New York City Spiritual Activist Summit 2010

Gather with other young people ages 12-30 for 3 days of:
- Talks by Christian Science lecturers including Q&A sessions
- Time to talk, reflect, and listen to music
- Workshops all about your spiritual growth on topics such as Class Instruction–a two-week course on healing, Answering Tough Questions about Christian Science, and Becoming a Full-time Healer.
Registration is closed! Stay tuned for the Summit highlight slideshow, videos and photos from the weekend, and recordings of the lectures, to be posted here on tmcyouth.com
When is it?
- Friday – Sunday, April 16-18, 2010
Where will the event take place?
- Third Church of Christ, Scientist, New York City
Lectures
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Chalk talk–a spiritual perspective on identity by Robin Hoagland (Listen to a preview |
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Does CS heal obstinate sin, incurable illness, even death? by John Adams (Listen to a preview |
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Find your calling, change the world by Chet Manchester (Listen to a preview |
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Learning to be happy by Susan Jostyn (Listen to a preview |
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Plain talk about love, romance, identity and sexuality by Ginny Luedeman (Listen to a preview |
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Sports, adventure and healing – let’s get moving! by Susan Jostyn (Listen to a preview |
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Hiking the Sermon on the Mount with Chet Manchester (Listen to a preview |
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Wanted–a God I can believe in by Robin Hoagland (Listen to a preview |
How much is this?
- Register by March 26, $100. After March 26, $115
- Registration fee includes all lectures, workshops, and meals
- Fri. and Sat. lodging is provided FREE of charge for the first 200 people who register (minors must be attended by a chaperone).
- Financial aid is available.
Can I cancel after I register?
- Sure, you will receive a full refund until March 26, 50% after March 26
Anything else?
Summit flyer (Large) | Summit flyer (Small)
Please note that the Saturday evening event will be open to the public, ages 12-30, and may include participants not registered for the Summit. A team of Summit chaperones will remain on duty throughout the evening event.
Parents of Minors Not Registered for the Summit: if you would like your teen to be checked-in and checked-out of the Saturday evening event, please make this request with the volunteer at the door when you arrive.

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Global Team





steven Says:
hi kemi and all,
i think there;s a slight mistake on this one:
◦Register by March 26, $115. After March 26, $100″
everyone will register later then
steven
Chris Says:
Hey there,
The words on the flyer download are all mashed together.
gabriela Says:
Is there an email adress I could contact? I want to apply to the summit but want to ask some questions. thanks
Ruthy Annis Says:
I am very interested in attending this summit. I only just attended my first Youth summit this past summer in Victoria and LOVED it so very very much!
How do I go about registering?
Thank you!
Ruthy
PS- I couldn’t actually open the “Flyer” link…
Inge Says:
Hi there! I’m on the Summit Planning committee, so let me see if I can answer the questions here!
Chris, what browser are you using? Do you have an up to date version of Adobe or Preview if you’re on a Mac? We haven’t had other problems with the flyer, so I’m hoping we can figure out what’s going on!
Gabriela, you can email nycsummit@gmail.com with questions and someone will get back to you promptly!
Ruthy, registration isn’t open yet, but we’re hoping it will be up soon. I’d estimate early January, so keep checking back! (That’s just a guess though, so keep an eye out) re: the flyer, did you try right clicking and saving the flyer to your desktop? Sometimes that works if just clicking on a download doesn’t.
Look forward to seeing you all at the Summit!!
Inge
Susan Whittlesey Says:
Our church, 3rd in San Antonio, TX, is seriously considering sending our SS students to this Summit. I’m the SS teacher of the high school class and we have 7 students. I’m also on our Board and liason to the lecture committee. It would be more than wonderful if we could be listed among the first 200 to sign up and thereby have free lodging for these kids.
So, here’s my question. When in January will the registration be opened?
My daughter and son-in-law and their young family live in Brooklyn and attend 10th Church in NYC.
Thanks for your devotion to our Movement!
Susie Whittlesey
Inge Says:
Hi Susan-
We’d love to have your SS students join us in NYC! We’re estimating around January 14th for registration opening. It may be delayed slightly by the holidays, but that’s our target!
Let us know if you have any further questions!
Inge
Kathie Parsons Says:
It seems to me I read somewhere (maybe a letter to our board?) that kids under the age of 18 need chaperons. That seems a little silly for kids my son’s age,16, and quite an added expense for people coming from a distance. Would one chaperone be enough for a group of kids? How about an older sibling instead of a parent?
I would also like housing info and a start time for the first day. Great to have a summit within two hours of home!
Inge Says:
Hi there Kathie!
