Asheville Youth Mission

Midnight Manna a Great Success!

Bill — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:39:42 +0000

On Sat. Jan. 28, 2012, AYM held it’s first ever MIDNIGHT MANNA senior high service event. The idea was to bring together youth from all over Asheville to spend a Saturday night volunteering at Manna Food Bank while also having a great time. In short– mission accomplished!

We had 86 youth and adults show up to work for Manna, and in one evening (9:00pm to 1:00am!) we made 4565 Manna Packs that will be distributed to hungry children in 16 counties across Western North Carolina! In addition to the great work, a great time was had by all. Clingman Cafe, Asheville Pizza Co. and Luella’s BBQ provided great food for everyone to enjoy. The evening was topped off by a great private concert by one of Asheville’s hottest bands, The Secret B-Sides!

Many thanks go out to our sponsors, including Asheville Sun Soo Tae Kwon Do and The Matt & Molly Team from Keller Williams. We also thank our great volunteers, as well as the church youth groups and service clubs who participated. You can count on more events like Midnight Manna coming in the future!

Many Voices show, BEHIND THE SCENES, coming this week!

Bill — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:31:08 +0000

The AYM youth drama company, Many Voices, is making final preparations to debut their newest original production, BEHIND THE SCENES. This cast of 10 local high school students have worked with directors Aimee and Bill Buchanan to write and produce a powerful show about the secret lives of today’s teenagers.

BEHIND THE SCENES takes audiences under the surface of what youth “front” as their lives, and delves into the real problems young people deal with every day. From social pressures to family dynamics, drug use to eating disorders, the show addresses a variety of topics and provides an opportunity to talk about those things during a Q & A session with the cast following the show.

BEHIND THE SCENES will include drama, music, rap, and step dance to entertain audiences while making them think about important issues in today’s society. Because of the topics covered, this show is most appropriate for middle school youth and older.

The show will be performed at The Magnetic Field in the River Arts District of Asheville, NC Sat. Nov. 5 at 3pm, and Sun. Nov. 6 at 3pm & 7pm. Seating is limited. To get advance tickets contact Bill Buchanan.

To see trailers of the show, visit their their YouTube channel AVLYTHMISSION.

AYM Gets Noticed on Local News!

Bill — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 15:33:06 +0000

Recently Asheville Youth Mission has been getting some attention by the local news media! While 170 middle school youth and adults from Trinity Episcopal School of Charlotte were in town for a mission retreat, WLOS News 13 did some great coverage of the event. Check out these links to interviews with middle school participants and with AYM Co-Director Bill Buchanan.

AYM on News 13 Morning Show, Part 1

AYM on News 13 Morning Show, Part 2

AYM on News 13 Never Stop Learning

Rachel’s Reflection

Aimee — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 00:21:31 +0000

As we are nearing the end of the summer, I am finding myself redefining the word mission. Often times when we think of mission trips, the idea of building habitat houses, of long days of strenuous work with the end produce easily visible, all these images come to mind. Now all of these things are definitely important parts of mission work, but what I have seen through my work with Asheville Youth Mission this summer is that often times its not about the end result, as one of our interns Eva Hall always says “sometimes it’s the process not the product that is the most important”.

We have talked on various occasions this summer about presence. What does it mean to really be present with another person? To sit with another person for a moment in time and listen to them, to look them in the eyes, and really hear what they are saying. I am beginning to believe that in order to do mission you must start with a ministry of presence. We must open our eyes to the people whom we are serving and those whom we serve with, and see them, really see them in order to even begin fulfilling this ministry of mission. When you take the time to sit under the Haywood tree and ask someone about their life, or to sit at a lunch table at the VRQ hearing stories of struggle and survival, to nestle into the sandbox at the Irene Wortham Center and hear a child tell you about how she just learned to tie her shoes, all of these things make mission, and ministry possible.

Throughout the work this summer, we have completed some pretty incredible projects, but we have also learned names, heard stories, and took a moment to stop moving so fast in our busy complicated world and realized the beauty of the person sitting beside us, the child holding our hand, the person who has been passed by. Isn’t that what Jesus did? Saw people for who they were, and chose to share bread, to share the road, to share time? Asheville Youth Mission has taught me this summer that in order to begin this daunting task of changing the world, we just have to reach out our hands and open up our eyes to the beautiful children of God directly in front of us.

