One of NET’s Discipleship teams this year is embedded in St. Simon in Indianapolis. Discipleship teams stay in the same community for their entire nine months of serving and are able to be a constant witness to those around them from the first time they encounter someone to walking with the same youth throughout their time. Their impact reaches teachers, families, and youth. Here are some stories of how our NET Team at St. Simon is impacting the community.
Spirit-Led Encounters
At the beginning of this Lent season, our discipleship team’s pastor spoke in a Mass homily about increasing the ways the parishioners can become involved in helping with parish life and how the parish school and faculty can improve the spiritual formation of their students. As I attended one of the school Masses a few days later, I sat beside an adult who introduced himself afterward as the athletic director. He wanted to discuss ideas for how the NET Missionaries could be more present at athletic events, games, and practices.
Soon enough, a meeting with our contact person was organized. A few more days later, the team attended an adult Bible study where the athletic director was also present, and he said that the pastor’s speech got him thinking, and when I sat next to him at Mass that day, he took that to be the answer from God to his question! Our whole exchange was spirit-led; it is inspiring to witness the Holy Spirit continuing to bring people together to this day to accomplish His will.
Stephen Baker
Check out NET’s Discernment Podcast, Fear Not
Opening Up at Home
A while back, Stephen, Caleb, and I stayed with the family of one of the eighth graders from St. Simon. It was pretty late at night, probably around 10:30, we had prayed with the family, and most of them had already gone off to bed. We were talking with our host mother, and she mentioned that her son (the 8th grader) was usually really reserved and quiet when he’s at home. She said that having us around was getting him to be more open and willing to talk, not just with us but with the rest of the family as well.
Dominic Cabildo
A Place to be Themselves
After a Sunday Mass, I was talking with the mom of a youth I am discipling. Since she has children in middle and high school that come to youth group and meet one-on-one with people on our team, I updated her on upcoming events and shared how previous ones went. She suddenly stopped walking, looked at me, and said, “Thank you for giving my kids a safe place to go and a place where they can feel comfortable enough to be themselves.” Our team tries our best to show up for their after-school activities, such as sports games and science competitions.
Being reminded of this, she added, “And thank you for showing up for them. I know it means so much to them and to my husband and me.” She continued, affirming our team’s work in the parish and school community this year. Now, just about every weekend after Mass, she makes a point to let our team know that our presence does not go unnoticed and that we have especially impacted her and her family.
Carisma Francisco
Team 6
