Ray Ministries
Congratulations on 29 years of youth ministry in Owen Sound!
R.A.Y. stands for Real Assistance for Youth and it was a ministry that was established in 1990. Until recently, it operated the Cornerstone Youth Drop-In Centre located on 3rd Avenue East (on the northwest corner at 8th St. East) in Owen Sound. The Centre was open for teens 12 through 18 years of age from 4pm to 9pm Monday through Thursday and 4pm to 10 pm on Friday.
For a number of years, Owen Sound Youth Ministries operated a youth centre above the then Woolworths store in downtown Owen Sound. That organization had been originally started and operated by The Owen Sound and Vicinity Ministerial Association. After its doors were closed in 1990, a group of concerned citizens, who had a heart for the youth that hung out on the streets of Owen Sound, came together to restart an outreach to this youth population. After going through the process of incorporation and obtaining charitable status from the government, Real Assistance for Youth Ministries Owen Sound was legally formalized and ready to start outreach to youth in 1991. The shorter acronym R.A.Y. Ministries became more commonly used. The funds raised to operate this ministry came equally from local churches and individuals.
With co-operation from City Hall and the Owen Sound Police, the outreach began in a motor home placed, in the evenings, in the city hall parking lot. A part-time Director, Cliff Moody was hired and the intentional effort to engage street youth began. Cliff began initially by simply walking the streets interacting with the teens. He invited kids to play street hockey in the parking lot, or board games in the motor home. The ministry quickly outgrew the motor home and moved to rental of downtown empty store spaces. When the various owners of the rental spaces sold their properties, the youth centre would have to be moved to another rental space. These frequent moves were disconcerting for the teens, many of whom experienced considerable instability in their lives. One of the Board Members was able to purchase the 3rd Ave location as a permanent home for Cornerstone where R.A.Y. has rented space at a modest rate for the last 17 years.
In the ensuing years, both the administrative structure of the organization and the ministry evolved. The program oriented ministry continued for many years and for the time was quite affective. Games and activities were still a key part of the program, including a pool table, video games, card and board games. Ministry Directors changed over the years, and the ministry style adapted to the evolving needs of teens frequenting the centre. Increasingly the youth simply liked to talk, often sharing issues, primarily with the most recent Director of Ministry, Katie Eriksen or one of the more familiar volunteers.
In 2019 R.A.Y. felt the ministry at Cornerstone was losing momentum and they contacted Youth for Christ. The YFC/Youth Unlimited organization was founded in 1945 by Dr. Billy Graham and now operates in 130 countries around the world. The Southwestern Ontario Chapter includes 30 satellites and over 80 staff members. YFC has a lot of experience, resources and support for running youth centers locally in the province and sees the need for a continued youth ministry presence in Owen Sound.
On January 1, 2020, R.A.Y. Ministries closed and handed off the operation of their youth centre ministry in Owen Sound to Youth for Christ. At present YFC has hired a Ministry Staff person and is receiving applications for a Youth Center Director. Once staff and volunteers are properly screened, trained and in place, an Owen Sound youth center will open once again with a new name and a fresh ministry team. We are excited about working together with area churches and ministries. We want to engage local youth with the hope that only Jesus can provide!
