Congress Taught Me How to Fish

TeenPact’s vision is “Changing Lives to Change the World.” We offer Christian discipleship programs throughout the summer for our TeenPact Four Day Class Alumni students.

Please enjoy this student testimony from Thomas Curro, an Alumni student from New York who attended TeenPact Congress, August 9-14, 2015.

TeenPact Congress 2015 was one of the most well spent weeks of my life. I first joined the TeenPact nation in March of 2015, when I attended the first New York Four Day State Class. The State Class was excellent, especially the ‘TeenPact Legislature’ part when everyone would present on the bill that they drafted at home. I first heard about Congress when the interns at the end of state class explained that it was an event that basically had TeenPact Legislature all the time. If you have ever attended a state class, you know how much fun TeenPact Legislature is. It is an exceptional event that is worth every penny and second of preparation.

It is an exceptional event that is worth every penny and second of preparation.

At Congress, there were four tracks: Senator, Representative, Reporter, and Lobbyist. Each track was extremely important and had important power vested in it. In the House of Representatives and Senate, legislators debated feverishly on bills, that sometimes would take hours to decide either way. (It actually did take a couple hours of debate on a few bills!) There were many lobbyists and reporters going in and out of the House and Senate chambers as well, convincing legislators to vote one way or another on a bill, or to find interesting headlines for the next day’s edition of The TeenPact Times or the nightly TPN News Broadcast.

Not only were the legislative days amazing, but the spiritual aspect of Congress was alive and well. The worship was probably the most powerful I ever experienced and you could sense that God was working in everyone’s lives. The evening sessions were also excellent. We were not only studying the Bible extensively, but we were challenged spiritually to bring about genuine change in our lives that can only be accomplished through, as speaker Mr. Bob Chambers said, “being vulnerable to God.” I truly believe that the evening sessions had a lasting impact on everyone who attended. I personally decided to rededicate my life to Christ as a result of the teachings and God’s working in my heart throughout the week.

I personally decided to rededicate my life to Christ as a result of the teachings and God’s working in my heart throughout the week.

One overlooked or even underrated aspect of TeenPact are the staff. From the day of arrival to moments of departure, they were humble about their leadership positions and they used their roles to give back to the students. They only cared about providing the best experience possible, being good, Christian role-models, and just being a good friend to every participant. Even if they were passionately against your sponsored bill in the House or Senate chamber, they would be your best friend back at the campground and be willing to talk to you about anything. Interns and staff are just another thing that separates TeenPact from other Christian camps/events!

Flying to Florida all the way from New York for a TeenPact event is a serious commitment. When I registered, I thought to myself, “I hope this event is as good as the advertisement sounds!” If anything, Congress is underrated! It is by far the best way to spend a week of your summer break and the best investment my family has ever made in my education. The quote “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, and teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” applies here. State class gives you the fish, they introduce you to government. Congress teaches you how to fish, they go more in-depth with government and teach you how it works. If you want to learn more about government, meet exceptional and mature Christians your own age, be challenged spiritually, and spend a week away from the drama of the world, I would highly recommend TeenPact Congress!

– Thomas Curro, 14

We have plans to return to Tallahassee, Florida for TeenPact Congress next summer. We hope you’ll join us.