You are correct, participants under the age of 18 need to have chaperones. It is an extra time and travel committment, but it’s important for making sure that all the participants are safe and accounted for before and after the actual Summit programming each day.
There can be one chaperone for up to 3 participants of the same sex (chaperones stay in Summit lodging with the kids, free of charge).
Chaperones are responsible for participants before and after the Summit programming each day (making sure they get to the Summit from the lodging, and then get back to the lodging from the Summit venue at the end of the day.
Siblings who are over 18 can be chaperones, provided that they are the same sex and understand the responsibilities of chaperoning, especially if they are also participants.
Lodging will be provided at the Vanderbilt YMCA which is close to 3rd Church, the Summit venue.
The Summit schedule will be posted as we get closer to the event, but there will be some (more informal) things going on Friday night for people who arrive then, I’d estimate starting around 6pm. Then, Saturday morning I’d estimate starting somewhere between 8 and 9am.
Let us know if you have any other questions!!
Look forward to seeing you in New York!
Inge
Inge Says:
(Just wanted to add that the chaperone requirement is a legal one that applies to all the Summits for liability reasons!)
Kathie Parsons Says:
Am I understanding that neither I nor my daughter cannot be a chaperone for my son because we are different genders? My husband is not a Christian Scientist and would not be interested in attending.
Barbara Whiffen Says:
Will chaperones be able to attend the Summit workshops and meetings?
If a Sunday School group (or a family) has enough chaperones for their group, could they offer to include a participant who might otherwise not be able to attend? For example, if a SS group has five boys and two chaperones, could an individual boy who needs a chaperone be put in touch with them and attend with their group? Could the mother of an attending boy volunteer as chaperone to one or more girls who need one? Can a non-Scientist parent be a chaperone?
Inge Says:
Hi Again, Kathie-
From what I understand, there is a place on the registration form where you can opt to have family members of different genders stay together, and we’ll definitely do our best to accommodate that based on what is available in the Summit lodging.
Other options would be if there is anyone else from your son’s Sunday School going with a chaperone. Also, chaperones don’t attend the events of the Summit, so your husband would simply be staying with your son and making sure he got to/from the Summit venue and lodging each day.
Let me know if there are any other questions!
Inge
Inge Says:
Hi Barbara-
Only Summit-aged chaperones can attend the Summit activities. We will need volunteers on the weekend, and sometimes volunteers can hear content from outside the rooms though
If you or someone else would be interested in volunteering, let us know and we can get your name to the right person.
And yes, you can “share” chaperones so long as the families have all approved the chaperone and give us that information in the registration process. We generally don’t help with managing Summit chaperones in any formal way.
If you have a chaperone willing to help with more attendees, you might check in your Sunday School or area churches to see if there’s anyone else looking to go who needs a chaperone.
There should be more information up on the site soon about these sorts of questions!
best,
Inge
Kate Cavotti Says:
How do I register my son for the upcoming youth summit?? I do not see anywhere to register inthe information that I have found.
linda Says:
How does one contribute to/ help to sponsor this event? Where should contributions be sent?
Inge Says:
Hi There Kate!
Registration is not open yet– we’re estimating around January 14th for getting it up and running! When it is open, there will be an online registration option through this website, so keep checking in in the next few weeks!
Look forward to seeing your son at the Summit!
Inge
Inge Says:
Hi Linda!
Thanks so much for asking– really appreciate your support. Contributions can be sent to:
Third Church NYC
583 Park Ave
New York, New York 10065
Checks should be made out to Third Church of Christ, Scientist New York. In the memo line, you should put “New York Summit”.
All the best,
Inge
Ernie Orlando Says:
In the spring of 1972 my brother and I attended the first CS regional youth meeting in Denver, Colorado. It proved to be a springboard towards our more devoted study and practice of Christian Science. The topics were relevant and candidly discussed. My experience makes this event a not-to-be missed opportunity. Many thanks to the members of 3rd Church for offering their beautiful building(and amazing pipe organ)to host. Their size and location are perfect. Our East Rochester,NY church is grateful to be co-sponsoring one of the talks. Love and gratitude to all the earnest workers bringing this to fruition.
Cindy Says:
Hi everyone,
I’m on the NYC Summit planning committee, along with Inge, and just wanted to reiterate that if you have questions you’d like answered in a more private setting, where they will not be posted online, send us an email at nycsummit@gmail.com. We’ll get you an answer as quickly as possible.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
Cindy
Annabelle Says:
Hi,
I was just wondering about registration? Thank you!
Inge Says:
Hi Annabelle-
We’re working out some technology issues with registration, but are hoping to have it up soon. Stay tuned!
Thanks for your patience! See you in New York!
