| Greetings! 
Well we are heading into the final month of summer. I am amazed at how quickly June and July passed! This month I would like to share two reflections with you as we begin to get ready for the fall. The first is a very personal note as my 30th birthday will be at the end of this month. As I reflect on my life, I am grateful for the privilege of working with many wonderful people of faith over the past three years during my time at IM. As I learn from those who I am blessed to work with on a daily basis, I find myself called deeper into my own faith tradition. One of my strongest beliefs is that as a Christian I am to reflect the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, humbleness, and gentleness of Jesus in my daily life. Some days I am successful through my actions, and other days I have still have room for improvement. Over the years, I have taken note of how my Muslim, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, LDS friends (and so many others) exemplify the command of Jesus to love others well. So as my 30th birthday arrives, I would like to thank my teachers from every faith tradition that inspire me to be a better Christian. The second reflection is more of a moment to brag about our wonderful students at our annual iFaith Youth Camp. We maxed out our capacity at over 50 students this year. We had students from 9 different faith traditions. The youth had a great time learning about one another, the faith traditions of the world, serving the community, and even creating their own videos about the importance of interfaith work. As a matter of fact, we want YOU to go and vote on which video you like best here. Overall, the camp was a huge success and I am thrilled that our youth program continues to grow! It is my hope that we can provide tools, resources, and encouragement for our youth so that they are inspired and able to create a more peaceful and respectful society. You can learn all about our youth program here. We would like to thank our fabulous volunteers, our community presenters, and our generous sponsors. A special thank you goes to
The Baha'i Center for hosting our camp, and to St. Paul's United Methodist Church for providing bus transportation for our students. We are also grateful for our partners at the FBI, The Andulucia Center, Congregation Or Ami, El Farouq Mosque, the Chung Tai Chan Monastery, and Bread of Life, who were an integral part of our camp programming! The camp would not have been a success without all of the wonderful folks and organizations who supported us. Thank you everyone!!! We will have exciting events coming up in the fall, so stay tuned! Lauren Santerre Director of Interfaith Relations _________________________________________________________ |
