MAYA: Forgiveness opens pathways for a fulfilled future

(Photo by Youssef Naddam/Unsplash)

As a new school year begins and we pray for students, many turn to the saints for their intercession.

Recently, two saints came to mind, St. Thomas Aquinas, patron saint of students, and St. Joseph, patron saint of craftsmen, during a visit to a private juvenile facility in Walker County. It is one of currently seven facilities that Special Youth Services (SYS) ministers to. I was there at a community member luncheon, where students were able to display the skills they had learned from their academic and technical courses.

We ate a delicious chicken fried steak meal with sides and dessert — all prepared and served by the culinary arts students. We were invited on a tour of the grounds, led by two young men who are residents there. We visited a dorm, cafeteria, and music room with guitars, a drum set, and a computer system set up to “make beats.”

Adjacent was the art room, where they had recently watched college recruiting videos. We stopped by a science class where students were studying an alligator skull the teacher found in her pond. We passed two classrooms we could not visit because the students were taking an Occupational Safety and Health Administration exam. We moved on to see the work of the bricklaying and masonry students (who made centerpieces for the luncheon) and visited the woodshop. The last stop was the garage, where they learned auto mechanics.

When asked what they wanted to do after completing the program, one tour guide said he had his eyes set on Stephen F. Austin State University. The other guide said he was going to get his welding certificate to enter a high-demand industry. Both are admirable choices.
Earlier at the luncheon, a few boys shared their experiences with off-campus projects (setting up a garden at a church, building houses in a neighborhood) and how the facility has changed their lives.

They began the program with a negative attitude, ready to defy anyone who tried to tell them what to do but eventually, their mindset changed. They began to see how much the staff cared for them through their instruction and, in turn, began to value themselves and their work. As members of the working community, they have found a new respect for the hard work involved in hand-made creation.

Even though these young men are busy preparing themselves for life after the facility, many of them make time to learn about their faith. That is when SYS is honored to provide spiritual support through weekly Bible study, faith-filled activities and pastoral outreach. Through our many collaborations with private and public facilities, the Church is given the opportunity to help form the whole person to go out into the world to do good and take their place in the Body of Christ.

As I witness how either an academic or technical education can be a pathway to a young person’s fulfilling future, I invite you to join me in praying to St. Joseph and St. Thomas Aquinas to intercede for all young people on their journeys. 

Alejandra Maya is an associate director with Special Youth Services.