Youth workers gather in San Diego for first PYWA in-person event since 2015

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“Come to the waters with your full authentic selves and know that it is the Lord who has brought us here,” preached the Rev. Dr. Kathryn Threadgill, vice president of Student Formation and Campus Culture at Columbia Theological Seminary, during the opening worship of the Presbyterian Youth Workers Association (PYWA) Gathering on Oct. 6. Her words set the tone for a time of renewal, connection and inspiration for youth workers from across the country.

Held at Christ Presbyterian Church in Carlsbad, California, the 2025 PYWA Gathering marked the first in-person event for the association since 2015, when youth workers last met at Zephyr Point Camp and Conference Center at Lake Tahoe. The theme, “Come to the Water,” invited attendees to reflect on their callings and find rest in the presence of God.

Threadgill preached two sermons during the event, one on Monday evening and another on Tuesday morning. Her messages drew from John 21:6–14, where the risen Christ meets his disciples on the shore and invites them to breakfast. “Christ met them in these waters and transformed their stories,” Threadgill said. “The wonder of Christ’s living water is not through with any of our stories yet.”

Threadgill shared deeply personal stories from her ministry, including a transformative encounter with a 14-year-old girl named Stella at a refugee school in Kenya. “She told me how she had nursed her mother as she died of AIDS and promised to fulfill the call God had placed on her life,” Threadgill recalled. “She looked at me and said, ‘My life belongs to Christ, and I’m made for so much more than just this.’”

That moment, Threadgill said, taught her what it meant to “float in the living water that only Jesus Christ can provide.” She later helped Stella find a safe home, and today Stella has a family of her own and continues to live out her calling. “Christ is not finished with any of us yet,” Threadgill reminded the gathered youth workers.

The gathering was organized by PYWA co-moderators the Rev. Eileen VanGieson and Oliver Page with support from board members, including treasurer and historian the Rev. Tully Fletcher, secretary Kate Satterstrom, and the Rev. Kiersten Hill, a former board member.

The Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow, a Moderator of the 218th General Assembly (2008) and the author of six books, was the keynote speaker for the conference. Each attendee received a copy of Reyes-Chow’s latest book, thanks to the sponsorship from the Presbyterian Foundation.

Other sponsors included the Presbyterian Youth Triennium office of the PC(USA), the Presbytery of San Diego, and Christ Presbyterian Church. The gathering featured workshops, soul care sessions, and worship led by musician Morgan Cunningham and her band. PYWA is also part of the Christian Formation Collective with the Office of Christian Formation of the PC(USA).

Threadgill’s sermon on Tuesday continued the theme of transformation through water, reminding youth workers that “the wonder of these waters gives drink to the thirsty who seek after him.” She urged attendees to reflect on their own stories and the ways Christ meets them in their ministries. “How will Christ break into our stories and take our breath away only to give us breath back in new and transformative ways?” she asked.

As youth workers returned to their communities, Threadgill left them with a hopeful charge: “Christ is still writing our stories for good and for transformation and restoration of the world and for all who thirst.”