My experience here at GA has exceeded my expectations. I was expecting to be unengaged and mostly bored. However! That is not the case at all. The YAADs (Young Adult Advisory Delegates) arrived in St Louis a day earlier than the commissioners where we were given an orientation on the parliamentary workings of the GA as well as the infamous Robert’s Rules.
I’m serving on Committee 02 – Bills and Overtures
I am on the committee on Bills and Overtures. When I found out that that was my assigned committee, I think it is safe to say that I was extremely disappointed. There is no appeal in the name.
I am pleased to say that I wouldn’t want to be on any other committee.
Being here at GA, I can say that I am extremely proud to be Presbyterian, and a Young Adult Presbyterian at that. I am learning so much about the inner workings of the church, something I never thought I would be interesting.
#ENDCASHBAIL
On Tuesday, June 19, 2018, we held a march in an attempt to call attention to ending cash bail. We started out at the convention center and ended up at the justice building here in St. Louis. By the end of the march the YAADs had taken over. I was so incredibly moved, and I could feel the power emanating from our hands and in our voices. We knew that change is coming, and it is coming with us leading the charge.
Wednesday we begin Plenary and bringing overtures to the floor of the General Assembly. It is the day that the church begins to go through even more changes, positive changes. The Stated Clerk of our denomination, The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson said that we the youth are not the future, but that rather, we are the present, and that has resonated with me ever since. I am ecstatic and hopeful of what the day on the floor will bring.
Read All Blogs Written by Albany Presbytery Representatives during #GA223:
- #GA223: Proposed Changes to the Rules of Discipline by Dan Rogers
- #GA223: Ah, Yes – Committee Work!! by Laura Rogers
- #GA223: Reflections from a YAAD by Maxine Quaye
- #GA223: Reflections by Larry Greenwold
- #GA223: Reflections by Charlotte Hasselbarth
- #GA223: The Church is Alive! by Bill Hasselbarth
Maxine has been been a member of Westminster Presbyterian Church for eight years. She served as an elder on session for about two years before leaving for college. She is currently an undergraduate student at Binghamton University pursuing a degree in sociology while on the premed track. Her involvement in the church ranges from going on various mission trips with her youth group and also attending the Presbyterian Youth Triennium in 2013 and in 2016. Maxine currently lives with her mother, father, and brother in Albany, NY.
