UV Light - White Glove Performances for Youth Groups

Youth groups?! No, I don’t run a youth group, but if you look around my house you would think I run a daycare! So why do I care about ideas for youth groups? Well, a few years ago my oldest two daughters were looking forward to joining our parish youth group, but our parish youth ministry fell apart the same year that my oldest was old enough to join! Bummer – what horrible luck. I was asked if I was interested in helping to keep the group running, since I had the only kids in the parish that were willing to show up to the meetings, but I decided against it. You see, we attend Mass at a ”dying parish”. In other words, most of our parishioners are retirement age. There are very few kids in the parish and there are even less teens. It’s hard to keep a youth group running in a parish with such few youth. Plus, at the time when I was asked to help, I was very pregnant with our 9th baby, and I felt like a beached whale. I already had a full plate. But that doesn't mean I never plan to try my hand at running or helping with a youth group. I hope that in the future when my youngest few kids are old enough to be easily managed I’d like to start our parish youth group again or maybe join in with the youth group that is available in a neighboring parish, which is 45 minutes from our home. So I’d like to start posting some ideas that I feel may be helpful ideas for youth ministry. That way if I ever have an opportunity to help with a teen group I can look back through some of these ideas as a reminder of past thoughts. And I don’t think you’ll mind gaining a few ideas for your youth ministry, school, or homeschooling group, too.

 I stumbled onto a video on YouTube while I was trying to look up a song my kids liked on our local Christian Radio Station. When I saw this I immediately thought ”WOW, that is sooo cool!!” (Is it still okay to use the word ’cool’?) ”This would make an awesome youth group project!”

After I saw this one, I found LOTS more on YouTube from other groups! They are really amazing you should check them out!

There are a number of videos on YouTube which show other groups’ performances! They are all amazing! So how did they do it? The kids all wear black, from head to toe, BUT they wear white gloves. Then they stand in front of a black background in a dark room. An ultraviolet fluorescent light (A.K.A. black light) is strategically placed in front of them facing up. Some groups recommended placing a second light above facing down. These lights need to be positioned so you only see the white gloves reflecting the light.    Now the kids need to come-up with hand signs to put together during a song. And practice, practice, practice! I asked a former electrical purchaser (now Electrical Project Manger) ,whom I’m married to, where to buy these UV lights and he said they can be found at any electrical shop or on-line. This is a great way for teens to preform and raise funds for pilgrimages or trips. Is your youth group looking for a fun new way to raise money to take a trip to the next World Youth Day? Or maybe it could be a nice way to get the kids to preform for local retirement homes as a service project. So get your group all decked-out in black garb and take the white gloves for a spin! This looks like it could be as much fun to create as it is to watch!! Have a blessed day! ~JenMarie