Teens helped at the local parishes, Our Lady of Good Counsel, St. Maurice, and Sts. Peter and Paul where they raked the grounds and put down mulch. Some went to the McKinley Park library where they raked, picked up trash, and helped with pruning some trees and bushes. Others cleaned up an empty lot in the neighborhood that was in need of some help. The clean-up is a yearly tradition and youth are always happy to help.

Lock-in and Church Hopping - Holy Thursday

2010-04-07T13:13:00.002-05:00

The parish offered another event for youth, Church Hopping. What is it? After Holy Thursday Mass, people, and in our case groups, drive around and visit several churches in the city throughout the night. Our goal was 15 churches between 9 p.m. and midnight. In actuality we ended up at about 12 churches, stopping in each to participate in Eucharistic Adoration for a short while before hopping in the van and visiting another church. Students were given note cards to write down people and things which they would like to pray for at each church.

When we arrived back at the Teen Center around midnight the group was paid a visit by Fr. Tom, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish. Snacks were provided to keep the kids happy after their night of travel. Activities ensued and youth participated in a relay that included an egg race (plastic of course), then students had to

race around and pop balloons without using their hands, and finally they had to consume a whole doughnut without picking it up. Later staff stuffed and hid Easter eggs around the center to give the youth lots of little surprises. As of now it is still unsure if all of the eggs have been found, but the kids did a thorough search, so we can only hope they found all of them. Basketball, volleyball, pool, and other games carried on through the night, along with the energy of the kids. When morning rolled around staff and youth were both happy for the opportunity to head home and catch some Z's.

Birthday Wishes

2010-04-03T09:14:00.002-05:00

A special Birthday wish goes out to Mr. Jim Kozy as he celebrates another year of life

and another year at the Teen Center.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM!

-Teen Center Youth and Staff

Reach Out Recap

2010-03-13T10:38:00.032-06:00

Through the Youth Program at Blessed Sacrament Parish, youth and staff left on retreat February 26-28th. This year's theme was "You've Got A Friend In God" and attracted a number of youth. Throughout the weekend everyone met and worked in groups discussing friendships and relationships, put on skits, made Amish Friendship Bread, celebrated Mass with the help of Fr. Rocco and the musical group New Spirit Band. Everyone also had the opportunity to participate in Reconciliation, and tell their own story at Saturday evening's Open Mic.

Several youth helped over the past few months in planning the retreat by attending several meetings. Many of those same teenagers also took active roles on the retreat by serving as small group leaders. Paired with another youth and one or two adults, group leaders helped facilitate small group activities and discussions. It helps to hear things from peers, so the youth who prepared talks and stepped forward to the microphone also lent a hand in making the retreat a success. Whether or not teens acted as leaders, or simply showed up to take in all that the retreat had to offer, everyone made it an eventful and enriching weekend.

Special thanks to Irene Friend and Jim Kozy who were instrumental in the planning and facilitation of this retreat. There are many other adults who also had a hand in the retreat and their help is greatly appreciated.

Upcoming: Reach Out

2010-02-22T12:51:00.002-06:00

Friday is the big day. Staff, young adults, and youth leave for REACH OUT, a retreat that is a collaboration between Blessed Sacrament Parish and Christ the King (Hamilton Ave.). Many youth have made the commitment to several planning meetings in which they took on responsibilities to give talks, lead skits, and make momentos for the weekend. Without their help and hardwork the retreats would not be such a success. This winter's theme is "You've Got A Friend In God."

Check back for an update on the retreat coming soon. Pray for the youth and chaperones as they prepare and open themselves up to this experience.

Field Trip

2010-01-19T12:21:00.002-06:00

Chicago Indoor Sports has once again agreed to open its doors to our youth. Some Fridays, like this past week, we will be permitted to bring youth to their facilities to participate in indoor sports on one of their soccer fields.

Last week we took 14 youth from middle and high school to play flag football at the indoor sports complex. Though the weather is warming up a bit, kids still enjoyed the chance to play on the turf. Youth shared their approval of the outing, so we plan to make future trips so long as the complex, which is only a few blocks from the Teen Center, continues to allow us free field time.

