Cdubswithawesomenames. February 23rd, Entry #61.

Sara: You all know Chris Walters, right?  The tall, blonde one, who usually looks like Johnny Bravo but currently has a beard and looks like the Brawny Man??  I know you know him.  A lot of you know him as Chris, or maybe Cdub.  But, I bet you don't know about all of the other names he goes by.  You see, Chris likes to send emails.  And Chris likes to sign his emails.  And Chris likes to get a little creative each time he sends one.  Please allow me to share these "nicknames" with you.

It started out simple:
Chris Walters
Chris
Cdub

And then it started getting fun:
Cdubsalot

Cdubsawholelot

Cdubssomuch

Cdubsmorethanheshould

Sometimes he indicates the time of day:

Cdubswheniwakeup

Cdubsafterlunch

Cdubsforbreakfast

Sometimes he indicates certain upcoming events:

Cdubsinneworleanswithin32hours

Cdubsonthursdayswithgreatfriends

Cdubsatjocoyouthministermeetings

Somtimes he indicates what he is doing:
Cdubsinthesnow

Cdubswithemails

Cdubsandpoops

And sometimes, just sometimes, he speaks the truth:

Cdubswhothinkssarabatenhorstisthegreatest

All I can say is: Cdubisawesomeandiamgladthathesignshisemailswithfunnynames



Cdubswhilelookinggood



You guys were ok. February 16th, Entry #60.

Sara: Aaron and I received the best compliment ever last night.  You can tell us how awesome we are, you can tell us that we are changing you life, you can tell us that we are THE best looking youth ministers ever (sorry C-dub)....but, there is really only one compliment that lets us know that we are doing our job well.

Context: Last night after Project Genesis and Aaron and I's 45 minute presentation to 7th and 8th graders about dating and chastity.

Jonathan (little 7th grade boy): You guys were ok.  That first guy was boring, but you guys were ok.

Aaron and Sara: Jump and high five while yelling "He doesn't think we're awful!!!" (we actually did)

OK? OK!  We'll take it!  That's like gold from a 7th grade boy.  The fact that they didn't fall asleep was good enough affirmation to us, but "ok" from a 7th grader....man, we're on top of the world!!!

Yes!!!  We're not awful at our jobs!!

For your awkward viewing pleasure. February 15th, Entry #59

Sara: In the last few weeks I have been sorting through all sorts of CDs with pictures and videos from the last 7 years (yikes, I've been in this job for 7 YEARS!) trying to organize them all.  In the process I was suffering from just a little bit of nostalgia from all of the great events we've had, great people I've met and and the just darn awkward experiences.

So, speaking of awkward experiences, I came across this video from a retreat 3 years ago.  It was the "Called to Love" retreat....a weekend about Theology of the Body.  And, during breakfast on the 2nd day, we were all treated to this delightful rendition of "What is love?" by C-dub and Aaron.  It might be awkward, but it proves that we have the best job ever.

Budget meetings worth sitting through. February 15th, Entry #58.

Sara: I had a really long meeting this afternoon.  I had a really long meeting this afternoon to make a budget.  A budget?  I don't even keep a personal budget, why in the world am I the person for this job??  Because someone volunteered me for it and I said "sure, ok".  Real smart on my part.  So, we made cool spread sheets, pulled out the calculator a lot, debated over prices and tried to guess how much food for 165 people costs.  We came up with some big numbers and quite a rough draft.

Now, while this is not my favorite thing, it's just fine with me.  Why?  Because I got to dedicate an hour to something I love, something I believe in, something that I have personally witnessed change lives.  That's right, I'm talking about Prayer & Action....only the best mission trip ever!!

So, this summer, the ArchKCK is bringing Prayer & Action here to our own backyard.  I'm really glad that they are b/c it was going to be a lot of work for me to do on my own.  Ok, I couldn't have done it on my own, but I believe in this mission enough to have done it on my own if that is what it took!  But, by the grace of God and the vision of some cool people, the Archbishop, the Youth staff, the Social Justice staff, the Vocations staff and other fellow YMs are all on board to bring this program here to KC. 

When Aaron and I first stumbled upon Prayer & Action we were not expecting much, if anything really.  Within the first 2 hours we were looking at each other in amazement.  This random, small church in Hays with their staff of a few seminarians and a few college girls....they know what's up, they've got it figured out, they nailed it.  And from that moment Aaron and I were hooked.  So, we kept coming back.  But we also kept telling other YMs how great this program was.  And then they signed up.  And then more of them signed up. 

And then Andrew, the current head honcho of this operation told us that we had to get out...seriously.  We had to start our own Prayer & Action b/c there were too many of us KCers hogging all the spots from their kiddos.  That's fair.  So, when we proposed to the Youth Office that we start our own program I waited for the denial.  But thank God for Rick Cheek and his vision.  He trusted us, trusted that this was a worthwhile program to start up amid all the other awesome summer events that the ArchKCK puts together.

So, here we are, 7 months later, weeks away from sending out registration packets.  Fr. Mitchel almost has a full staff lined up.  Sacred Heart in Emporia is excited to have us this summer and they are already working on possible work sites for us.  We have a working budget set up.  We're working on t-shirts.  I mean, look at us, we are in business!!

So, really, this is a thank you to Rick Cheek, Fr. Mitchel Zimmerman, Bill School, and Archbishop Naumann for going along with our idea. For supporting us, for listening to us, for believing in an idea that they haven't even seen in action yet.  Thank you for believing in our youth.  For supporting them in their desire to serve those around them.  Thank you for giving us the chance to share such an awesome experience with our kiddos.

We are soooooo excited for this summer!!!


The name for this program, Prayer and Action, comes from a speech that was given by the late Pope John Paul II.  In speaking to a group of high school students in the Philippines in 1995 he said:

Look to Mary to see how to respond to Jesus' call.  First she kept all things, pondering them, in her heart.  She also went in haste to serve her cousin Elizabeth.  Both attitudes are essential parts of our response to the Lord: Prayer and Action.  That is what the church expects of her young people.