Written by Kristina Frugé 

Two years ago we hosted 50 young adults from around the US at Augsburg for a weekend of storytelling and listening. The reason for this gathering was to unearth the common hopes, concerns and desires young adults hold for the church and the world we share. In sifting through the stories shared, we hoped to distill themes that might give shape to a book we wanted to create – one written by young adults to the church. This book was one of the ways Riverside Innovation Hub was committed to stewarding what we learned in our first five years of the Lilly Endowment’s Young Adult Initiative. After working with congregations and young adults in our inaugural round of the Riverside Innovation Hub, supported through the Lilly Endowment, we were granted additional funding and time to share the wisdom and learnings that emerged. Who better to speak those truths than the young adults themselves? 

Just two years shy of that special gathering this very book has come to be. Well, nearly.

The manuscript was submitted to our publisher early in September and now we will work with them to take the final steps of transforming our authors’ ideas, stories and whole-hearted requests into a book that can be shared broadly. So much has transpired within those two years – an author application process, two writing retreats to launch and further along the writing community, collaboration with an illustrator bringing to life themes of the book, multiple rounds of editing drafts, countless cups of coffee and hours at laptops, and final revisions to compile the completed manuscript over the summer.  Continue reading “The Manuscript is in! Let’s Celebrate!” →