January 24, 2025

Young adults share the impact of a program that changed them ‘for the better’

As this interaction shows, Anna Lubbers tries to add a touch of joy to the lives of the children she cares for as a registered nurse at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. (Photo courtesy of Mike Dickbernd)

As this interaction shows, Anna Lubbers tries to add a touch of joy to the lives of the children she cares for as a registered nurse at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. (Photo courtesy of Mike Dickbernd)

By John Shaughnessy

At 27, Anna Lubbers looks back on her high school days and marvels at how far she has come as a person.

She feels blessed by the strong friendships she has in her life, including a friendship with God.

She takes joy in knowing she has found a calling in a nursing career that allows her to care for and make a difference in the lives of children who are struggling to live.

And she has learned the gift of being vulnerable—of opening her heart to other people.

She also shares that one of the key experiences that has led to all these developments in her life happened in high school when she participated in the Student Leadership Program (SLP) at Our Lady of Fatima Retreat House in Indianapolis with other teenagers from Catholic high schools across the archdiocese.

As the faith-focused, three-day program celebrated its 20th year during this school year, Lubbers and other SLP alumni were asked to reflect on how it has had an impact on their lives.

“SLP changed me for the better as a 16-year-old,” says Lubbers, a 2016 graduate of Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis. “I created some of my lifelong best friends from the program. It was the first time that I truly started to believe that I have qualities to offer to those around me. We did many activities that encouraged us to dig deep and realize what attributes we have that make us a better part of this world.

“SLP also taught me how to use those to be a servant leader to others, the biggest of these being vulnerability. It was incredible to see a room of 50-plus strangers become close friends in three days, and the root of this was peeling back our outer shells and opening our hearts to each other and God.”

The program also changed the focus of her relationship with God.  

“I remember SLP giving me the wake-up call that God is not supposed to make everything ‘right,’ but rather when things go wrong, God will be your rock and keep you grounded. Because of this retreat, I started viewing God as a friend—someone I can rely on, speak openly to, and feel unconditionally loved by. I still live by this each day.”

The program also influences the care she gives as a registered nurse at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis.

“As a nurse, servant leadership is more prevalent than ever,” Lubbers notes. “SLP taught me to use my strengths to connect with others, and this is what I do every day. I learned to be patient, to listen with true intent, and understand that everyone has a story. I do this every day with my sweet patients, and it helps me to be the best caretaker I can for them each day.”

Embracing the opportunity to change someone’s life for the better

Grant Spicer remembers his sophomore year in high school as a time “where you are constantly comparing yourself to other people and trying to fit in.”

Now 26, Spicer recalls his involvement in the SLP that year as an experience that “made me feel as though what I said, what I thought and what I felt, mattered.”

“SLP is the first time in my life I felt as though I really had value and could contribute to something bigger than myself,” says Spicer, now an attorney living in San Francisco. “Even though I attended Cathedral High School, I was not Catholic, and I was wary of religion because I knew so little about it. SLP showed me the human aspect of what it means to have faith, beyond the book and the teachings.

  “While the program was instrumental in discovering my own faith, as a leadership program, the unique feature I loved most about SLP was learning how I can help others find or rediscover the faith in their own lives. Even though SLP was only a few days, and most of the people attending were strangers to each other, SLP ensured we all left as a member of a tight-knit community, and as an important piece in the newfound support system of many.”

It all led to what Spicer considers “the biggest lesson” he gained from his SLP experience—that “each and every day presents us the opportunity to change someone’s life for the better.”

“Everything we say, and everything we do, can have an ineffable effect on how another person views themselves, the world and those around them,” he says. “We were all put on this Earth for a purpose, and the fact of the matter is much of life is stumbling through figuring out what that purpose might be.

“SLP showed me that journey does not have to be trekked alone. Your faith does not always have to come from within. You can find it in someone new every single day; and you never know who may find their faith through you.”

The hardships we face are easier with someone by our side

As a physical therapist working in St. Louis Children’s Hospital, Molly (Mitchell) Sokolis strives to help children who have faced hardships regain their strength and movement to enjoy their childhood on a deeper level.

Her experience in the SLP showed her the different challenges that her fellow teenagers at the time faced in their lives.

“It’s easy to go through life wondering if you’re the only one who doesn’t have it all figured out yet,” says Sokolis, who is 26 and a 2016 graduate of a Cathedral High School. “SLP helped me realize at a young age that everyone has battles they’re fighting and it’s much easier to face them with someone by your side.”

She believes that emphasis connects the students from different Catholic high schools.

“SLP broke down the unattainable ideals of perfection that every high schooler seems to strive for and built something stronger out of the pieces,” says Sokolis, a member of St. Margaret of Scotland Parish in St. Louis. “Every high schooler wants to feel like a part of something, and SLP provided a safe and healthy environment for us to create a group that was exciting and meaningful.”

Sokolis especially appreciates how the program also challenged the students to embrace their leadership potential.

“I was introduced to the value of my role as a leader and went on to pursue leadership roles in high school and beyond,” she says. “My confidence in myself and my abilities grew because of the nourishment I received from this group and its members, which pushed me to set bigger goals and be OK with some failure along the way.

“SLP has helped me become a more caring daughter, a more patient wife and a more empathetic therapist. I’m so grateful for the memories, values and life lessons I gained from my time in SLP.” †

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