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[UMNS-ALL-NEWS] UMNS# 031-Teens seek new youth director in You Tube ad


From NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>
Date Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:11:45 -0600

Teens seek new youth director in You Tube ad

Jan. 28, 2008

NOTE: Photographs, a photo illustration and related video available at http://umns.umc.org.

A UMNS Report By Andrew Schleicher*

Finding the right youth director can be like catching the best wave, but only if you know how to surf. The youth group at St. Andrew By-The-Sea United Methodist Church in Hilton Head Island, S.C., hopes its next director will surf the Internet to find them.

Last fall, the youth created and starred in a minute-long video advertisement touting their "great location," "really cool building" and "awesome pastor" and inviting potential candidates to "come surf with us at St. Andrew on Hilton Head Island."

They posted the ad--complete with scenes of kids playing beach volleyball, foosball and basketball--on a popular video-sharing Web site and handed out postcards at a youth conference in Atlanta inviting interested youth directors to "see us on You Tube."

More than 1,300 people have viewed the ad since its November posting, and approximately 200 candidates submitted their resumes for the job. While the church used other traditional advertising methods as well, nearly every applicant mentioned the video.

The Rev. Neil Yongue, pastor of St. Andrew, came up with the idea for the You Tube ad as a way "that people could get an immediate taste of who we were."

"We wanted to do a good thorough search using all of the devices available," said Yongue, who presented the idea to church leaders. "I think [they] found it to be an exciting and novel idea."

Church member Glenn Brodie, who runs a radio and television production company, produced the video. He said writing the script was a group process but that the main idea came from the youth. "They wanted it to be at the beach to make it look fun," he said.

The filming took place over two days--one day at the church and another at Coligny Beach. Almost 20 youth members participated, including 15-year-old Cameron Stratton.

"I thought it was good idea to help get in touch with people through a more modern way," said Cameron.

Marissa Nichols, 15, served as the narrator, surrounded by other youths wearing shorts and T-shirts and even bathing suits against the backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean. "Here, you can live where most people come to vacation," a smiling Marissa says in the video montage.

Marissa was excited to be featured on You Tube and, after a local newspaper ran a story about the youth group project, her friends checked out the posting and thought it was cool. "I'm excited about getting a new youth director," she said, noting that she wants someone with "high energy, not necessarily young ... someone we feel comfortable around (and with) a little bit of experience."

The church hopes to wrap up its search by the end of spring and is now conducting telephone interviews. The applicants include people of several denominational backgrounds. "We are trying to be very careful and prayerful," Yongue said.

*Schleicher is a freelance writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

News media contact: Marta Aldrich, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org

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