Finding A Connection With Youth
Kieren Sell South Washington County Bulletin
Published Wednesday, March 07, 2007
St. Paul Park resident Michelle Schaeppi has read all the Harry Potter books, listens to music on her iPod, has her own MySpace page and is fluent in the language of text messaging.
As the youth director at All Saints Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove, Schaeppi considers it part of her job.
“You can’t be a good mentor to kids if you don’t know what they’re exposed to,” Schaeppi said.
But being a youth director was not something Schaeppi planned, nor is it her first career.
For 10 years, Schaeppi worked as a legal editor for Thompson West, a publishing company in Eagan.
Schaeppi was volunteering part-time with the youth program at All Saints when the job as youth director opened up, and she knew it was the right place for her.
“I liked my job at West,” Schaeppi said. “But it didn’t leave me fulfilled.
“It’s one thing to have a career, but this is a life change, a lifestyle; it’s not a job.”
As a member of All Saints for eight years, Schaeppi saw youth directors come and go and the effects the turnover had on the kids.
“I watched the kids’ frustrations and disappointment,” she said. “They get attached to someone and then they leave.”
Schaeppi has been the full-time youth director with the church for a year and a half and received her associate’s degree from Inver Hills Community College this fall. She is currently working on her bachelor’s degree from Metro State University in psychology and religious studies and hopes to continue on in school and obtain a master’s degree.
At All Saints, Schaeppi runs the youth program and the confirmation program — but she said her main job is keeping in contact with the kids.
“My paycheck comes from the church, but my employers are the youth,” she said. “To be able to take a step back and appreciate teens as young adults is a great thing.”
Schaeppi is currently organizing a ski trip to Colorado for April, and often takes the youth to movies and hosts X-Factor on Sunday nights, a time when kids can come to the church and just hang out.
Schaeppi said she sees the kids finding a sense of spirituality in those activities — even if it is seeing the latest horror film.
“The kids don’t realize their everyday world integrates into spirituality,” Schaeppi said.
Schaeppi is a mother of three and said that bringing in the perspective of a parent can be a huge asset.
“They look at me as an adult and parent, but also someone whose opinion they respect,” she said.
Schaeppi said she will stay at All Saints as long as she feels called to be there, but knows even if she moves on, she will always be involved with youth in someway.
“I love being around teenagers,” she said.
