Black History Month at SPARK

Funded through the ALF grant (Assumption Legacy Fund) we have now had three successful sessions at the parish of St. Augustine of Canterbury in Harehills.  An initial Listening Event to focus on the interests and enthusiasms of the young adults, a Launch event led by beat boxer / rapper Testament and this event in October.

A group member introduces the speaker … we try to create situations for the young adults to lead and to shine!

Ten young people from the parish joined the SPARK Social Justice Group and the parish youth lead, Cassandra on Sunday 4th October after Mass.  With a focus on Black History Month, the invited speaker, Urban Mohammed spoke eloquently about black history, black excellence and achievements.  Urban was an insightful and empowering speaker educating us all on the value of education, diversity and inclusion. 

The photos show a few highlights from the session – I couldn’t capture the enthusiastic participation in the ping pong game ..far too much action, although sharing an audio file would show how much fun this was!

A group member is absorbed in the backdrop about Black History … and finding answers to some of the bingo quiz questions on this theme

Our next session in November will be led by two members of the group, with a focus on faith and social justice. We are excited to be participants and observers rather than leading or directing the session. 

A beautiful display in the hall at St Augustine

This is an exceptional group of future leaders and we are grateful to the funding from ALF which has enabled this new piece of work to be developed.