Students in the 6th through 12th grades are invited to join us on Sunday nights for Sunday Night Gatherings from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”), located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center. Sunday Night Gatherings include great dinners, fun games, amazing worship, inspirational and relevant messages and life-changing small groups.

Our schedule for the month of April is:

• Sunday, April 27th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”)

Our schedule for the month of May is:

• Sunday, May 4th: Senior Recognition Night at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, May 11th: No Sunday Night Gathering (Mother’s Day);
• Sunday, May 18th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, May 25th: Hang out at the Duluth Town Green. Meet at LR Burger for dinner at 5:30 p.m. Please bring $20 for dinner and dessert. Pick up time will be at 7:30 p.m. at the Town Green.
  

Our schedule for the month of June is:

• Sunday, June 1st: Youth Ministry Volunteer Appreciation Night at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, June 8th: No Sunday Night Gathering (returning from the Gainesville Aid Project);
• Sunday, June 15th: No Sunday Night Gathering (Father’s Day);
• Sunday, June 22nd: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, June 29th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”).
  

Our schedule for the month of July is:

• Sunday, July 6th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, July 13th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”);
• Sunday, July 20th: Gwinnett Stripers Baseball game at 1:05 p.m. at Coolray Field. Please be on the lookout for more information;
• Sunday, July 27th: Sunday Night Gathering at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”).

Please click on YOUTH MINISTRY for more information.

Questions? Please contact Rev. Min Lee, Director of Youth Ministries, by e-mail at mlee@duluthumc.org.

Our Youth Ministry is partnering with the Gainesville Aid Project (GAP) on Wednesday, June 4th, through Sunday, June 8th to serve those in the Gainesville, Hall County area. Students and adult leaders will serve those needing home repairs, wheelchair ramps, lawn care help, etc., during the days and will participate in group activities, games, and worship in the evenings. To register, please click on YOUTH SUMMER MISSION GAP. The cost is $75 per student. The registration deadline is Sunday, April 13th.

We are also looking for some adult volunteers to accompany us on this trip. Please contact Rev. Min Lee, Director of Youth Ministries, by e-mail at mlee@duluthumc.org if you would like more information or volunteer on this mission trip.

If you have a student (or if you are the student) who is a member of Duluth First UMC and is graduating from high school, trade school, college, or graduate school, please send a picture of your student by e-mail to Ken Willi, Director of Communications, at kwilli@duluthumc.org AND Rev. Min Lee, Director of Youth Ministries, at mlee@duluthumc.org. Please put Graduate Recognition 2025 in the subject field of your e-mail.

Please be sure to include:

• the graduate’s name;
• the name of the school they are graduating from;
• their next step plans (i.e. college, military, trade school, graduate school, job).
  

All pictures and information need to be received by the end of the day, Sunday, April 27th.
 
PLEASE NOTE: Youth-led Worship Sunday in all three services is scheduled for Sunday, May 18th.

How does God’s “small, still voice” break through the noise, busyness, chaos, and overstimulation filling our daily lives? With so many digital media “mining” the attention of our congregation, especially our children and youth, it can be difficult to compete.

So at Glisson Camp & Retreat Center in the forests surrounding Cane Creek Falls near Dahlonega, GA we don’t. Instead, we offer people a peaceful place and a “creative dislocation”, during which the distractions found elsewhere don’t exist. (That's right – cell phone-free!) Then we combine the absence of distraction with the safety and belonging created by our small group camping model, and we find our summer campers have a quieter mind that’s much less guarded, and more available to the presence of God’s Spirit.

That’s why for 100 years folks have said you can feel God’s presence at Camp Glisson like nowhere else. Your family of camp and retreat ministries is your partner in helping children, youth, and young adults hear God’s small, still voice. Each summer we hire and train an outstanding, committed staff of young adults who want nothing less than for the campers they guide to experience God’s love and to discover and remember that they are gifted and called by God.

When campers spend a week immersed in God's creation...practicing Christian community and servant leadership together...amazing things happen.  Since 1925, this place has become holy ground as thousands have had their faith strengthened through God’s presence there in creation and Christian community. Camp Glisson is part of the North Georgia Camp & Retreat Ministries of the United Methodist Church’s North Georgia Conference.

Camp ministry isn't just fun – it’s transformational:

"My daughter came home a new person. She experienced Christ in a very real, tangible way in addition to having loads of fun. When she told me of her experiences and all she learned as well as the friends she made and the fun she had, I had tears in my eyes. This experience was everything I could have hoped for her and more." 2024 Camp Glisson Parent

There are many spots still available for joining in on the faith-forming fun at Camp Glisson this summer – opportunities for growth and transformation for the kids in your church and your neighborhood. Several years ago one UM congregation recruited neighborhood kids to come to Camp Glisson, partnering with us to pay their way, and helping them get to camp. It was a transformative experience for everybody!

You’ll also want to know about the following financial resources that are available so that kids can access camp more easily:

• The Campership Fund: Camp Glisson works hard not to turn campers away because families can’t afford the cost of camp. Due to the of the generosity of Camp Glisson donors, financial help is available to families who are unable to pay any or all of the camp fee.
• The First Camper Fund: For many, summer camp was never a part of their family tradition. Some of those families experienced additional structural barriers to participating in camp. As a way of lowering one barrier for families trying summer camp for the first time, Camp Glisson is working with North Georgia Conference partners to help underwrite camp fees for new campers.
• The PK Fund: New this year! Thanks to a generous donation from a retired clergy member, Camp Glisson has limited funds available to assist young clergy families, for whom the cost of camp makes attending impossible, with half the cost of a camp week.

Click on SUMMER 2025 to see Camp Glisson's Summer 2025 schedule. Registration is open to everyone. For questions or additional information, To see the schedule and/or register, please go to https://glisson.org.

Students in the 6th through 12th grades are invited to join us on Sunday nights for Sunday Night Gathering from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Youth Center (“The Fish Tank”), located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center unless otherwise noted. Sunday Night Gathering includes great dinner, fun games, amazing worship, inspirational and relevant messages and life-changing small groups.

We invite students (6th through 12th grades) to join us for Bible Study during the school year as we dive into the Word of God and grow together as a community!  Bible Study is held on Wednesday nights from 6 to 7 p.m. in room F149, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

We have a year-round Sunday School for students in the 6th through 12th grades on Sunday mornings from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. in room F-149, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center.

Every Wednesday evening, parents of all ages are meeting from 6 to 7 p.m. in room 145, located on the 1st floor of the Sheldon Family Life Center, to discuss issues and concerns dealing with parenting in our world today from a Christian perspective. This is an open discussion group and everyone is invited to join us.

It takes a village to raise our children in a Christ-like way in our culture today, and we are building this group to serve as a place to receive support from other parents, advice and ideas from “more experienced” parents, and a reminder that you are not alone in what you are going through. For more information, please contact Rev. David Burchett by e-mail at dburchett@duluthumc.org.