On the 19th of October, a group of very nervous youths gathered, all dressed up, around the altar of St Teresa’s Church in Princes Risborough, waiting to perform their talents that they had laboured over throughout the summer months. The excited audience consisted of proud parents, loyal friends, the beaming parish priest and worst of all, total strangers!

But they didn’t mind! Because this concert was to help CAFOD to raise awareness, and to aid the rehabilitation of ex-child soldiers from Sierra Leone, that had been fighting in the civil war, some for as long as nine years. And these youths were determined to make this concert big.

The youth group of this church is called ‘S.T.Y.L.E’; St Teresa’s Youth Linking Everyone. It was these children that thought of the idea, the youth that advertised it, organised it, took part in it, managed it and performed in it. In fact it was these incredible people, from the ages of 10-18, that told stories of specific children that had been helped by the appeal, that bought tears to the eyes of total strangers with their music (and with their comedy), and these children that raised over £1800 for the project.

Having seen it all from the seeds of their ideas, through the stressful yet comic rehearsals, to the explosive event, I have never been so proud of the young people around me, and confident in the knowledge that the future of our faith lies in their hands.

Now that’s what I call children helping children!

Livvy
Proud member of S.T.Y.L.E