[Unless otherwise noted, each paragraph is from a different youth in our congregation.]

Charlotte 2005 was an overall great experience. The worship was one of the most important times of the convention. As we reflected in our Sunday service it was a huge part of our group's experience. The Convention provided the means for meeting new people and running into others. I was able to meet some students I will be attending Goshen College with and to spend quality time with members of our youth group and other local MYFers. A new experience to both the Convention and myself were the Youth Delegate Speak Up sessions. I was able to be involved and found it interesting to listen to the discussion that came out of those times. I think that it had its strengths and weaknesses, but was an excellent idea that should be continued for conventions to come. Adding youth delegates this year was a great way of beginning to act on the theme of convention that youth are not only the future, but also the present church.

I had such a great time at Convention. As this was my first time attending, I was not sure what to expect. But what I experienced was thousands of Mennonite youth who were excited about what God is doing in their lives. And this excitement only grew as the week progressed. It was a joy to see the MYF stand together and sing their hearts out to God. And it was a blessing to see youth from all over the country happily working together to serve the community in Charlotte. But most importantly, it was good to know that we were all being challenged to grow in our faith, whether we were there as a youth, a sponsor, or a delegate. I believe that we have all returned from Charlotte with a new sense of direction and purpose. And we whole-heartedly want to share this direction and purpose with our congregation. Praise God, from who all blessings flow! 
-Brent Camilleri, youth pastor intern

Overall I thought convention was great and it definitely strengthened my faith. One of my favorite parts was the worship sessions. I really enjoyed the singing. You dont get many chances to hear 9,000 people singing at once. I definitely met God during the worship sessions. Another event where I felt I met God was the service project. Even though it was short, I think it really impacted the people we helped. One of my jobs was to unload this water on this one truck and afterwards this lady asked me if this other kid and I could move this cabinet for her. After we had moved it she seemed so happy and grateful. It just goes to show that even a little job can mean a lot to someone. When we sang Praise God From Whom in the church after that, that was really cool for me. It sounded really good and everyone seemed so happy even after hard work. Those are just a few of the good experiences I had on convention. Convention was great and it definitely had an impact on my life.

My favorite part of convention would be the worship times.  That is the time I would say that I met God the most too.  The harmony of all the youth and sponsor's voices singing together made a wonderful noise with so much energy you could feel God's presence surrounding us in the worship hall.  The speakers at the worship times also added to the good times.  They all had wonderful, powerful messages that gave us challenges to try to carry out. 

questions, comments, or concerns? Please contact us at dre@deepruneast.org

or by regular mail at

Deep Run East Mennonite Church

350 Kellers Church Road

Perkasie, PA 18944

215-766-8380

We are located at the corner of Deep Run and Kellers Church Roads 
in Bedminster Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania 
between Dublin & Pipersville and Plumsteadville & Bedminster. 
See map page for further directions.