21st General Assembly Planning Committee Met in Chennai, India

Last Updated (Wednesday, 01 February 2023 15:48)

“Journeying Together as a Resilient Community: Transforming Lives through Vision 2030”

The in-person GA Planning Committee Meeting was held at the Hyatt Regency Chennai, India, from January 6-9, 2023. The YMCA Madras hosted the meeting. The following members of the GA Planning Committee attended in person:

Mr. Babu Gomes, Bangladesh	Chairperson of the Planning Committee
Prof. Chen Chin Seng, Taiwan	President, APAY
Mr. Bertram Devadas, India	NGS, Host NCY of India
Mr. R.S Shettian	Treasurer of the NCY of India to the APC
Mr. Vincent George,	President, Host YMCA Madras
Mr. Asir Pandian, India	GS, Host Madras YMCA, Chennai
Mr. Peter Malone	Former vice president of APAY
Ms. Nguyen My Hanh, Vietnam	Executive director, Vietnam YMCA
Mr. Wang Yu En, Taiwan	Practitioner of Education, Nantou YMCA
Mr. Nam Boo Won,	General Secretary, APAY
Ms. Sunita Suna,	Executive Secretary, APAY& Related Secretary of the 21st GA
Ms. Cristina Miranda	Executive Secretary, APAY

Justice J.B. Koshy (Retd.), President, NCY of India, joined on the 8th of January.
Stephanie Cheung, Chair of YPLD, joined Online briefly. Other members Ms. Nagako Okado, and Dr. Hahn Meerha, couldn’t attend the meeting.

The main Agenda of the GA Planning Committee were as follows:

• Develop the Road Map to the 21st General Assembly
• Design the content of the 5th Youth Assembly (YA) and 1st Gender Equity Forum (GEF)
• Planning of the 21st GA Program and Processes
• Visit the facilities for the GA, YA and GEF
• Budget
• Finalize the logo of the 21st GA
• Logistics and other relevant matters

The outcome of the GA in-person Planning Committee Meeting:

There will be 3 events: 

I. 5th Youth Assembly from September 13-15, 2023 in the YMCA International Youth Centre, Chennai

II. 1st Gender Equity Forum from September 13-15, 2023 in the YWCA International Guest House, Chennai

III. 21st General Assembly of APAY from September 15-20, 2023 in the Hyatt Regency Hotel Chennai

The Executive Committee Meeting will be held on the 15th of September 2023 and the Council Meeting will be held of the 18th September 2023.

Total number of delegates, participants of the 21st GA

About 450 YMCA members, delegates including the local members from the host YMCA in India, YA participants and GEF participants.

21st GA Registration and Participation fees:

Mandatory Registration Fee:	US$150
Participation Fee:	US$250 (Register By 30 April 2023) US$280 (Register From 1 May to until the deadline of 31 July 2023)
Mandatory Green Fee:	US$15

Road Map to the 21st General Assembly

▸ January 2023 an official announcement on the 21st GA with registration details will be sent to the national movements

▸ 17th January: APAY Election timeline will be decided

▸ 14th April: An Online Executive Committee Meeting will be held

▸ March, May, August: Online GA Planning Committee meetings will take place

▸ 13-15 September Youth Assembly and Gender Equity Forum will be organized

▸ 15-20 September 21st General Assembly will be held

▸ 1 - 5 December: Leaders Quadrennial Roundtable will take place

5th Youth Assembly and the 1st Gender Equity Forum will be organized by the concerned staff of APAY and the respective committee members. A preliminary program was presented during the planning committee meeting. These two are parallel events, hence there will be a joint session of YA and the GEF. The YA will be hosted by the YMCA Madras. There was also decision to invite about men to the GEF and encourage the national movements to send both men and women to the forum. The participants of these two events will continue to join the 21st GA from September 15-20, 2023.

Thematic Workshops and Exposure Programs

Apart from the business sessions of the 21st GA, here will be 9 thematic workshops combined with the Exposure Program based on the 4 pillars of Vision 2030 and QPP(Quadrennial Program Plan of APAY). They are:

1. Community Wellbeing
2. Meaningful Work
3. Sustainable Planet
4. Just World
5. DRM(Disaster Risk Management)
6. Gender Justice
7. Youth empowerment
8. Justice and peace
9. Good Governance.

Logo of the 21st GA

The logo is finalized and will be launched in January.

Visit to the facilities

The members visited the facilities at the Hyatt Regency, YMCA International Youth Centre and the YWCA International Guest House, where the 3 events are planned.

Fellowship with board members of YMCA Madras

At the end of the meeting, the YMCA Madras also hosted a fellowship gathering with dinner. The planning committee members had an opportunity to meet and interact with the board members of the YMCA Madras.

APAY is very much thankful to the NCY of India and especially to the YMCA Madras for their care and hospitality and for being a wonderful host of the in-person planning committee meeting. We look forward to the 21st GA in Chennai hosted by the NCY of India and YMCA Madras!

