By Harold Altamirano

In Hispanic ministries we believe that youth ministry leaders play a crucial role in shaping the spiritual lives of our young people. May 17-18, our Oregon Conference Hispanic & Latino Ministries sponsored RED Jovenes at the Holden Convention Center in Gladstone; an event designed to empower youth leaders to connect better with our young people.

Our leaders play a crucial role in creating safe spaces that foster community and growth for young people. This year’s theme is discipleship. We broke it down to three different phases: Rooted - Planted - Fruitful. Each of these are the themes for our three yearly big events. Jason Calvert, Oregon Conference Youth Ministries director filled the role of keynote speaker and seminar presenter, sharing insights on discipling Gen Z.

What is RED Jovenes? RED is an acronym for Redimir, Entrenar y Discipular (redeem, train, and disciple). This RED event was one of three yearly youth events put together by the Hispanic and Latino ministries. The goal of RED events is to equip leaders and this year, more than 100 youth ministry leaders in attended.

This year’s event encouraged our leaders to continue to grow and lead through great keynotes and seminars sharing practical tools to engage their youth. Leaders also connected with each other, building relationships over great food. A group of adults from different churches came together and made fresh pupusas. We are so grateful for adults that sacrifice so much just so our youth feel loved. Discipleship is about relationships after all.  

We’re looking forward to our fall youth event in September at Washington Family Ranch. It’s one of our core events, a spiritual retreat where we see youth making decisions for Jesus. Watch for details coming later this summer!

Our youth leaders are on the frontlines of spiritual transformation. These events equip them with the tools, inspiration, and community they need to impact young lives. We’re not just organizing events; we’re influencing lives for eternity. Let’s continue to pray, invest, support, and empower the next generations in our churches!