Next week we hope to offer other opportunities, possibly soccer or ultimate frisbee.

Christmas

2009-12-22T11:16:00.011-06:00

Christmas arrived at the Teen Center on December 18th. The tree and decorations went up in December and before we knew it it was time to celebrate. Kids were busy playing games and doing activities, like holiday word searches and coloring sheets. It isn't quite Christmas without some treats, so the kids used their cookie skills to make cut out sugar cookies and frost them.

Santa made an appearance. He came in and everyone was anxious to get their chance to take a picture with Santa and see what surprise he brought for them. Each of the 50 teens who attended the Christmas celebration got a present thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor. Youth and staff are grateful now as always for the help and support of donors and volunteers. This ministry would not be possible without the help and support of many.

Merry Christmas!

LOCK-IN

2009-12-15T12:43:00.006-06:00

Friday night was full of activities and the kids were lively all night long. Our 8th grade and High School Lock-in attracted 25 youth who spent the night from 7 p.m.-7 a.m. competing in tournaments, watching videos, catching a few winks of sleep, and enjoying hordes of snacks.

Basketball and volleyball dominated the night. Kids formed teams and played to see who would be tournament champion. Unfortunately the team of volunteers/staff took the top spot in the volleyball tournament, though they did have a bit of a height and age advantage.

Some volunteers spent the evening in the kitchen preparing tacos, salsa, and rice from scratch for the kids to enjoy. It was a nice late-night snack before we dipped into the ice cream for a bit of a sugar rush. While some enjoyed video games, others took some time to nap or watch Transformers 2 during the early morning hours. Four square and hide-and-go-seek were favorites to finish off the night, or at that point the morning.

Thanks to all the participants for participating and making the event a success. Also, thanks to the volunteers who made the night possible. We look forward to future overnights.

Want to Help?

2009-12-08T14:22:00.002-06:00

Want to help the Teen Center raise funds just by doing your weekly grocery shopping?

If you have a Dominick's Fresh Values Card, you can sign up for free rewards for us. Call us 773-847-2011 or email us, BSPyouth@yahoo.com with your Name, Address, Phone #, Email (optional), and your Dominick's Fresh Values Card #

You can also visit http://www.escrip.com/ to find out otherways that you can donate to the Teen Center through your daily activities.

Thanks for all of your help and support!

National Catholic Youth Conference

2009-12-04T12:54:00.011-06:00

Recently a group of youth, young adults, and staff traveled to Kansas City, Missouri for the 2009 National Catholic Youth Conference, November 19-21, 2009. They were joined by 21,000 youth from around the country who joined together for a weekend of prayer, worship, workshops, meeting new people, and exploring their faith. Some youth had never been outside of the state, so it was a great trip with new experiences and opportunities.

The theme of the Conference was Christ Reigns. Large group speakers talked on topics from chastity to personal struggles and accomplishment to challenging youth to be the best that they can be, and to show their best selves to the world around. Each day was jam packed, with participants awaking around 6 a.m. for breakfast in order to get to the Conference Center by 8 a.m. and from there they had bands to entertain the crowd before the morning session, then youth went off to workshops, lunch time, then another workshop before dinner and heading back to the arena for the evening session. Everyone started the first full day with Adoration, then there was a grand procession for which local streets were closed so that clergy and participants could process together to the Sprint Center for workshops. The event closed with a Mass for all, before sending youth forth to be a light in their communities and a hope that many would make the pilgrimage to Indianapolis in 2011.

Everyone sported their cow hats, representing Region 7 (Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana). They were just one item that youth brought to trade with the new friends that they met along the way. See our good looks and share in the adventure by clicking the link below.

NCYC Pictures

Weekly Update

2009-12-04T12:47:00.003-06:00

Yesterday we combined two American favorites loves, cooking and eating. A dozen kids worked with staff to make homemade pizzas. Everyone was quite content with the end result, especially those who had a hand in making it. Due to the great success of making food, staff will continue with cooking and baking opportunities for the kids whenever possible. It is a nice occasional shift from basketball and volleyball which the kids seem to enjoy.