Inge
Tammy Says:
Hello there! My name is Tammy and I am very interested in attending the NYC Summit…. I missed last year’s summit and I thought to myself “I better not miss it again!” Haha! I just had a couple of questions:
Will we have any time on our own, aka have a break from lectures, time to go shopping etc.?
Will we be paired with partners?
How will we be seperated into groups for lodgeing?
How does the lodging process work?
Are the kids always with their age groups and never with older teens? (Ex: 13 year olds with 17 year olds)
Do you need a chaperone at all times?
What if you have a chaperone who is 22 and wants to attend the summit too? Will it be ok to have them as your chaperone?
Thanks for taking the time to answering my questions! Can’t wait til the registration is up and running!
Tammy
Inge Says:
Hey Tammy-
Glad to see the enthusiasm about the Summit. It’s going to be a great event! Let me try and answer your questions. .
1) It’s probably best to plan on taking care of shopping type outings either before or after the Summit. There are several places in the schedule that are less structured– but we hope that those will give people time to get to talk to lecturers, hang out with other Summit participants, etc. Participants over 18 will be allowed to go for a walk, for example, during those breaks, but anyone under 18 cannot leave the premises unless they are accompanied by their chaperone.
2) So far as I know, there are no plans for partnering at this point. There are different sessions, lectures, and workshops throughout the Summit schedules and you’ll be able to choose which of the options you are interested in going to.
3) We generally assign lodging by age and gender, with the exception of families that might be coming together, and keeping under 18 participants with their chaperones.
4) On the registration form, you’ll be asked if you need lodging. If you indicate that you do need lodging, our lodging coordinator will set up all the room assignments for you and all the other participants staying in the lodging.
5) Nope, kids are not always separated by age groups. There may be one or two lecture sessions that are separated by age, but there will be lots of times when we’ll all be together!
6) Chaperones are responsible for bringing participants to the event each day and taking them back to the lodging at the end of each day. Under 18 year olds will not be allowed to leave the Summit venue without their Chaperone. During the Summit programming at Third Church, you do not need your chaperone with you.
7) A 22 year old can be your chaperone if your parents agree *and* they recognize that they are responsible for the younger participant. This is particularly important when it comes to evening activities and time after the official Summit schedule for the day is over. The chaperone must stay with the younger participant.
Let me know if you have any more questions!
See you in New York!
Inge
Caroline Says:
when is registration going to be up?
thanks.
Tammy Says:
Thank you so much Inge!! See you in New York also!!!
Tammy
Inge Says:
Hi Caroline-
We’re working on getting registration up as soon as possible, but still working out a few tech. kinks. Stay tuned!
Thanks for your patience!
Inge
Caroline Says:
Two questions:
1.) Will you give a very clear list of responsibilities for chaperones? Must they be with the under-18s all the time the kids are out of the Summit sessions? We have folks from our church willing to go as chaperones, but they need to know exactly their responsibilities before they go.
2.) Are students who are exactly 18 in need of a chaperone, or are they on their own as the over 18 year olds are?
3.) What is the cost of lodging if you are not one of the first 200 who get free lodging? There are many who are hoping to be one of the first 200….and so we all need a realistic appraisal of the costs of going.
Thanks for the answers to these questions.
Inge Says:
Hi again, Caroline!
We’re going to have a document going up on the site soon that will be Q&A for chaperones, but I can certainly give you a preview of that. Chaperones are responsible for their under-18s at all times before and after the Summit. This includes staying in the lodging with them, and accompanying them to and from Third Church to the lodging (Vanderbilt Y) at the beginning and end of each day of Summit programming.
2) Let me get back to you on this question. I think that it’s only under 18 that needs a chaperone, but I want to confirm that I am correct about this.
3) The issue with free lodging is not so much one of cost as it is space. We have space reserved for 200 people (the maximum we could reserve at the Y). Beyond the first 200, it will be up to participants to find lodging for the Summit. We will, of course, do our best to help in any way we can, but at the moment, 200 is the max availability we can promise. If this becomes a significant issue, I suspect (can’t say for sure) that we will look into finding a second lodging location. That’s a problem I think we’re willing to have, but will have to deal with it if it arises.
Does that help? Let me know if there are any other questions I can help answer!
Inge
Inge Says:
Just got confirmation– it is only under 18s that need chaperones!
best,
Inge
elaine douglas-noel Says:
Is Registration not yet open? I intend to chaperone two young people – does the chaperone also have to pay $100? Also, I’d like to be a volunteer.
Inge Says:
Hi Elaine!
We’re expecting Registration to be up online this week– we’ve been delayed by a few tech issues. The chaperone does not need to pay $100. If you’d like to volunteer you can email our volunteer managers, Felice and Suzanne via nycsummit@gmail.com and let them know and they’ll coordinate that.
best,
Inge
Kami Says:
Is there a way to be notified when registration is up? Will you mention it on Twitter or Facebook?
