Saint John’s Teen Circle: Making a Difference, One New Friend at a Time
We launched Saint John’s Teen Circle two years ago to support Saint John’s Program for Real Change by volunteering at the center and organizing fundraisers and supply drives.
We started by visiting Saint John’s as a group, and spent many afternoons playing games with the children and helping them with their homework after school. Whether we were playing hide-and-seek with the younger children or shooting hoops with the older kids, we all had a great time together.
One of my favorite memories is when Teen Circle hosted a Halloween party and movie night at Saint John’s. Teen Circle members dressed up in costumes and set up a face painting station. Almost every child there wanted something painted on their face and, to my surprise, the majority of the kids wanted to be superheroes. We drew Batman, Superman, Spiderman, and Black Widow symbols on their faces. They were all so excited! It occurred to me later in the evening that the children were the real superheroes and didn’t even know it. Their strength and resilience shines through with every smile.
Over the course of our first year, Teen Circle members volunteered at the center often. By far, the most rewarding part of making a long-term commitment to Saint John’s has been the friendships we made with the children there. Seeing the same kids every week created a special bond between us.