By Sunita Suna, Executive Secretary & Related Secretary of the 21st GA

My Journey with YMCA: A Brief Reflection of my participation in the 39th ASC

Last Updated (Friday, 27 January 2023 17:28)

I am Nimey, from Cambodia, one of the girls, among others, raised in an orphanage. I didn’t have a mother to take care of me, but thank God, to be raised by God’s love, and guidance as my life started in a Christian family. I also needed my parent’s love and care, which I didn’t receive; the orphanage staff became my and my sister’s parents. After schooling, I left the orphanage with a lot of uncertainty. At the age of 20, a friend from college introduced me to a part-time teaching position, which was when I got to know YMCA in 2017. 

I was a part-time English teacher. I didn’t know deeply about the YMCA, but about 5-6 months later, the Y school announced a full-time teacher, so I applied to be full-time teacher. While working with children and getting involved in most Y programs, I found many children needing proper clothes, food, care and love. That reminded me of my stay at the orphanage centre. That touched my heart, and I wanted to bring love and smile to these children. That was also my encouragement when I was working directly with those children. While working at the YMCA, I considered it a call that God wanted me to do something for the children; I believe it is my mission. I started as a part-time teacher and now working as an acting national general secretary of YMCA Cambodia. It was not a smooth journey, but I found God’s grace and hope for the children our YMCA has been working with. It took a lot of effort in this journey with YMCA. I realized it's because of the Christian values I am here with YMCA! 

It’s been 6 years and 2 months with the YMCA. I got to know YMCA history and the work of other Ys movements, which helped me understand God's calling and how we can be blessings to other people through the YMCA mission. 

My participation in the 39th Advanced studies course

The ASC has given me a better and deeper knowledge of various topics/ subjects. The session on Creative worship and liturgies helped me with more ideas and tools on how to create or lead the worship creatively and meaningfully that will have an impact on people or in the churches. As a Christian organization, how can we serve our community effectively can transform the challenges into an opportunity for everybody, especially young people, to change their society and make a better future for the new generation. And how we can link the values of what we believe in helping and impacting people around us. 

The YMCA mission in context helped to understand the history and the mission of the YMCA. I got to know deeper about the YMCA's legacy and history on how it was started and formed, with a clear vision, mission (statement), and core values. The YMCA mission statement, revised from Paris Basis - Kampala principles to Challenge 21, has continued serving people. And how the YMCA mission and movement have kept spreading everywhere on all continents. That inspired me as part of the YMCA and how we can identify our mission in our context with a clear vision and mission.

The Movement Strengthening and Relevancy highlighted the Christian foundation, youth-driven, membership and as a community-based organization. It is vital to me as I am in a leadership role at the YMCA. It helped me to be able to reflect on my YMCA practice and what we can impact/give back to our community. It is imperative to know our identity, with a clear vision and mission, so we can recognize the issues in our society and how to respond effectively. Moreover, as a Christian faith-based organization, how can we work inclusively with people or stakeholders from different contexts, such as beliefs, backgrounds or conditions, to benefit and give value to our society. 

The Interfaith Dialogue showed that we all could work together, share a common value, and give back to our society. It was a new experience and made me think positively about other religions. The session on Gender Justice helped me to have a more profound understanding of it and also benefited me to know more about how to respond to and adapt it at my YMCA, like other subjects on climate crises. Why are there climate crises and natural disasters? How can we be a part of the solution as YMCA? 

Contextual Theology is a broad topic, but I got to understand better how different contexts can come together and work for the marginalized people of our society. Ecumenism and Ecumenical Movement enabled us to work inclusively with people and partners from other faiths and contexts. 

Youth empowerment and leadership helped me understand the definition of Empowerment and leadership and some techniques to use to be a good leader.

Last but not least, the session was about proposal writing, and the preparation or guideline for the re-entry plan was helpful to me. It helped me to understand and learn more about how to write a proposal to respond to the need of my YMCA. 

I got an opportunity to join the 39th advanced study program. I joined the program with the expectation of having profound knowledge about the YMCA. Also, an opportunity to connect with other YMCAs, understand the relevant issues in my societal contexts and share common values and passion on our journey with the YMCA to inspire and be inspired by other participants. I am very much grateful to the APAY for the opportunity given to me to join the 39th ASC!

By Nimey Rin
Acting GS, Cambodia YMCA
Participant of the 39th ASC

39th Advanced Studies Course- ASC, November 3- December 5, 2022

Last Updated (Tuesday, 06 December 2022 13:42)

Communique

Preamble

We, the participants of the 39th Advanced Studies Course (ASC), were held virtually via zoom from the 3rd – 18th of November 2022, followed by the in-person training sessions from the 20th of November to the 5th of December at the YMCA International Hotel, Chiang Mai, Thailand the backdrop of a post-Covid-19 era. Eleven (11) participants from eight (8) countries and 10 different YMCAs across Asia joined the ASC this year with the theme “Leadership and Mission – Towards YMCA Vision 2030”.

