Important Update to our Amicus Community

Note: This communication is going out to all Amicus hosts, mentors, students, natural families and Overseas Reps

First, let me communicate that as it stands we are proceeding as planned with our Amicus year-end gathering together in Washington DC on June 19, heading to Lake Champion in New York June 20-26, then spending our two final days together back in DC, exploring, connecting, and having all sorts of adventures before sending you home to your wonderful families on June 28th. If anything changes we will let you know directly from our Amicus office. No other communications will be official.

We are asking our host families and mentors to follow all local county, state and school protocols. As is already the case in many places there will be school closings, event and trip cancellations, and other difficult and challenging circumstances that might be confusing and frustrating for our students.

So for now I invite everyone to take a deep breath...maybe several, many times over during the day:)...and be reminded God is good and faithful and just. Let me suggest we all ask ourselves this question, one that I often ask myself in times of disappointment, anxiety, trouble, or discouragement: “What does this make possible?”

Many of our students have faced major disappointments in the last week. But here are some things we know will NOT be canceled:
Relationships
Hope
Engaging Conversations
Ideas
Learning
Joy
Laughter
Wonder
Music
Art
Reading
Games
Household Projects
Gardening
And most of all, Love.

The words of Jesus tell us: “…Love your neighbor as yourself.” We’re in a time when we are being called to take extra-ordinary measures to ensure we remain healthy. It’s so important to know that by taking these pre-cautions we are also caring for our most vulnerable neighbors, many of whom who are at a much higher risk that we ourselves might be.

This could not be a better time for our families and our communities to be looking around us, noticing who might need to be checked in on, who might need help with some chores or groceries, a kind note or a phone call, or even help paying a bill because their income dried up overnight. I urge all of us, myself included, to think creatively about how to 'love our neighbors as we love ourselves.’

Below are links to Young Life’s current action plan. If you’d like to read further about the ways we’re monitoring and responding to the Covid-19 virus, I encourage you to do so.

I also would add - students and natural families - please do not hesitate to check in by phone, text or email if you feel the need. While we do have a once a week communication policy, now is a time when we want everyone to feel as connected as necessary.

Finally, while our students might have more free time because of school closings, suspended sports seasons and cancelled trips, our expectations are the same as they ever were! All of our Amicus polices remain fully in place. And more than ever, we want these final months and partiucularly this unscheduled time to be productive, leaning even further into the Amicus mission of deep engagement as a family and community. Might we suggest a FamilyBook Club, Women's Histoy Month Movie Marathon, Family Cooking Showdown, exploring new hikes and bike trails, building a new deck, outdoor pizza oven or chicken coop (ok those are my personal projects list:). Be intentional with this time together!

We also cannot let up on our placement season for next year’s class. We are plugging away and need any help you might offer. Please direct folks in your community to our website to learn more at ylamicus.org. We have Student Snapshots we can send potential hosts to see about the students we’re still placing for the 2020-21 school year.

Important Update to our Amicus Community

Resources and Links

Grace and peace,