My parish, St. Vincent de Paul, is truly blessed when it comes to youth ministry. Having had one pastor for the past 17 years, we have had a steady hand to guide us from one youth leader to the next. I began the program back in 1997 and served for several years until moving on to high school education.

Fortunately, our next youth minister was skilled in some areas where I wasn’t and took the program to even greater heights. He served for nearly nine years before passing the baton to a college-aged participant. He then served for two years and left behind a solid core of leaders.

As we recently hired the fourth youth minister, it was good for all four of us to reflect on the blessing of parish ministry. When Tyler, our new hire, reported for duty and was introduced at a recent Mass, it was significant that the previous three youth ministers were all present. With a firm pat on the back, I told him “You are the fourth in a long line of good youth leaders—don’t mess it up.”

How seriously does your parish take succession planning?