The Covid-19 pandemic has continued to affect most countries in 2022. However, due to our deepened understanding of the virus, more drugs and vaccines have been developed, resulting in a gradual decline in the death rate and the reduction of fear surrounding the virus. From the second half of the year, more Asian countries opened their borders, and the interaction between people resumed gradually, which made the in-person ASC possible.

We express our deep gratitude to the contributing facilitators and resource personnel from across Asia and, most of all, the leadership and Executive of APAY for taking up the challenge to conduct this important program virtually and in person.

Collective Learning & Reflection

The 39th ASC was a great learning space for all of us with online and in-person experience. We revisited the Mission and Vision of YMCA and explored with much enthusiasm on Ecumenism & Ecumenical Movements; Movement Strengthening & Relevancy; Good Governance; Interfaith cooperation for justice and peace in a multi-religious context; Gender Justice; Climate Change; Vision 2030; Economy of Life; contextual theology; youth leadership alongside a host of other topics have been introduced and discussed within the group. Learning creative liturgies; celebrating and respecting the diversity of the religions was a new experience for all.

We were privileged to have the opportunity to visit three communities in Chiang Mai (MAP Foundation, The HUG Project, and Urban Light) and learn about their work and commitments to the community. The visit to the Sao Hin YMCA was a meaningful experience to witness their implementations as a response to the climate crisis. There were many learnings for all of us that could be implemented at our YMCAs.

Apart from the curriculum, we had many more learnings from colleagues of different YMCAs as we stayed together discussing, listening and sharing our experiences.

The Advanced Studies Course has provided a platform for us as participants from diverse YMCAs to explore and develop a comprehensive understanding of the common challenges facing the Asia Pacific Region while also being equipped to seek and implement solutions through the YMCA. All these gave us a great challenge on how we as a movement need to respond.

Read more: 39th Advanced Studies Course- ASC, November 3- December 5, 2022

Philippine YMCA Trains New YMCA Staffs thru Virtual CDP – Basic Secretaries Training Course

Last Updated (Tuesday, 01 November 2022 14:49)

YMCA of the Philippines conducted its Career Development Program (CDP) – Basic Secretaries Training Course after suspending it for two years because of the covid-19 pandemic. After the re-definition of the YMCA Mission in response to changing social realities over the years, mindful of the changes and challenges to leadership development and the practice of leadership in strengthening the movement, the Career Development Program primarily focused on the formation of YMCA professional leaders for the strengthening and growth of the various movements in the country including Mission Clarity, Social Relevance and Institutional Viability.

The program brought together five young full-time staff and volunteer from three local YMCAs working in different roles and capacities. They are:

1. Ferdinand R. Castillo, YMCA of RINALI
2. Anshereen Gail L. Inocencio, YMCA of Manila
3. Ma. Isabel R. Parada, YMCA of Manila
4. Belenda A. Versoza, YMCA of Manila and;
5. Jayson A. Noga, YMCA of Albay

The 15- day intensive training provided various platforms for the participants to discover the roles and responsibilities of YMCA professionals especially in the re- affirmation of the YMCA as a people’s movement committed to working for justice and peace, according to the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

This year’s training for YMCA staff were significant and considered as first in the YMCA-CDP history as it was fully accomplished virtually which the participant joined online for two and a half hours from October 2 to October 16, 2022. The course module was innovated to a shortened version of the original face to face training module to fit to the limitations of the virtual training and its implementation remained to be mindful of the changes and challenges of leadership development and leadership practice on strengthening the relevance of the movement.

The participants expanded their knowledge in exploring the various areas of the seven modules presented by the invited resource persons through interactive information inputs, presentations, workgroups, activities and discussions, such as Contemporary Christian Theology that were presented by Dr. Oscar P. Ferrer (Professor, University of the Philippines-Diliman); Understanding Ecumenism and Ecumenical Movements by Rev. Robert B. Sison, (whose also a CDP alumni and now the General Secretary of Baguio YMCA); Understanding YMCA by Mr. Pablito A. Tabucol, (National General Secretary of the YMCA of the Philippines and also the Program Director of this year CDP); Understanding Constituencies and Structures by Mr. Orlando F. Carreon (CDP alumni and current Director General of YMCA of Manila); Contextual Realities and Responses: Seeking Alternatives by Dr. Leocito Gabo(Professor, University of the Philippines-Diliman and also the CDP Consultant); Regional and Global Perspective on YMCA Mission by Ms. Sunita Suna (Program Executive from APAY); and Program Development and Management by Ms. Ianne Christine Aquino (also CDP Alumni and the Current General Secretary of YMCA Albay).

Read more: Philippine YMCA Trains New YMCA Staffs thru Virtual CDP – Basic Secretaries Training Course