By Ruby Thomas, Record Staff Writer
In her role as executive director of the Young Professionals Association of Louisville (YPAL) and in her faith journey, Ann Marie Kelly has the ear of Louisville’s young adults.
That’s why, she said, she’s excited to be part of a delegation from the Archdiocese of Louisville to the Convocation of Catholic Leaders: The Joy of the Gospel in America taking place July 1-4 in Orlando, Fla.
“I was surprised and honored” to be invited by the archdiocese, she said during a June 14 interview. “I’m glad they want that young professional perspective. I work with Louisville’s young professionals everyday, so I can represent that group.”
Kelly is one of 15 people from the archdiocese attending the event that will examine the opportunities and challenges facing the church’s evangelization efforts.
The delegation includes Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz; two other priests; two deacons; lay archdiocesan, parish and
school employees and parishioners. Among them are represenatives of the
Spanish-speaking and African-American communities and married couples.
According to a report by Catholic News Service (CNS), this gathering is a historic one, the likes of which hasn’t been seen since 1917 when the bishops met with a group of leaders to determine how to serve the church during World
War I. CNS reported that more than 3,000 church leaders are expected to gather for the 2017 convocation.
Kelly, a life-long Catholic, attended St. Barnabas School for elementary school and Sacred Heart Academy. She graduated from Bellarmine University with a degree in communication and is a member of Holy Trinity Church.
Her name may be familiar to parishioners, who likely met her several years ago when she served as coordinator for annual giving for the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Catholic Services Appeal.
She noted that her faith journey and especially Catholic schools, taught her the value of servant leadership. In that way, Kelly said she wants to be a “young Catholic voice” and serve her parish and community.
There are no “formal opportunities” in her role at YPAL for evangelization, she noted, but “there are opportunities to have one-on-one conversations and I’m comfortable doing that. I’m not afraid to talk about my faith and I’m happy to share when asked or when appropriate. If you’re strong in your faith you find it easy to share about it and to lead.”
She sees plenty of opportunities to reach out to Catholics in her age group — approximately age 20 to 39 — in other settings, too. One such opportunity, said Kelly, is the use of social media — an outlet that draws in and connects young adults on a massive scale.
She plans to attend a workshop at the convocation on “Social Media and Digital Media: Their Impact on the Church Today.”
Social media is one of the main ways young adults communicate, Kelly noted. She sees that as an opportunity for the church to “capture” young people, as she put it.
“There’s space for church leaders and lay leaders to be online and engaged in social media, sharing articles about the faith and witnessing to our faith,” she said. “It’s important the church meets the young people where they are.”
In fact, she said, “We’re the next generation of church leaders.”
Young adults should be a special focus of the church, she said, especially those who have fallen away from the faith.
They are reaching “life milestones” that present opportunities for the church to re-engage them, she said.
Events such as marriage, baptism and enrollment of children in Catholic schools are chances for the church to reach out to young adults who may have drifted away, but are showing some signs of interest still.
“How can we use those life milestones to reach out to them at those times in their lives?” she added.
