YES (Youths Engaged in Senglea) is a Salesian voluntary group which branches out from SPYS (Salesian Pastoral Youth Services). YES was formed
in 2010, shortly after the Salesians took over the San Filippu Neri convent at the tip of Senglea. Seeing a lack of activities that engaged youths in this area,
YES kicked off with the Salesians’ main philosophy – that of a ‘holistic formation of young people’. To achieve this, YES follows the teaching, philosophy and working style of St. John Bosco.
The main event for the year is the 2-week Summer Camp which is organised within the Salesian convent in Senglea in July. Youths aged 10-15 from Senglea and the surroundings are treated with 2 jam-packed weeks of fun and educational activities. The aim of the summer camp is to have youths enjoy themselves all the while developing a healthy, active and positive lifestyle. Games, play, craft work, educational activities, singing, cooking and outings are used to instil good values in the youths. Moreover, YES is intended to help youths develop into active members of society through the formation it provides and through the opportunity to become future leaders of the YES group itself. It is both a journey, and an opportunity to grow and to develop new and existing skills. On another note, through the preparation and the execution of the summer camp, several leaders are brought together to form one team with a common goal. The leaders spend 2 weeks living together as a community at the Senglean convent, hence forging closer relationships and better team work.
The summer camp is not the only activity by YES. YES is a dynamic organisation that looks to the current needs of society and its youths. To achieve this and maintain the Salesian way of teaching, four main areas are targeted on an ongoing basis. These areas are; 1) Leaders, 2) Youths, 3) SPYS, and 4) Salesians.