Program helps teens make responsible decisions

By Frank Flegel

REGINA — The Myriam Sisters in Regina have begun the TeenSTAR program to help teens make responsible decisions about their lives.

STAR is an acronym for Sexuality Teaching in the context of Adult Responsibility; while the program does teach about sexuality, it includes all aspects of a teen’s life, including social, emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual aspects.

“It’s a very practical tool to pass on and to live out the church’s teaching on sexuality,” said Sister Renée Crépeau.

The course is for boys and girls but they gather separately. In the case of the boys, the younger ones in Grade 9 meet separately from the older group. “The needs of the younger ones are not the same as the older,” said Crépeau. “They are at different stages of their sexuality journey.”

The program has been running in Regina since January and Crépeau said in the 16 gatherings so far there has been a marked change in the girls particularly.

“They are more confident and more aware of what makes a good man or woman,” said Crépeau. “They know they don’t have to be a top model in order to be loved and they are more aware of what genuine love is.”

Nathan Diehl who teaches the boys said he has seen his charges grow more in understanding of how their morality affects their sexuality.

“It was interesting to see them start to explore those issues, understanding that there’s more than just ‘Don’t do this,’ but rather ‘God created us in certain ways and that affects what we do to other people, with other people, around other people.’ It’s interesting to see them deal with these questions.”

The program was designed by Sister Hanna Klaus, MMS, executive director of the Natural Family Planning Centre in Washington, DC. A gynecologist and former director of obstetrics and gynecology at hospitals in Pakistan and Bangladesh, the 82-year-old travels widely and teaches those who will conduct the TeenSTAR program. She recently spent a few days in Regina and Crépeau expects several more programs may emerge in the prairie provinces.

The courses teaches teens how all things affect their lives and it gives them tools to make choices — “conscience choices, not just peer pressure or what they see on TV, and not just what mom and dad said about that, or not just what the church says about that,” said Crépeau.

It’s not easy being a teenager, she said, and the program is designed to help them get through it in a more peaceful way.

The course is taught over what are called gatherings, 20 in all, taken over a period of weeks, and is offered free of charge.