Dear Parents of New Freshmen,

I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying the start of summer! As another year of school is concluding, I want to inform you and your graduating 8th grader about the High School ministry here at Parkside Church.

Beginning Thursday June 15th, your student is welcome to begin attending Student Impact, the high school equivalent of Club JV. Student Impact meets regularly on Thursday evenings from 7-9pm at the Warehouse (31200 Solon Road, Solon, OH). June 15th will be a special night of welcome for the new freshmen, and I strongly encourage your student to attend. I believe that it would be a great first step in making the transition to high school, as your student will have the opportunity to come in together with his/her peers and begin the process of getting connected with the larger group.

Another event that is designed to help 8th graders move into high school is the Freshmen Are Rafting Trip, which will take place June 26-27. It is a retreat that is open only to the incoming freshmen class, and during the course of the trip, there will be plenty of opportunities for your student to meet and start building relationships with the adult and student leaders in the ministry. I’ve enclosed a flyer for this event, as well as the calendar for June - August so that you can learn about all that is scheduled to take place. Perhaps the best means of staying informed, however, is to visit our website at www.parksidechurch.com/hs. There you will find everything you need to know about weekly ministry updates, registration for retreats, and a variety of other helpful information on how to stay informed - most notably our text updates.

Your student will have the opportunity to join a small group, which we call Student Life Groups. The purpose of our small groups is to create a more personal environment to further challenge students to grow in Christ and deepen their friendships. Student Life Groups are led by our adult ministry team members and meet the first Thursday of every month in local homes. Our groups will meet throughout the summer, so the first small group for freshmen will be July 6. Register at www.parksidechurch.com/studentlife to receive updates on where groups are meeting or visit the small groups tab on the website. We also dedicate time at Student Impact to meet as small groups at the end of most Thursday evenings. 

I would also like to encourage your student to join us on Sunday mornings for Student Body. We gather together during the 9:45 hour in The Venue. We’ll spend our time focused on the study of the Bible, accompanied by hanging out and some brief announcements. Student Body will meet through June but take a summer break in July and August. We’ll resume meeting the Sunday after Labor Day.

In short, just like in middle school, the goal of the High School ministry at Parkside is to come alongside parents to see unbelieving students become committed followers of Jesus Christ. Your high-schooler will be challenged by the Bible, develop meaningful friendships, and hopefully have some fun as well. As this new class of freshmen enters the ministry, please pray that God will continue to make Himself known to each and every one of them. We are genuinely looking forward to working with you towards this end, and as such, want to encourage you to contact us if ever you should have a question or concern. Have a great week, and I look forward to getting to know your high-schooler and getting them connected to what we have going on in Parkside’s High School ministry! 

Your partner in the Gospel,

Dan Schillero
?dschillero@parksidechurch.com