Katie’s Reflection

Aimee — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 18:41:13 +0000

One of my favorite aspects of working for Asheville Youth Mission has been the variety of work that we do. It’s not uncommon to begin the day working at a day shelter, having lunch at a nature center, and then shoveling mulch in the afternoon, all before doing reflections at a church at night. I think for the youth that we work with it’s a powerful testimony that service can be done anywhere, and by anyone. During orientation when we are introducing the different sites we remind the youth that it isn’t our job to bring God to these different work sites, because God is already there in the people that we will meet and the service that we will do.
Barbara Brown Taylor, in her book An Altar in the World examines the practice of finding altars to worship God in our daily lives, being intentional about finding God in our surroundings instead of limiting ourselves to believe that worship can only happen within four walls. This is exactly what AYM has done for each of the youth that comes through our doors. It’s a new and exciting premise for many of the youth that worship doesn’t have to look like what they are familiar with.
For AYM, worship can take place on a trash walk around a day shelter in the morning, or under a pavilion at the nature center during lunch, or in the serene quiet found on the VRQ prayer knoll after a hard afternoon of shoveling and pushing wheelbarrows of mulch. And while we still join together in a church at night, or worship with Haywood congregation in the Methodist church, the youth walk away having a better understanding that it’s not the four walls of a church that make it a place of worship, but the people inside. The next time that these youth do service they might take a second glance at a grassy knoll, a hidden creek, or a pile of freshly gathered trash not just as a part of the landscape, but as a space and tool to worship God.

Luke’s Reflection

Aimee — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:12:31 +0000

My name is Luke Dykes and I’m one of five interns working at AYM for the summer. We’re now about three weeks into my internship and I have to say things couldn’t be better. So far the work has been great and even more rewarding than I could have imagined. Working with the agencies is great, but my favorite part of the job is the interaction with the people that I meet. Between the kids who come to Asheville and the clients and other wonderful people that I get to know through the agencies, I’ve managed to make friends and discover stories of people that much of the world would overlook completely.
The places that we work are all very special in their own way, but one place in particular has provided plenty of memories. Haywood Street Ministries is a community where every person, no matter where they happen to be in life or what their situation, is welcomed. Every Wednesday, Haywood St serves a free lunch for all comers followed by an optional worship service as well. The magic of Haywood Street is defined by its unique atmosphere. I’ve never experienced a place where people from all walks of life are so openly encouraged to interact.
One of the main principles that Haywood incorporates is the right to belong to a community. This is perfectly exemplified in the way that Haywood Street operates. It is commonplace to see people living on the streets sitting next to people wearing thousand dollar suits, chatting about the recent weather. The lunches and worship are full of interactions between two people that seemingly have nothing in common.
It gets even better though. When we at AYM take youth to Haywood, they get to experience it all for the first time. They sit down at a table with people that many of them would never consider eating lunch with and leave with stories of righting a path or discovering purpose in life. Watching the kids’ perceptions change right before my eyes is rivaled only by experiencing my own views change as well. I wasn’t exactly sure how this internship would change me, but I’m already realizing that even in the short time I’ve had working with AYM, many of my views on the world are changing for the better.

Many Voices to Perform at Montreat Youth Conference!

Bill — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 20:50:56 +0000

The Asheville Youth Mission drama team, Many Voices, will be performing on Wednesday, June 15, at 9pm in Anderson Auditorium for Week 2 of the Montreat Youth Conference. The team will perform the show, The Strength In Me, a one act original play about the struggles, challenges, opportunities, and triumphs of being a teen-aged girl. The show will feature a cast of 6 high school young women, and a supporting cast of 4 high school young men. Some of these cast members were also on the 2010 Presbyterian Youth Triennium acting team. The Strength In Me covers many issues of teen life and is designed for audiences of youth age and older. Many Voices looks forward to a great evening with over 1,000 new friends in Montreat!

Many Voices is already beginning work on a new production which will debut in Asheville in early November. They will be on tour in spring 2012 around the region. If you would like Many Voices to perform in your area, contact C0-Director, Bill Buchanan.

AYM Birthday BBQ and Fundraiser

Aimee — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 01:38:02 +0000

Wow! AYM is getting ready to be officially ONE YEAR OLD! Come celebrate with us on Saturday, May 7 at 6:00pm at First Presbyterian Church Asheville (40 Church Street)! There will be BBQ, music, an appearance by Many Voices, AYM stories, and even the Rt. Rev. Smooth! A minimum donation of $10 is suggested. Larger donations are strongly encouraged!

RSVP with Bill Buchanan at billbaym@gmail.com or 828 231-4635. See you there!

Many Voices is Accepting Applications!

Bill — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 23:42:34 +0000

Through the month of March, Many Voices is accepting applications for their 2011-2012 cast. For the past two months, the 2010-2011 cast has been performing the Many Voices debut production, The Strength In Me. Starting this spring, a brand new cast will develop and produce a whole new original production about the experiences, challenges, and triumphs of today’s youth. Think you know someone who would be interested in applying to be in the new cast? Let us know and we will send them an application!

AYM’s Many Voices performs in Charlotte!

Bill — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 18:45:33 +0000

The AYM drama group, Many Voices will perform their debut production, The Strength In Me, this Sunday, Feb. 13, at 6pm at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC. Youth groups from all over the area are planning to come, as well as friends and family. If you are interested in attending and want more information, contact Covenant Presbyterian Church in Charlotte and speak to Neely Rentz Lane about it. Hope to see you there!