By Lauren SumnerCan a few months change a student’s life?Walker Laitala, a ninth-grader at Greenwich Country Day School sure thinks so. “Stanwich Church’s Confirmation program changed my life. It not only developed my already formed understanding of Jesus, but also showed me other areas that I wasn’t as familiar with. The most important thing that I left with after this course was my steadfast relationship with Jesus. Confirmation still has large and noticeable effects on my life.”Walker Laitala is one of many students who have completed the Confirmation program at Stanwich Church, a non-denominational Christian church in backcountry Greenwich, CT. The program aims to educate, equip, and inspire students to know Christ and make Him known. Throughout the duration of the program, students explore questions of faith in a way that is approachable for each student, regardless of where they are in their faith journey. The goal of the program is to help students “confirm” what they believe, with the freedom to ask questions and express doubts in a safe space to their classmates, mentors and teachers.When asked about her experience, Kathryn Herman, a ninth-grader at Sacred Heart commented, “This program planted a really strong foundation for my faith to grow. Going into this, my relationship with God was distant and inconsistent. Since I finished the program, my faith is as strong as it’s ever been.”What do students leave with from the Confirmation program? For students like Walker and Kathryn, it was a calling to share their faith with others both in words and actions. Diving right into the program last year, Walker devoted his time to figure out what he believes and what he wanted to do with that faith. Through this process, he discovered a calling to get involved in serving those who were less fortunate than him. Since then, Walker has developed a student-led service group that meets monthly to serve the local community. During the last service meeting, over 20 students joined Walker in helping rebuild Mamaroneck, NY after a devastating flood.Confirmation is a 12-session program offered by the Student Ministry that meets during the 10:45 AM Sunday morning worship service at Stanwich Church beginning February 6. While the program is designed for eighth-grade students, the class is also open to any seventh graders who feel that they are ready, and to high school students who may have missed an opportunity for Confirmation as a younger student.Do you know a student who might benefit from Confirmation? Registration and details can be found on the student page at StanwichChurch.org. Registration ends February 1. Please contact Lauren Sumner, the Student & Family Discipleship Leader, with any questions you may have at lauren@stanwichchurch.org.Lauren Sumner is the Student and Family Discipleship Ministry Leader at Stanwich Church. She, alongside other leaders, will be teaching the Confirmation program this year.
