SMYC helps kids deepen their faith
St. Michael’s Youth Conference had something this year they haven’t seen in several years: house kids.
House kids are the children of staff who are too young to participate in the conference. But they fulfill an important role, that of cabin inspectors.
So this Aug. 18-23, eight children took on the task of daily inspections, aided by the spouses of staff, with the results announced with great anticipation at lunch each day. And as kids so often are, they were delightfully honest in their assessments of messy rooms and rumpled bedding.
The house kids were one component of SMYC, which convenes each summer with a three-pronged, weeklong camp that includes serious study, daily prayer and recreation. There’s also a lot of fun and friendship thrown in.
This summer, 14 conferees signed up, though a family of three had to bow out at the last moment, but that’s still a small improvement over 2024. Virtually all camps have had to regrow post-pandemic.
“We had 10 last year, which was the right number with so many in new roles. It gave us time to learn things,” said project manager Sarah Stevenson.
Both she and conference director the Rev. Colin Nicholle were new last year. Last year was the first time since the pandemic that the conference was back at Camp Wildwood, near Bouctouche. It was held twice at Camp Medley during the later years of the pandemic.
All three Maritime provinces and Ontario were represented in the conferees and staff. Long-time conferee and now counsellor Aiden Ingalls was caught in the Air Canada strike, but managed to make it, taking a train from Toronto to Montreal and a rideshare to Moncton.
With the summer drought, one of the issues organizers looked at was the forest fire index and emergency response planning. The parent of a conferee is the military liaison to the Nova Scotia Emergency Measure Organization, and helped with an evacuation plan, that thankfully did not become necessary.
“It was a great learning experience,” said Sarah. “Now we know how to do it for next year.”
WHAT IS SMYC?
SMYC is a week-long camp designed for young people to delve deeper into faith by learning more about God, the bible, spirituality, music and the Anglican Church via morning courses.
Instructors included Archbishop David Edwards, Elizabeth King, the Rev. Chris Ketch, the Rev. Canon Ross Hebb, the Rev. Benjamin Lee, the Rev. Canon Gerry Laskey, the Rev. Dr. Gary Thorne, Sue Careless, Alan Hall, Brenda O’Connor, and Sarah Stevenson.
The schedule included Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer and Compline. Each afternoon was reserved for fun, with activities like canoeing, swimming, beach visit, nature walk, archery and bowling. The Ven. Perry Cooper’s role was “Archdeacon of Fun.”
Each year, conferees put on a play called the Pageant of Our Redemption, with two narrators describing the life of Jesus as the conferees play various characters in non-speaking roles. Aiden was the play’s director.
“The script came to us from SMYC in the U.S.,” said Sarah. “We are an offshoot of that. [The Rev.] John Paul Westin attended as a student. He looked at it and said, ‘we need this in this region.’”
John Paul brought SMYC to the diocese in 1987, and one of the first staff members was Gary Thorne, who returned this year for the first time.
GARY THORNE
“I’m a Saint Johner, from Stone Church,” said Gary, though his ministry has been in the Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
Gary was a speaker at our Clergy College in June.
Not only a priest, Gary served as a military chaplain in the Reserve Force, reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was also the chaplain at the University of Kings College in Halifax for 13 years. Now retired, he lives in Halifax.
“I’m finding the students are very thoughtful, and hungry for a deep spiritual life,” said Gary. “Their questions and conversations all turn to the notion of a walk with Christ as a pilgrimage.
“They’ve been brought to a place where it’s safe and encouraging to talk. Many don’t have the venue or the permission.
“This is a tremendous thing, not only for the Diocese of Fredericton, but encouraging for the Church as a whole.”
MOLLY SNEDDON
Fifteen-year-old Molly Sneddon of Halifax was at SMYC because of peer pressure.
“I have a friend who goes here and told me I should come,” she said. “It’s fun.”
While she enjoys the recreation, “I like theology. I get a deeper understanding of the bible passages I already knew about.”
She plans to return next year.
ELLIANA LEE
This is the second time Elliana Lee, 13, has been to SMYC.
“I had a really great time last year. I just couldn’t miss it. I looked forward to it all year.”
She brought Molly this year and plans to return next year.
Her favourite course is Theology, with Gary Thorne, a family friend.
ALAN HALL
This is the first year for postulant and professor Alan Hall, who teaches at St. Thomas University in Fredericton.
“Sarah recruited me,” he said. “It’s lovely. The students are great, very engaged and thoughtful and fun.
“I sat in on Gary’s class and this group of 14-year-olds was asking the most difficult possible questions. Those questions were in them. It was good to hear them. This is high-level formation.
“I think the Anglican Church in the Maritimes has many significant gifts hiding in plain sight. Many of them are here.”
The other aspect he enjoyed was the multi-generational quality of SMYC.
NATURE WALK
On the day the New Brunswick Anglican visited, Shannon Nicolle led a nature walk, pointing out the value of various plants we might overlook.
The yarrow plant, for example, with its ‘frond’ leaves, helps to stop bleeding.
“It’s good for wound care,” she said. “A friend of mine puts it in alcohol for awhile, adds water and uses it as bug spray.”
Plantain leaves can be chewed into a paste and applied to bug bites and stings, she said.
If you run your hands over sweet fern, the lemon aroma is unmistakable.
“We’ll have a tea of this later,” she said. “It’s good for colds and stomach aches.”
Mountain ash or rowan, with its red berries, makes a good wine and jelly.
“It’s seen as a protector and is often grown in church yards in England,” she said.
With this year’s SMYC complete, organizers will debrief, and in a few months, begin planning for 2026.
PHOTO CAPTIONS:
1. Conferees, along with Archbishop David Edwards (in red), receive Communion from the Rev. Colin Nicolle, the camp director, in the closing Eucharist at St. Michael's Youth Conference this past August. Each summer, SMYC gives teens a chance to delve deeper into the scriptures, the history of the Anglican Church and their relationship with God through the Daily Offices and course study, with liberal doses of fun and recreation. This year's conference was held at Camp Wildwood Aug. 18. Sue Careless photo
2. Shannon Nicolle leads a nature walk as part of the recreation component of SMYC. Here she teaches that coneflowers contain the healing herb echinacea, which boosts the immune system. McKnight photo
3. The staff, spouses and conferees of St. Michael's Youth Conference 2025, held at Camp Wildwood near Bouctouche in late August. Sue Careless photo
4. Rowdy games of water basketball are much anticipated at SMYC. Sue Careless photo