Guatemala City, Guatemala –
It’s midnight, and the retreat center is quiet. Most of its inhabitants are sleeping peacefully when a taxi pulls in and four Ecuadorians come bounding out—smiles wide, laughter ringing out, and palpable excitement echoing off the brick walls of the compound. Everyone is awake now, but no one minds. The first participants of the School of Youth Ministry Trainers (SYMT) have arrived, and their joy is contagious!
Those of you who were part of the 2023 Lake Tahoe and 2024 Montana Bike Rides know that the YouthHOPE team has been praying and working toward this moment for many years, and now, it was finally here.
FUN FACT:
In the group picture at the top of the page, the students and YouthHOPE staff are all wearing the official T-Shirts from the 2023 Lake Tahoe and 2024 Montana Bike Rides!
Over the next day, eleven participants from four countries (Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, and Nicaragua) would arrive, each bringing open hearts and eager minds, ready to learn how to train more youth workers in their regions. During the next ten days, this group gathered daily for prayer and devotions, dove into youth ministry and dialogue education classes, and practiced facilitating the Youth Ministry Leadership Training (YMLT) curriculum.
When we first told them they’d be facilitating YMLT sessions in front of the YouthHOPE team and their peers, there was an audible gasp—eyes wide with fear and apprehension.
But despite the initial nerves, by the end of our time together, they had grown more confident, shown meaningful progress, and were deeply encouraged by the supportive learning community we had built.
FUN FACT:
Back in September 2023, during the Lake Tahoe Bike Ride, YouthHOPE said:
“Our goal [for this training] is to have at least 15 people join us at this training school [in Latin America]. Now if these 15 people train 50 youth workers each year for 3 years (which is a conservative estimate based on past training schools), we will have 2,250 trained youth workers. If each of those trained youth workers impact (just) 20 youth for the next 5 years, that means that SYMT will have impacted the lives of over 225,000 youth.“
When it came time to say goodbye, there were many hugs and heartfelt promises to see one another again soon. Even more, there was a strong determination to put their training into action. In the weeks following SYMT Session 1, we’ve already received reports of youth ministry training events happening in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Nicaragua, with trainings happening in Ecuador soon.
We truly believe this is just the beginning of all that God will do through these eleven incredible leaders. We can’t wait to meet again for Session 2 in September! None of this would be possible without the financial support and faithful prayers of the Ends Cycling community. From the YouthHOPE team and all the SYMT participants—thank you!
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