They had gathered for a 24 hour fast to raise money for St Francis House for the food  pantry. They were 12 in number just like the apostles. Some time during the night this small group of 6th through 12th graders expressed their desire to form a youth council wanting to have a greater voice in the church. They chose FIAT or “Faith in Action Together” as their group name and began a pray, study and play time on Thursday evenings in the basement of the rectory.  On any given Thursday night you will find FIAT youth together doing homework, building community, praying, planning parish events, shooting pool with Fr. Fred or just talking with chaperoning adults and each other. After the first year and an invitation from the Daughters of Charity, they joined their youth group to the International Association of the Vincentian Marian Youth, which had its origin in the apparition of Mary to St. Catherine Laboure in 1830, and whose distinctive characteristic of is inspired by the Vincentian commitments to evangelization and service of the poor. The service and mission of VMY includes involvement in social action in order to be a force that can denounce unjust structures in our society, and to have direct contact with the poor. The following quote, taken from the Statute 5 of the Vincentian Marian Youth, on Service-Mission, is very reflective of St. Anthony’s Vincentian Marian Youth—Faith in Action Together: “The prophetic young person is someone who is sent to evangelize the poor, to help the weak, set free the oppressed, bring down tyranny and defend justice. In this way we will strive to help people, especially all those who are in difficult situations, to be the agents of their own development, to live in dignity, and to know that God loves them.” The things you might expect Catholic youth to do, such as visiting folks at Mary Conrad Center, caroling at Pioneer Home, or helping out at Bean’s Café, they are involved in. These young people, however, have a voice and are using it. After the first CRS 24-Hour Fast, several of the youth leaders asked if they could do more than one Food Fast a year. Out of that question came the annual Thanksgiving Fast: "Fasting That All May Feast." That first year the youth raised $1700.00. They hold car washes, do the food sales for the St. Anthony Bazaars, gather items and hold garage sales and have other fund raisers. FIAT young people decided to raise their own funds so that nine of them could travel to California to a youth conference and five of them accompanied by a chaperone could go to St. John’s University for a leadership conference. They also raised funds for food for the Thanksgiving Blessing project, and the list goes on. They work with “Chef Luke” on Sundays, providing a “Journeys” (the whole parish Faith  Formation program) breakfast.  They plan and put on events for the younger children in the parish. They participate in behind the scenes parish work helping out at the office and with parish facility needs. Following a “24-hour food fast or the California and St. John’s Youth Theology in Ministry Conference (a 2 year process for creating youth leaders), FIAT youth share reflections on their experiences with the parish community. They openly share their faith, even actively participating in the parish stewardship presentation. They responded in advocacy, from their faith experience, to the Anchorage assembly attempt to stop the move either to cut the School Resource Officer Program from the budget or move it to the school district's budget. After a listening session with St. Anthony Parish Community Organizing Ministry (SAPCOM) and discussions with Deng ....., who was visiting from the Philippines as part of the two archdiocese's global solidarity exchange projects, the FIAT youth decided to do an "environmental scan and evaluation" of their primary environment outside of the home and family. This resulted in their researching and testifying before the Assembly, the Mayor, Police Administration, and the School District regarding the budget switch. Their passion, prayerful reflection and response from their faith was the primary cause of the retraction of the attempt. Their response to the needs of the community for safety in schools, and it being the municipality's responsibility to provide it so that the school district could provide for education was well-noted and received throughout the Anchorage community. They make themselves visible in the parish community by singing in the choir, serving as gift bearers, reading the prayers of the faithful and are now in the process of starting a youth music group for the Sunday liturgy. One of the young people directs the Samoan Choir on Sundays. St. Anthony’s VMY-FIAT started by gathering to fast… Their “fasting” number grew to 24 young people the second year. In 2005 they timed their “fasting” to coincide with the Thanksgiving Blessing project and their numbers grew to 35. The second year, between their pledged funding and the parish basket donations, they raised over $5200 to be used for the city-wide project and fresh fruit for St. Francis House. The only total received for the project greater than that of St.  Anthony's VMY-FIAT, was a $20,000 check given from the governor. Not a bad amount from a parish population whose income fall mostly in the low to moderate level. In the final hours of the fast, while very hungry, the youth went shopping for the food and then delivered it themselves to Mountain View Community Center. The young people involved in FIAT reflect the ethnic diversity of St. Anthony Parish as a whole. They emulate the spirit of love, humility, and service of St Francis. All voices are heard and each person welcomed. Because these young people’s actions are based on their motto, “Faith in Action Together,” no one individual receives the applause or takes credit for accomplishments. They listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, respecting and empowering the gifts and talents of each member! With these developing leaders the future of the Catholic Church in Alaska is in good hands. St. Anrhony VMY-FIAT - Recipient of the 2006 St. Francis of Assisi Award More on the AWARD night!