Samantha Savoury was always a churchgoer but didn’t really understand how to apply the lessons learned until she joined Young Life.

The Christian outreach programme showed the 14-year-old how the Sunday sermons were relevant to her day-to-day existence.

She credits the programme with “planting a seed”, which led to her having a deeper, more intimate walk with God.

“The leaders at Young Life always presented The Word to us in a way that we could relate as young people,” she explained.

“In church I would hear about The Word, but it would usually go over my head, but here it was broken down to a level that I could understand and really grasp onto.”

The lessons she learned back then have stayed with her even to this day, said Ms Savoury, who is now 27.

She’s just one of many whose lives were positively impacted by Young Life.

The programme is celebrating its 50th anniversary on Tuesday with a reception at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute from 5.30pm until 7.30pm.

Planned is a time of celebration and reflection. It’s open to alumni, volunteers and anyone interested in learning more about the scheme.

Young Life’s mission has been to share Jesus Christ with Bermuda’s youth ever since it was founded by Francis “Goose” Gosling back in 1963.

It offers weekly clubs and summer camps, which focus on fun, adventure and fostering friendships between young people and caring adults.

Programme director Kevin Mahoney said groups like these have never been more important, seeing the challenges facing many young people today.

“One of the things people haven’t grasped is the depth and breadth of how much our young people are struggling,” Mr Mahoney said.

“People see the news headlines but they sometimes fail to realise that those individuals started somewhere else for them to get to that negative place.

“I believe young people are looking for purpose and meaning and something they can anchor their lives to that will see them through life.”

He continued: “Our mission is to entice young people to Jesus and help them grow in their faith.

“That faith can then provide the anchor for them if they are looking for it and even for the ones that don’t recognise they’re looking for it.”

Despite living in today’s world of instant gratification, Young Life volunteers understand they may not see the fruits of their labour until many years down the road.

“We are planting seeds so they may not sprout or mature for five, ten or fifteen years,” Mr Mahoney said. “Our purpose is to start the process of spiritual growth, but to a large degree we can’t dictate the results to that. We just have to be faithful to what we have been called to, which is sharing the good news with young people.”

He said many of the programme’s volunteers go beyond the call of duty to build healthy relationships with students. They might spend a lunch hour with a child at their school or attend one of their football games or dance recitals to show they care.

Elaine and Brian Frick have volunteered with the programme for the past 15 years.

She said by being consistent they often saw real transformation in young people’s lives, such as positive changes in their attitude, behaviour and spiritual growth.

“But sometimes they leave before you really get to see the change, which is the hard part,” Mrs Frick said.

“I’ve had the opportunity to see former students in grocery stores or bump into them later on in life and they recognise you. You don’t always recognise them because they are adults now, but it’s kind of cool and neat to know you played a part in their life.”

For more information visit http://bermuda.younglife.org. To reserve a space at Young Life’s anniversary reception call 292-6365.