LOUISVILLE (PNS) — For the first time in nearly three decades, the Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) program will be completely virtual for both national and international sites during the coming program year.
Earlier this week, the Rev. Everdith Landrau, coordinator of the YAV program, met with a group of YAVs by Zoom who had already been accepted for 2020-21 to give them the news and offer a number of options for participating.
She told the group that given the contextual realities at each YAV site, both national and international, going forward with a modified year is just too uncertain because of safety concerns, travel restrictions and state-mandated lockdowns. Initially, the program had hoped to do online prep and orientation, with YAVs traveling to their placement sites in January 2021.
“In these unprecedented times caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the YAV team continues to envision creative ways to engage young adults in meaningful ways,” said Landrau. “Ministry can and is happening in many ways, including virtually. While it was difficult to make this decision, we hope that the 2020-21 virtual YAV year will be an opportunity for many young adults to engage in new ways.”
“While it cannot take the place of face-to-face encounters,” Landrau said, “it does offer a space for theological reflection, engagement and discipleship. We believe this virtual program will invigorate our 2021-22 recruitment season while giving the 2020-21 class unique options created just for them.”
YAVS have the opportunity to decide among three options.
Option A offers the chance to participate in the 2020-21 YAV year, October 1, 2020-July 31, 2021. This option will be a commitment of six hours per week so participants can attend school or work. The program will include a series of training modules on relevant topics for young adults, social justice advocacy and Matthew 25. There will be no stipends and no health insurance offered for the virtual year.
Option B allows the individual to opt out of the current YAV year and serve in the site they had already been placed in for the 2021-22 program year without going through the application process a second time.
Those choosing Option C will commit to a two-year journey, participating in the virtual year as well as serving in-person for the 2021-22 year. This commitment allows them to begin fundraising for their in-person YAV year early. They can also apply for and use the Season of Service Loan Assistance program for the 2020-21 virtual YAV year, available in four installments.
The YAV program is a Matthew 25 ministry and will address the three areas of focus passed by the 2016 General Assembly: building congregational vitality, dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty.
Diamond Dumas from Key West, Florida, has already committed to the virtual year.
“Participating in a YAV year is supposed to provide young adults with two primary things: an opportunity to directly address root causes of poverty, and a chance to explore the meaning of Christian faith and accountability,” she said. “The goal has not changed; the method has become different. I am engaging in the Virtual YAV program with aims to still enact change in my community, combat poverty, and grow in my faith during trying times. I know the information I gain and the skills I learn will make me a stronger activist when I am called to be a leader of progress.”
Deadline to apply to the virtual YAV year is September 29, 2020. The application process for the 2021-22 year opens October 1, 2020. To learn more about the program, go here. To fill out an application, click this link.
Destini Hodges is YAV’s associate for recruitment. “We are excited to offer a diverse selection of opportunities for this upcoming class to journey with us virtually! The ability to go virtual allowed our program to partner in a broader ministry context that could not normally be possible during a regular YAV year,” she said. “We have partners at the national, mid-council and congregational level to assist us in interpreting our new Core Values while lifting up what it means to be a connectional church and to do mission in partnership! This new level of engagement allows us to engage in a new mission model.”
by Kathy Melvin, Presbyterian News Service
