April 16 was a perfect day to be outside, and about 600
diocesan middle-schoolers, along with volunteers, parents and
diocesan Office of Youth Ministry staff did just that at
Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries
for BASH 2016. This year’s theme was “Show Know Mercy.”
The afternoon began with students gathered on the open field
dotted with moon bounces and a climbing tower.
Others played “ring the bell,” a game of strength where a
student whacks a lever with a sledge hammer to propel a puck
up a vertical tower and ring a bell at the top.
There were lines at these attractions all afternoon, plus
lines for ice cream and drinks.
Dozens of students faced off in two teams to play dodgeball,
throwing brightly colored balls at each other until a
champion emerged. There was also a basketball free-throw
contest.
But off to the side near a fence separate from the carnival
rides three priests sat at chairs waiting to hear
confessions. A steady stream of students came to these
priests.
At around 5 p.m., dinner was served – which, as the
announcement said over the loudspeakers, was “pizza, pizza
and, of course, pizza.”
The rides and games continued until 6:30 when the students
gathered in the gym and sat on the floor to wait for the
musical entertainment.
Popple, the two-man Catholic, acoustic, rock ministry of Dan
Harms and Kyle Heimann, played songs and told fun and
inspirational stories.
The evening capped off with a vigil Mass celebrated by Father
Bjorn C. Lundberg, John Paul chaplain.
Parents Vickie Zadnick from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in
Lake Ridge and Cathy Bernero from St. Ambrose Church in
Annandale watched the small army of middle- schoolers attack
the rides and lay siege to the pizza.
“BASH is awesome,” said Zadnick. “It’s a great way for kids
to mingle.”
It was the first BASH for Woodley Hills Elementary School
sixth-graders Emily Grinstead and Diana Binetty, parishioners
of Good Shepherd Church in Alexandria. Both agreed they were
having a good time.
Youth Apostle Father Ramon Dominguez, a veteran of BASH,
brought eight students from the Don Bosco Center in Manassas.
“(I’ve attended) more times than I can count,” he said.
Kevin Bohli, director of the Youth Ministry Office, said the
event had a strong faith aspect.
“Our speakers and homilist did a great job of explaining the
mercy of Christ that is waiting for each one of us in the
sacraments. This is not an easy task when speaking to a
gymnasium filled with junior high students,” said Bohli.
The Office of Youth Ministry receives funds through the
annual Bishop’s Lenten Appeal.
