Nazareth House is in search of Catholic high school youth willing to serve as volunteer catechists for the 2022-2023 school year. The Nazareth House program offers religious education, pastoral care, and liturgical celebrations with children and adults who have intellectual and developmental disabilities, living in the greater Birmingham and Huntsville areas.

Teenage volunteers at Nazareth House gain invaluable experience and have the opportunity to share their Catholic faith in a one-on-one setting. Teen volunteers earn over 75 hours of community service. Many volunteers join the Nazareth House program to meet a volunteer hour requirement; however, most teens who serve continue to volunteer for multiple years afterward due to the positive experience. Regardless of the career volunteers later choose, many report that their time at Nazareth House helped shaped them in their vocational path.

One former catechist, Dr. Erin Sansing, explained, “My time volunteering at Nazareth House was such an enriching and formative experience. It was my first introduction to spending quality time with individuals with disabilities. I later become a pediatric audiologist and my Nazareth House experience helped me better understand how to connect with and serve some of my patients and their families.”

Frankie Thraikill, another former Nazareth House catechist, decided to become a special education teacher as a result of his time volunteering. “When I was volunteering at Nazareth House as a catechist, I was able to work one-on-one … I found this role so rewarding that I continued to come back year after year to teach.”

Volunteer teens in Birmingham will serve at St. Francis Xavier School on most Saturday mornings during the school year from 10 a.m. until noon. Please note that Nazareth House provides training for this ministry. A mandatory workshop training will take place Aug. 20 from 9 a.m. to noon at St. Francis Xavier School. No prior registration for the workshop is required. For questions, contact Sarah Houser at 205-612-6111 or sawisely@gmail.com. Interested teenagers may also contact Fr. Patrick Cullen at rathmines.cullen@gmail.com

In Huntsville, volunteers will serve during the school year at Good Shepherd Catholic Church on most Sunday mornings or at St. Mary of the Visitation Catholic Church on most Wednesday afternoons. The Huntsville program’s mandatory workshop for both locations will be Aug. 21 at St. Mary of the Visitation Parish from 2-5 p.m. Again, no prior registration is required. For questions, contact Judith Gregory at 256-652-8412.