INSPIRING YOUTH TO OVERCOME STRUGGLES
Third annual INSPIRE YXE conference puts purpose at forefront
Hundreds of youth from across Saskatchewan will gather in Saskatoon March 6 and 7 to be inspired to overcome their struggles and to influence the world by valuing humanity and promoting the identity, belonging and purpose of all people.
The youth are coming for the third-annual INSPIRE YXE conference, which is also a celebration of multicultural diversity in the province.
The first INSPIRE YXE conference was held in 2018 and came out of Inspire Our Nation, a movement started by Kaitlyn Cey in response to calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
“We want the churches in our country to lead by bringing Indigenous youth together with non-indigenous youth to bridge the gap and build relationships,” said Alexandra Janzen, who serves as conference coordinator alongside Garrett Janzen.
The event, which targets youth aged 12 to 19 (grades six to 12), will take place at Elim Church starting the evening of March 6 and continue until the afternoon on March 7.
The format includes three main sessions, plus 15 workshop opportunities including hands-on activities such as floor hockey, basketball, dance, rock art and graffiti, as well as information-based options like presentations on mental health, suicide and suicide prevention, leadership, truth and reconciliation, sharing one’s faith, and more.
The main sessions will include youth stories of overcoming, inspiring music, fun games with prizes, and presentations by artists and speakers from across Canada. The keynote speaker for the event is Jaden Neufeld, a pastor from British Columbia, who will speak in all three main sessions.
Also featured on Friday night will be Terrance Richmond, a hiphop artist and pastor from British Columbia who communicates through hip-hop, rap and music. Richmond will perform a hip hop concert on Friday evening.
Another conference presenter is Jassie Virk, who works with Youth Alpha in British Columbia. Youth Alpha is a program focused on youth sharing conversations around faith, life and meaning.
Saskatoon’s Rick Langlais will share his story of struggle and overcoming while professional graffiti artist Jeff Goring produces graffiti art in the background.
Barry Chalifoux, popular speaker and CEO of the Makwa Sahgaiehcan Cree Nation, will lead a workshop on mental health and suicide. His community west of Loon Lake has seen a high number of deaths by suicide lately. A generous sponsor has made provision for all the youth of his community to travel to Saskatoon to attend the INSPIRE YXE conference.
INSPIRE YXE organizers anticipate about 1,000 youth will attend the event.
“Last year we had over 850, plus youth workers, parents and guardians,” Alexandra says. “We expect more this year. Our goal is for 50 per cent of attendees to be First Nations youth.”
Garrett says one of the coolest things for him is the diversity of the planning team. “We have a 15-member core team with individuals from eight to 10 different Christian denominations and a very strong representation from the Indigenous community. (Indigenous pastor) Dolores Netmaker and her family are involved, and so is Tarrant Cross Child (of Child of the Cross Ministries), who will lead a panel of Indigenous leaders in discussion.”
The INSPIRE conference has a well-planned followup agenda in which youth are encouraged to go back to their community and conduct the Youth Alpha program in their church, school, home, or local coffee shop. A number of the conference workshops will teach them how to do that.
“This is a youth-led initiative to spread the love of Jesus in their community. The instructional Youth Alpha sessions are meant to empower young people who are uniquely positioned to share the hope of Jesus with other youth,” Garrett says.
Additional training sessions will be held March 21 and 28 at 1:30 p.m. at Carpenter’s Church, 1339 Avenue D North, in Saskatoon.
Another followup initiative is “Inspire To Influence,” which focuses on leadership and mentorship. Training and educational sessions will be held at The Bridge on 20th starting March 18.
Alexandra says INSPIRE YXE is a big-budget event but, thanks to a number of generous sponsors, admission is free.
Register for INSPIRE YXE at the door or online at inspireournation.com.
The programming of INSPIRE YXE is geared for youth, but parents, caregivers and youth leaders are invited to attend the main sessions, take part in workshops and check out the various booths at the trade show area. Food also is available for purchase.