Young Single Adult Summit

Young Single Adult Summit

Young Single Adult Summit

Eight hundred and fifty Young Single Adults from the Greater Accra Area met at the University of Ghana campus in Legon on July 12th and 13th for the first annual YSA Summit.  Excitement and expectations were high as the day finally arrived after several months of planning and preparation.

The Africa West Area Presidency has announced that each Coordinating Council in the seven Africa West Area countries will hold a Summit for the Young Single Adults annually.  The 2013 pilot programs were held in both Accra and Cote d’Ivoire.  Plans are underway, or will soon be so, in all of the other Coordinating Councils for 2014.

 What is a Summit and what can it do for the Young Single Adults?

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“The Summit can be a life changing experience.  It is the time for YSAs from multiple Stakes and Districts to get away from challenging everyday schedules and step into a world devoted to strengthening our bonds as brothers and sisters in the gospel.   At a Summit the Young Singles have an opportunity to: 1) develop their spiritual nature; 2) socialize and have fun in a variety of settings; 3) participate in retention and rescue efforts; 4) develop leadership skills and service opportunities.”

The theme of this year’s Summit in Accra was “Be Strong and Courageous.”   Attendees arrived, checked in and received their name badges.  After an orientation meeting in the early afternoon, the twelve groups began with workshops and activities.  While six groups were in workshops, the other six met at various “game stations” for such activities as Fruit Basket, Alphabet, Cup Stack Relay, Ready Spaghetti, Name that Tune, Lime and Spoon race, Hagoo, Candeliers and others.  

One young sister, Marlene Acquaye commented, “Fruit Basket was my favorite!  We had to listen and pay attention.  We were eager to move--rushing about.  It really involved us and I loved it!”

“The games were educative and fun.  The Last Man Standing was great because as we matched sentences, they were creative and very funny!” said Dansoa Twum-Danso.  Roberta Avedzidah also loved the game What If? “Sometimes it seemed like were reading each other’s minds.”

Workshop instructors were two Area Seventies   - Elder John Koranteng and Elder Daniel Yirenya-Tawiah as well as Raymond Egbo, Area Director of S & I.  Focusing on the Summit theme, they addressed the topics:  “Moral Strength and Courage”, “Facing Fears, Weakness and Disappointment”, and “Arms of Power – the Lord is My Strength”.  

Charles Mensah was particularly impressed with a true story about a young man who, after a tragic accident, had to face his physical limitations and the fact that his wife decided not to remain with him. The man persevered, found meaning for his life and pursued avenues to develop talents and provide for himself.  The message?   Charles said, “When misfortune befalls us, how will we react?  How do we accept these challenges and continue on in faith?”

Nesmeekia Engmann shared some of the principles she learned.  “We should build our lives on things of much value.  Stand by our moral values and have the moral courage to say NO.  We need to have a very good definition of ourselves,  and our vision should be that of eternities.  We should invest in the things that will bless our lives in the long term.”

Following the Friday afternoon activities and dinner, the Young Singles were treated to a lively evening of talent performances from many of their peers who had previously auditioned and rehearsed. 

During the whole of Saturday morning, groups continued to rotate through the workshops and games after which a delicious lunch was provided

Elder Joseph S. Sitati, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy and member of the Africa West Area Presidency was the keynote speaker at the closing devotional held on Saturday afternoon.  The BYU-Idaho Pathway choir provided prelude music.  They also performed the Ghanaian National Anthem, and as a tribute to Elder Sitati, also sang the Kenyan National Anthem.  Elder Sitati remarked how touched he was to hear it.   Elder Sitati gave some very wise counsel to those who were in attendance. 

Reading from the scriptures, he quoted Matthew 7: 7-8 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

 “Then Elder Sitati counseled, “What I am telling you is not just a good idea. It does not come from one of those self-improvement books.  This is what the Lord himself has promised to us. So I say to you, define your  vision of what you want to be.  Know and understand what you are seeking in life.  Because, if you don’t know what you are seeking, you won’t know when you get it.  If you know what you are seeking, the Lord says you will find it.  Use this scripture to bless your lives.”

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Another important topic Elder Sitati addressed was time management.  He pointed out the marvelous program which young missionaries are taught and utilize.  Said he, “This is not just a program for the two years you are serving as a missionary.  This is a program for life.” He counseled missionaries as they have come home or will return home from their missions to NOT put the book away and never use that program again. For those who have not or may not be able to serve missions, he counseled them to learn about time management.  Plan.  Use every hour effectively…..go back home and change.  Make very good use of your time because it is something you are never going to get back.”

Summing up the total Summit experience, Ernest Gyampo said, “I discovered the secret of change-- as we came together as Young Single adults from various stakes and Districts to learn and interact with one another—that we must focus all of our energy, not on fighting the old traditions, but on building the new social and spiritual ideas from the Brethren.  As Young Single Adults, we can always turn on the light if only we believe we have one within us.”

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