By Moyzalyn Letren, Paramin Parish

My name is Moyzalyn Letren and in 1995, I became an altar server when I was only 16. The parish I joined is Our Lady of Guadalupe, Paramin. When I started I was the first female, so the ratio of boys to girls at the time was 11:1. I inspired other willing females from my confirmation class to join the altar server’s ministry as well.

There is so much to learn when being in this ministry and it is also a very important aspect of the Church as the servers play a crucial part during Mass. I was taught how to respect others as well as myself. I also learned how to respect the vestments and the instruments used during Mass.

I was never expecting to reach as far as the post of president in my group. It took approximately eight years when the elders saw me fit for the position. In 2002 I was given the position and I took this post very seriously. I went to general meetings held by TTAC to know what they had to offer and to learn more about the ministry.

So far the experience has been very interesting and knowledgeable. Since then my altar servers have been trained in the appropriate way of serving and I was able to meet other altar servers from various parishes.

In 2006 TTAC held a retreat in Tobago; this one was the first one I had attended in a long while and it was different from the others. I found it was very interesting, uplifting and spiritual.

Vision editor Marisha Darneaud and altar server Harris Mahase

After attending the retreat in Tobago, I felt changed and my life took a more serious direction.

In March of this year I was in charge of all the parishes in the North West Region of Trinidad and Tobago.

I wasn’t too sure that I should have taken the position but one of my fellow altar servers gave me encouragement. This position has been a very challenging.

Since then I have was able to encourage servers from three parishes to attend meetings thus far.

I also had the privilege of getting to know the priests and the Archbishop up close. Being a part of TTAC and going to meetings allowed me to explore Trinidad and Tobago. I got opportunities to visit different churches and make new friends.

There are also other activities to participate in like the Annual Sports and Family Days. This ministry also teaches one to be responsible and respectable in and outside of church.

Earlier this year, TTAC held the Sports and Family Day at Presentation College Grounds in Chaguanas on Sunday, July 22 and many different parishes participated. It was very good to see various altar servers coming together to have fun.

Recently, TTAC held another retreat “Down the Islands”. It was a little different from the Tobago retreat, but still I learnt something new. Being an altar server teaches you responsibility, respect, how to be confident, courageous, well-spoken, while there is also a lot of fun and excitement.

I may be in a Youth Ministry group within the Church but I will never trade my altar server experience for anything. It changed my life and I’m sure it will change yours and open a new horizon of opportunities for you.

VISION SAYS: Thanks again Moyzalyn for sending us your inspirational piece, tell us more about what is happening in the youth ministry in Paramin and encourage your fellow youths to write for Vision. We look forward to hearing more from you.