My name is Ray, and this is the story of how our youth group began, how it changed my life, and how it has grown into what is now the Carlo Acutis Association.
If you had told me a few years ago that I would be helping to run a youth group, let alone supporting other parishes to start their own, I never would have believed you. I had no background in youth ministry. No training. No plan.
How It All Began
It started at Our Lady of the Wayside. We had no youth group. Nothing for the young people who were coming to Mass each week with their families. Nothing to help them grow in their faith, build friendships, or feel part of the parish community.
One day our parish priest mentioned that a few parishioners had shown interest in starting something. He knew who might help, who had the right heart, who had the enthusiasm even if we had none of the experience. I was one of those he approached.
Looking back, that yes changed everything.
What I did have was a simple nudge from the Holy Spirit and the willingness to say yes.
When Father asked me if I would get involved, I felt a mixture of panic and excitement. I had every reason to say no. I had work, responsibilities, and absolutely no idea how to run a youth group. But something in me knew I needed to say yes.
So I did.
Then came the schools. After a few conversations with the headteachers, the staff got behind the youth group completely. They promoted it, encouraged the children, and created a bridge that allowed more young people to be reached.
The Trinity That Made It Possible
Very quickly, something beautiful began to take shape. Without realising it, we were living the structure that now underpins the entire Carlo Acutis Association.
Parishioners came forward. People offered their time, their gifts, their energy. Some helped with games, some with safeguarding, some simply turned up and made the young people feel welcome. Everyone contributed something.
Our parish priest supported us every step of the way. He encouraged us, prayed with us, gave us space, guided us spiritually, and kept us grounded in faith. His support made us believe we could actually do this.
We didn’t plan this template. It simply unfolded through God’s grace. This Trinity became the foundation for everything we have done since.
The Gift of Mentorship
I was blessed with people who walked with me in those early weeks.
Marie from Oxfordshire. Maeve, who helped start the junior group. Dan, who became a core leader for the senior youth.
They taught me so much about youth ministry, but more importantly, they showed me what accompaniment looks like. They encouraged me when I doubted myself and reminded me that this work belongs to God, not to us.
Their mentorship planted the seed for what later became the idea of the Carlo Acutis Association, an organisation built on experienced leaders walking with those just beginning.
Growth Beyond What We Expected
The youth group grew quickly. Then it grew again. Then it grew beyond what any of us could have imagined.
Before long, we were welcoming young people from three parishes: Our Lady of the Wayside, St Augustine’s and Olton Friary.
Each week we had over eighty young people coming through the doors. Junior sessions, senior sessions, formation evenings, debates, prayer, social time, and everything in between.
Topics ranged from the Rosary to assisted suicide, from Palestine to what it means to be Catholic today. The young people brought honesty, passion, and courage. We provided a safe place, and they filled it with life.
Some called it the highlight of their week. Others came back after years away from the Church. Families felt renewed. Parish life deepened. The fruit was everywhere.
The Moment God Made the Mission Clear
One moment in particular stays with me.
A mother travelled twenty-one miles from Quinton with her daughter so she could attend our youth group. She took two buses. It took her one and a half hours each way. When I asked her why she was willing to make that journey, she simply said:
“Because there is nothing like this near us, and my daughter needs it.”
That was the moment I knew this wasn’t just a parish project. It wasn’t even a cluster project.
It was a call.
A call to help other parishes start their own youth groups so families don’t have to travel halfway across Birmingham for their children to experience community, faith, and joy.
The Children Who Changed Us
The transformation we witnessed in the young people was nothing short of grace in action.
Young people who had been shy became leaders. Those unsure about faith found confidence. Friendships blossomed. Mass attendance increased. Liturgy became alive for them. They debated difficult questions with maturity and respect.
A Year 6 child, after celebrating the canonisation of Saint Carlo Acutis all September, chose St Carlo for his Confirmation name and then went home and built a website about him.
One child looked at me after a session and said: “I feel closer to Jesus now.” That alone made every moment worth it.
Why the CAA Exists Today
The Carlo Acutis Association was born from all these moments. It emerged from the parish priest who believed in us; the schools who supported us; the volunteers who stepped forward; the mentors who held our hand; the children who changed our hearts; the families searching for community; the realisation that parishes everywhere needed help.
We discovered, sometimes painfully, what works and what doesn’t. We made mistakes, learned, adjusted, and slowly built a template that can be shared.
CAA now exists so that no parish has to start alone. So that parishioners who feel the call will have the guidance we never had. So that young people everywhere can have what our young people have found.
This mission began with a simple yes. It continues with many yeses. And now, through the CAA, it can grow far beyond us.
So that St Carlo’s words, “The Eucharist is my highway to Heaven,” can echo in every parish.
I pray that this story encourages you, inspires you, and reassures you that God always provides what we need. We simply have to be open enough to say yes.