Sacred Heart, St. Patrick’s launches teen youth group in Monroe

Sacred Heart-St. Patrick Parish in Monroe has launched a Teen Youth Group to keep teenagers connected after Confirmation, when many leave a built-in church community just as high school begins. The new program is open to students entering ninth grade in the fall through seniors, with Fr. Paul Ajong serving as youth chaplain and parish staff members Anastasiya Shirazi, Casey Kralik and Eileen Collopy involved in the effort.

The parish says the group grew out of a vision from Pastor David Rider and the religious-education team, who saw a gap that opens for local teens after eighth grade. Sacred Heart-St. Patrick serves Monroe and Highland Mills, with Sacred Heart Church at 26 Still Road in Monroe and St. Patrick Church at 448 NY-32 in Highland Mills, giving the youth effort a base at two familiar Orange County Catholic parishes.

Rider’s leadership has shaped the parish over several years. He became administrator of Sacred Heart in 2019, was named pastor in 2020 and was also named pastor of St. Patrick in 2022. That timeline helps explain why the youth initiative is emerging now as part of a broader effort to connect families across both church communities.

The group is expected to meet twice a month, but the summer schedule is already filling out with events designed to feel more like a peer network than a classroom. The lineup includes a June 20 hike and outdoor Mass, a July 10 bonfire with s’mores, games and activities for youth groups from other parishes, an Aug. 1 Youth Day at Marycrest Convent and an August swimming trip to the Earl Reservoir in Woodbury, known locally as the Rez.

Marycrest Youth Day adds another Catholic youth gathering to the calendar. Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate describe the Aug. 1 event at the Marycrest motherhouse in Monroe as a day of catechesis, worship, music, food and fun. Together, the parish meetings and summer outings give Monroe and Highland Mills teens a local option that blends faith, recreation and regular contact at an age when many programs lose them.