Over the course of my life no one has inspired me and changed my perspective like my confirmation group leaders. They have impacted my life in a way I couldn’t think possible. They achieved this by non-stop encouragement and communication. Not only did they make the course and classes fun but they also changed my perspective of going to church and what it meant. They have changed my life.

Class started off with sheer silence as students walked in to the meeting area. I sat nervously on the couches not knowing what to expect. The time was approaching 7am and the group leaders weren't there yet. No one knew what to do besides sit in the silence and wait. Finally the teachers arrived, set their stuff down and walked to the front of the room. They could be described as young, shining, and funny. They looked at the list and called everyone’s name, and introduced themselves. The room then erupted from the silence like a surprise birthday party as we started our lesson.

As class went on, we watched videos and read in our booklets. Not knowing what the class is about it looks to be boring, but I could assure you it wasn’t. Each video and story we read was met with either a joke or a life story. Liz would always yell at Nate in a joking way when he was taking too long or went over the time limit, which was practically every time. Everyone enjoyed listening and that's what brought us close as a group.

Attending each class every week our group grew a relationship. This was with the help of life stories and moments from Liz and Nate’s life that got us interested and ready to learn. I will never forget the story of when Nate told us about his friend, Reggie, and his emotional experience with the church.     

It was another class period, but this one was different. We had heard many stories but not quite like this one. Nate started off introducing his friend, Reggie. He told us he didn’t have any connection to the church and how he had lost faith. He then proceeded to tell us that him and his wife took Reggie to Mass. This was not an ordinary Mass though, this was a special one where the Father goes around the church with an aspergillum, sprinkling water over everyone’s head. This Mass is to be described as emotional and uplifting.

He proceeded to tell us, “When Father came to us, and Reggie had been hit by the water, he broke down in tears. These weren’t tears of sorrow, but tears of joy and happiness. Reggie had heard something, a sign that brought him to tears.”

I remember Nate telling us that that was one of the first times he had seen his friend cry. The most memorable part of this story is the part where he received the sign, which shows that someone portrayed as a big tough guy can be brought to tears in a good way from the help of God.

I want to thank you for making class the most memorable and for being funny in the way you presented the material. I realized I liked coming to class to learn about God, but I feel like the way you taught the class made me enjoy it even more. The jokes and stories made the class worthwhile and made me look forward to going to class every week. I want to thank you for the best group experience I’ve had along with the help you gave me along the Confirmation journey.