Mission Statement
Central United Methodist Church in Asheville Youth Ministries exists to inspire, empower and include all youth by being transformed through relationships with God and our community. The Youth Ministries open up opportunities each week to help 6th – 12th-grade youth connect with each other and grow in their faith. We are an inclusive, Christ-centered, service-oriented, fun, graceful, innovative, and relational community. We hope you will join us on a Sunday morning or evening. On either occasion, there will be a parent volunteer or staff member to greet and welcome you in the Youth Arena. Our youth arena is located on the 4th floor of the church, up the main stairs, and to the right.
Contact: Caroline Camp, Director of Youth Ministries, ccamp@centralumc.org | 828-253-3316 ext. 1304
Youth Weekly Programming
Sunday morning we gather in the Youth Arena at 9:45am to talk about our weeks and participate in creative, engaging, and relevant ways of learning about who God is and what that means for our lives. We wrap up at 10:45am in time for youth to join their families for worship at 10:55am.
On Sunday afternoons we engage in a variety of ways of growing in our faith and engaging God’s presence in our lives. Each Sunday has a different focus: Worship, Practice, Play, and Serve. We always have food, wild and outlandish fun, and a time to gather and explore faith with each other.
We meet from 12:00 – 2:00pm on the 4th floor in the Youth Arena.
Sunday School | 9:45am - 10:45 am | 4th Floor Youth Arena
We gather every Sunday morning for donuts, fellowship, and discussion about life and faith. It’s a great way to start your week and we hope you’ll join us!
Sunday Afternoon Programming | 12:00pm – 2:00pm | 4th Floor Youth Arena
We gather every Sunday afternoon in the youth arena. Each Sunday there is always food. One Sunday is focused on small groups (PODS) and another is focused on big group with a main message, big games, and time together with the whole youth group. We alternate each Sunday. We hope you’ll join us!
Youth Retreats
We have several annual retreats. During the Fall, Winter, and Summer we do both High school and Middle school retreats where we head into the mountains, play on the river, worship surrounded by beautiful spaces, or head to Wilderness Trail. These retreats are meant to be opportunities to get away from the noise of every day life and engage in God’s presence through times with friends, relaxing, playing, and worshiping!
Youth Mission Trips
Every summer we roll up our sleeves, get our hands dirty, and serve our community here in Asheville and other places such as Eastern North Carolina, and Memphis. These trips are for Middle and High school. High school is out of town/state and Middle school is local. We invite all teenagers to join us as we seek to be Christ hands and feet in our world.
Local Service
We believe that a big part of being God’s people in the world is serving those in need and on the margins because that is where Christ can be found. Service is an incredibly important way for youth to express their faith, so we do tons of stuff in our church and community. We volunteer for VBS, Haywood St., and Givens throughout the year. We try to serve in different capacities all year round to give our teenagers the opportunity to be Christ presence in the world in as many ways as possible.
Youth Events
One of our core beliefs is that an element to a vibrant faith life is one in which we have fun! We have a lot of events each year that are for that very purpose. Sometimes we host these events in the Youth Arena (Fall Kickoff, lock-ins, game nights). Sometimes we get out for our fun (Movie Mondays, Hiking, Progressive Dinner, SkyZone, White Duck Taco). Whether we stay in or go out, youth events are always a great time!
Wilderness Trail
Wilderness Trail takes people out of their comfort zone and from their day-to-day life and places them in the beauty of God’s creation. Wilderness Trail places people into groups of around eleven people and puts them on a journey for the week, exploring the backcountry of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia by backpacking. It’s an amazing personal and group experience. One that last a lifetime.
Click this link to register
