Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 7 (Perth - St John of God Retreat Centre) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 7 (Perth - St John of God Retreat Centre)

December 12, 2019 Alexander Foster

The Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) came to an end yesterday evening with a closing mass at Trinity College in Perth attended by over 5,500 pilgrims.

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 6 (Festival Day 3) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 6 (Festival Day 3)

December 11, 2019 Alexander Foster

Tuesday 10 December marked the third and final day of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival 2019 in Perth, Western Australia.

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 5 (Festival Day 2) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 5 (Festival Day 2)

December 10, 2019 Alexander Foster

“It will be hard to match the energy of yesterday,” I heard a young pilgrim say as we walked into the day two opening plenary session of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival 2019. Hard, yes, but it happened.

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 4 (Festival Day 1) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 4 (Festival Day 1)

December 08, 2019 Alexander Foster

We finally made it! 3 days after departing Newcastle, our pilgrims finally got to enjoy the first day of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival 2019 in Perth.

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 3 (Mass at St Mary's Cathedral) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 3 (Mass at St Mary's Cathedral)

December 07, 2019 Alexander Foster

“We’re very lucky to be able to have mass tonight at St Mary’s Cathedral,” Maitland-Newcastle’s Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) group coordinator, Samantha Hill said to us tonight, and how right she was!

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 2 (Sydney - Perth) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 2 (Sydney - Perth)

December 06, 2019 Alexander Foster

5:30am is a fairly unfamiliar hour of the morning to me, so you can imagine my delight stepping out of the elevator at this time to see 30+ young pilgrims, chipper and excited to take the next steps on their journey towards the Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF).

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 1 (Newcastle - Sydney) IMAGE MN Youth

Maitland-Newcastle heads to ACYF: Day 1 (Newcastle - Sydney)

December 06, 2019 Alexander Foster

It’s 9:30pm. I worked all day, then hopped on a train from Newcastle to Central, then another train from Central to Sydney Airport. But, strangely, I feel at peace.

Two weeks to go – Diocese youth in final stage of preparations for Australian Catholic Youth Festival IMAGE MN Youth

Two weeks to go – Diocese youth in final stage of preparations for Australian Catholic Youth Festival

November 18, 2019 Alexander Foster

Youth from around the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle gathered last Saturday 16 November for their second and final Formation Day prior to their pilgrimage to Perth in December for the Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF).