Programs

JusticeWalking Youth: Testimonies

Patsy Carlson, JW Coordinator
I would recommend the JWalking challenge to anyone who enjoys working with youth. You get the chance to journey with them, not ahead of them. This process puts you in constant dialogue with a great shared leadership style. JWalking is a ministry WITH young people, rather than for youth. Instead of a focus on service, you are focused on “being with” people who are marginalized.

Laura Zoeller, mother of JWalkers
As a mother, I believe the JWalking experience is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for youth and their families. It has been a truly wonderful experience to take time in our busy lives to share faith and justice issues with my teens as they have grown through this sometimes crazy period in their lives. I am thankful to have witnessed each of our three children's different, but compassionate, responses as they have learned more about our brothers and sisters and the world in which we live.

I look at life differently now. I live life differently now. JWalking has not only opened my eyes but also given me experiences and insights about Catholic social justice teaching.

Lauren Darrow, JWalker
You never know how compassionate you are until you are tested. You need this challenge to know how far your heart can be stretched. JWalking did this for me.

The discussions during our JWalking sessions were challenging. Our group got to know each other in depth. We got a lot closer as time went on. We weren’t really good friends when we began. We just knew each other and said “hi” if we saw each other. We came from different backgrounds and had different friends. Now, I could go to any one of them for help. Even though we’re completely different, we come together and share one common belief; we strive for a community of equal beings—where everybody is treated equally and fairly—justice for all.

Ryan Duncan, JWalker
In JWalking you meet other motivated young people and discuss how to make a change in our world, knowing that a small group of motivated people is the only way to make a change.

JWalking was an amazing experience. I have learned things that I could never learn in a classroom. It has taught me that the world is my community, to be embraced and treated the way I would wish to be.

Further Justice Walking testimonies:

• Silent Echo by Evan Fowler, a young JWalker
• High School Teens Take on a Troubled World by Robert Barnell, a student at Indiana University

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