Spotlight on YRUU

Building Community, Exploring Faith, and Growing Young Leaders

YRUU (Young Religious Unitarian Universalists) is a collaborative youth ministry program serving students in grades 7–12 from First Unitarian and Second Unitarian Churches of Omaha. The program provides a welcoming, supportive community where youth can build friendships, explore their beliefs and values, develop leadership skills, and deepen their connection to Unitarian Universalism.

Unlike our Sunday morning teen programming, which meets once per month on select Sundays, YRUU gathers every Wednesday evening, alternating between First and Second Unitarian Churches. The group also participates in field trips, service opportunities, and special events throughout the year. The program is supported by a dedicated team of adult advisors from both congregations.

Growing Connections: Congregational, Local, and National

YRUU programming combines religious exploration, social connection, creative expression, service, and youth leadership. Opportunities extend beyond our two congregations, helping young people discover what it means to belong to a larger community of faith.

Within Our Congregations

Weekly gatherings at First and Second Unitarian provide a consistent space for building friendships, exploring UU values, and developing a sense of belonging. This fall's activities have included art projects, a spaghetti cook-off competition and fundraiser, discussions about religious pluralism, music, games, and seasonal celebrations.

Through the Youth Advisory Council (YAC), youth also have opportunities to help shape their own programming, contributing ideas, identifying interests, and participating in planning and decision-making.

Within the Greater Omaha Community

YRUU regularly ventures beyond our church buildings for shared experiences, learning, and service. Recent activities have included roller skating and our annual bonfire potluck at Bellevue Berry Farm, which welcomed youth, families, and friends of both congregations for intergenerational fellowship.

Earlier in 2026, youth also explored religious pluralism through visits to other religious communities in the Omaha area. These experiences encourage curiosity, respectful engagement with religious differences, and reflection on their own developing beliefs.

We plan to continue expanding these opportunities, including a visit to Jewish temple that has not yet been scheduled.

Upcoming opportunities include a visit to the Great Plains Black History Museum on Nov 11th and participation in an Interfaith Thanksgiving youth service project at the Tri-Faith Campus on November 22, during which YRUU members are invited to join youth from other faith communities to assemble essential-supply bags for Together Omaha's outreach to unhoused neighbors, followed by an interfaith worship service. This event offers an opportunity to put our UU values into practice while building relationships across religious traditions.

Within the Wider Unitarian Universalist Community

We are also working to connect our youth with opportunities to experience Unitarian Universalism beyond Omaha, building relationships with UU peers from other congregations and developing a deeper understanding of our shared religious identity.

Last spring, YRUU youth participated in CONjure: A Weekend of Wonder, a regional UU youth conference held April 24–26 at Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist Church in Lenexa, Kansas. The weekend brought together high school students for connection, community-building, and fun, offering an opportunity to form friendships with UU peers beyond Omaha and experience the larger network of UU youth communities.

Building on experiences like CONjure, we are encouraging participation in several additional regional and national opportunities in 2027.

Planning is underway for YRUU to embark on a UU Heritage Pilgrimage to Boston in summer 2027, which will give participating youth the opportunity to visit sites connected to our religious history, deepen their understanding of Unitarian Universalism, and reflect on their own place within our evolving faith tradition. Planning and fundraising are providing additional opportunities for youth leadership and congregational involvement.

Additionally, our youth in grades 10–12 have been invited to apply for the 2027 Global Solidarity Seminar in New York City, organized by the Community Church of New York in partnership with the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC). This national gathering will bring together UU youth to explore international human rights, global solidarity, and the United Nations, with a particular focus on reparations and the interconnected impacts of slavery, colonialism, and climate injustice. This seminar represents an exciting possibility for our young people to connect with UU peers from across the country and engage more deeply with issues of global justice.

Youth are also being encouraged to attend Midwest Unitarian Universalist Summer Assembly (MUUSA) in 2027, either independently (with transportation arranged by Christina) or with their families. MUUSA offers another opportunity to experience UU community beyond our local congregations through multigenerational fellowship, youth programming, shared worship, and recreation. For youth who attend, the experience can help build friendships with UU peers from throughout the midwest and strengthen their sense of connection to a larger faith community.

Together, these opportunities offer different ways for young people to experience Unitarian Universalism on a broader scale: through exploring our religious heritage, engaging in justice-centered learning and action, and participating in the fellowship and shared traditions of the wider UU community.

Why This Ministry Matters

YRUU is more than a weekly youth group. It is an important part of how we help young people develop lasting connections to Unitarian Universalism during a period of life when they are increasingly defining their own identities, values, and communities.

Our partnership with Second Unitarian allows us to offer a richer, more consistent program than either congregation could easily sustain independently. It also gives youth a broader circle of UU peers and trusted adults, helping them experience Unitarian Universalism as a community that extends beyond the walls of their home congregation.

From Wednesday evenings spent building friendships to service and learning opportunities throughout Omaha, and regional and national UU gatherings, YRUU helps our young people experience the breadth of our faith community. Through these relationships and experiences, we are nurturing not only a sense of belonging, but the confidence and capacity to participate in shaping the future of Unitarian Universalism.