Mark your calendars, next Friday December 11th is the High School Lock-In that will last from 7 p.m.- 6 a.m. There will be lots on the schedule, like sports tournaments, card games, food, crafts, hide-and-go seek in the dark, and much more! This event is open to all students grades 8-12.

YOGA - Thursday Dec. 10th @ 5:00 p.m. lead by a Volunteer who is certified in Yoga Instruction

Celebrations!

2009-11-22T16:17:00.004-06:00

Congratulations to the 7th and 8th grade Evergreen Flag Football team who won the Championship game on Monday. It came down to the wire, they were down most of the game, but took the lead in the middle of the second half and in the last minute allowed a touchdown, but prevented their opponents, Brighton Park from converting the extra point and preserved their lead. Go Tigers!

The Hitmen, our neighborhood flag football team, coached by Teen Center Volunteer, EO also made it to their league championship game on Sunday. It was a close game with a few scores, but each was crucial as the game ended with a final come from behind touchdown by the Terror Squad and a 2-pt. conversion that gave them the lead. The Hitmen ran out of time and were unable to repeat as league champions. Congratulations Hitmen on a good season and for making it to the championship.

Big Events

2009-11-03T10:59:00.011-06:00

In the past few weeks we have had some adventures.

There was an action packed Friday night on October 16th, filled with cookie baking and celebrating Fr. O'Donnell's 99th birthday. His birthday was the day before, but he was quite content with our visit and he finished the cookies we took him before the night was over. The kids enjoyed the event, from making dough, to cookie cutting, to decoration.

Halloween brought lots of festivities. The youth enjoyed Mummy making (lots of TP involved), a candy corn tossing game, a bean bag game, making carmel apples, and face painting. Of course it was Halloween so there were candy and snacks to be had by participants. Hopefully everyone had a safe and happy Halloween.

October Events

2009-10-27T11:49:00.004-05:00

Last Friday the kids had the day off school so we offered a Movie Day before the Teen Center opened. We had 14 kids show up to view it and they decided to watch Freedom Writers. Most seemed like they wanted to get out of the house for the day and avoid homework so they took advantage of the opportunity and the privilege of coming early. Similar events will likely follow.

Throughout October the Teen Center has been open after the Sunday 6:00PM Mass. All High School students are invited to join us from 7:00-9:30PM. Anyone attending Mass will Teen Center Staff will receive free food. Students have shown up with the need for homework help, so we will offer tutoring as needed on Sunday nights.

Our Girls Group has started up and meetings are taking place on Tuesdays at 4:00PM. Taking ideas that the girls have put forth, we will discuss life and a variety of topics. Last week the girls worked on putting together an agreement outlining how each individual is expected to act during meetings. This week Staff will present issues of Self Esteem, offering discussion and activities for girls to plug into the topic.

We will continue to try and keep the youth active with opportunities to play flag football on Tuesdays and Volleyball on Thursdays. The numbers are growing as word spreads. Games have been competitive, but good sportsmanship has been the practice.

What's Happening Now

2009-09-14T12:32:00.003-05:00

We are kicking off a new school year, and that means new events at the Teen Center.

As always we are offering tutoring help to any students who need it. We will do our best to help with anything from reading and writing to science and math. Our library offers a variety of books and several computer stations for students to do internet searches or write essays. If students need additional help, we encourage parents to try Cambridge Tutoring, they donate proceeds back to the center so you are helping your child succeed and helping us provide other opportunities for them.

Friday night everyone came out for a rousing game of wiffleball. We barricaded off the parking lot, picked teams, and played some ball. The weather was great and everyone was feeling competitive, so the game was going strong until both balls were lost to the roof which caused staff to call the game.

Carnival a Success!

2007-08-20T12:07:00.008-05:00

Thanks to everyone who supported this year's OLGC Carnival. From setup to clean-up to sno-cone and funnel cake makers, our annual fundraiser couldn't have been a success without you!

Kathy relaxing with friends.

View from the top!

Edgar and the OLGC Teen Center crew working the sno-cone booth.