|
Planet Youth
|
|
Planet Youth is the youth ministry of Xcel Church (based in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham) which meets weekly on a Friday evening, reaching to young people aged from 11-25 and led by Youth Pastors Graham Marsh and Laura Brown. Planet Youth, as part of Xcel Church, is constantly impacting the community around it. In a time when, according to statistics, young people in their teens through to their early 20's are often not bothered about, or even ignored by, the church, Planet Youth remains with a strong attendance level of over 100 young people aged 11-25 every week. This is quite an achievement as many churches based in cities don't generate this kind of attendance, whereas Planet Youth is based in the town of Newton Aycliffe, with an estimated population of around 29,000 people. HistoryThis Christian ministry was set up in 2003 (previously known as "Extreme") by Andrew "Chezz" Cherrie who is a regular speaker at the annual Rocknations youth conference at the Abundant Life Church in Bradford, England. The name "Planet Youth" was created as an umbrella name to cover the three facets of the youth minsitry in Xcel Church. These three facets are; Pure NRG - 11-14s, led by Sian Davies and Liam Barron. Unleashed - 14-18s, led by Graham Marsh. Remix - 18-25s, led by Paul Young and Laura Brown. EventsPlanet Youth has several large events during its annual calendar. Among these events are: - The Momentum Youth Festival; a week long festival for ages 11-14 including a 50 foot "water slide" as one of its biggest attractions. - HALO; which stands for Helping And Loving Others. This initiative was set up for young people to go out into the local community and bless people in the area by means of picking up litter, tidying up gardens, putting on a free car wash and visiting elderly people who are in homes. - The Amazing Youth Awards; the "best night of the year" in Planet Youth's calendar where young people dress up in their smartest evening wear and attend an awards ceremony, held around Christmas time, and enjoy a full meal, musical items, and applaude their peers as awards are handed out for achievements throughout the year. Regularly featured awards include Mr. PY & Mrs PY, Musician of the Year, Best Bringer and X Factor. - Massive March; where all the young people are encouraged to make an extra push to bring their friends to Planet Youth. The theme of the month varies from year to year, but generally it is one of largeness. Attendance goals are usually set over Massive March; the first of which was a goal of over 100 people, which was successfully accomplished every week throughout that month. PY BandThe Planet Youth Band (PY Band) are the worship team from PY and are led by Paul Young and Ellie Neal. They have already recorded several live albums with their latest album, "Fearless," receiving an 8 out of 10 review from Cross Rhythms.
See Also
|
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
Main Menu
| Home |
| Articles |
| Search |
| Submit Article |
| Contact Us |
| Donate to Wikibin |
