Arlington Heights prayer breakfast will focus on youth

Adults who want to work with teens must meet them where they are and, following the example Jesus set, give them unconditional love.

That’s the message Mike Hatch, Northwest Cook area director for Young Life, said he will deliver at the Arlington Heights Mayor’s 24th Annual Community Prayer Breakfast, Thursday, Feb. 3.

“Kids today in general feel abandoned and hurt by the adults in their lives,” Hatch said. “They act differently in different contexts—it’s about survival. I will tell how an adult came into my life who was interested enough to get to know me within those different contexts.”

Volunteers with Young Life have worked in the Northwest Suburban High School District 214 schools for at least 50 years, Hatch said.

“Drawing from personal experience, over 10 years of youth ministry experience and the Bible, I’ll talk about how adults and parents can engage this changing adolescent culture to ensure a legacy of faith and prayer is passed on to the next generation,” he said of next week’s address.

The nondenominational breakfast, modeled after the National Prayer Breakfast, is at 7:15 a.m. at the Doubletree Hotel, 75 W. Algonquin Road. Tickets are $20, and reservations must be made by Friday, Jan. 28, by calling the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce at (847) 253-1703.