Thanks!
Inge Says:
Hi there Kami!
I think we’ll be able to send out an announcement to our fans on our Facebook page, and I know we’ll post it to our Facebook page. So that’s definitely a good place to look! If you haven’t already, you can friend us by logging onto Facebook and searching “New York City Spiritual Activist Summit”.
We’re hoping registration will be up this week!
Thanks for your patience and enthusiasm!!
Inge
We’re hoping to have registration up this week. .
Chris Says:
I just registered for the NYC summit and have the receipt for that one, but the confirmation email I got was for the Southeast summit.
Which one am I really registered to?
TMC Youth team Says:
Chris,
You’re registered for the NYC Summit. We’ve got a little editing mistake on the confirmation that we need to get fixed.
Glad you’re coming to the Summit!
Chaylee Says:
How much longer do you think there will be free lodging available?
Inge Says:
Hi Chaylee-
I’ll have to look into registration numbers to let you know how we’re doing with the lodging. It’s a little hard to predict. If you’re definitely planning on going and will need lodging, I’d recommend signing up as soon as you can!
I’ll let you know what I find out. .
best,
Inge
Inge Says:
Hi Chaylee-
Looked into your question a bit more, I don’t have the info about lodging and registration available to me at the moment, but if you drop an email to nycsummit@gmail.com someone should be able to get back to you with more info.
I will say that my sense is that it can be difficult to predict the registration and lodging– one week it may be coming in slowly, the next you might have a rush of people. So for sure, if you know you want to come and will need lodging, I’d again recommend signing up sooner rather than later!
best,
Inge
Cindy Says:
Hi everyone! I’m with New York Summit Registration, and we’ve received questions both here and at nycsummit@gmail.com about whether there is still housing available.
As Inge says, we can’t predict when there might be a sudden rush of requests, but as of now (2/16) it’s still available.
When we reach our limit, we’ll post a “Summit housing closed” notice on this site. See you in New York in April!
Eric Thacher Says:
I have some completed summit topic surveys. Please send me the address to which I should mail them.
Thanks,
Eric Thacher
Inge Says:
Hi Eric-
You can send those to:
Third Church NYC
583 Park Ave
NY, NY 10065
Thank you so much for your help!!
Inge
torin Says:
HI, I am interested in taking part of this summit, and interested in visiting NewYorkCity. I’m from eastern Canada, and was busy and missed the summit in Victoria last year in the west. I was quite interested in attending that one, as I have just gotten back into CS over the last couple of years (and am quite glad to be back). The thing is, I just turned 31 last year as well, so I imagine I may be somewhat disqualified from attending; but I talked with someone from my church and he suggested that I volunteer. So my question then, is there any way I can volunteer for this event? And if so, would I be eligble for the housing setup as well?
Thank you.
Robbyn Says:
Just to clarify any questions about the timing for Sunday evening’s events, the summit recap is starting at 6 pm and will last about an hour. Then Chet Manchester and Julia Wade will take the stage at 7 pm for their one hour lecture.
Cindy Says:
Hi everyone,
Just a reminder that for all specific questions about registration, housing, volunteering, etc … please direct your inquiries to nycsummit@gmail.com. We’ll be back in touch quickly. Thanks!
Pablo W. from Santa Fe, Argentina Says:
hey folks!
I’m very happy and thankful I’m gonna be there sharing and learning with you all
Jane Says:
As I am a second reader, my 14 year old can only attend on Saturday. We’ll take the train in from Long Island. Can he register for 1 day?
Inge Says:
Hi Jane!
We don’t have a reduced registration for 1-day attendance. We do understand that people have a lot going on and there are going to be scheduling conflicts. The Summit definitely builds over the whole weekend, and ideally is meant to be a full weekend experience, so we definitely encourage everyone to do everything they can to make it for the whole weekend. Maybe there’s a friend or older Sunday School student who could chaperone your son for the 2nd day?
That being said, you’re certainly welcome to sign up for the weekend, and be there for as much as possible!
all the best,
Inge
Inge Says:
Heads up. .If you are trying to register for the New York Summit and receive a message that says “this package is sold out”, rest assured that registration is still open. We’re working out a technical glitch in the system– definitely try and register again.
As always, if you have any questions, feel free to email us at our Summit email account: nycsummit@gmail.com. Someone will get back to you promptly.
Thanks for your patience!
Inge
Cindy Says:
Seems like the glitch is fixed … so try to register TODAY! Free lodging is almost gone … if you wait, there are no guarantees.
Cindy … (registration and housing)