As he assumes his position as Director of the new restructured Office of Ministry with Young Catholics in the Diocese of San Bernardino, García says he will attempt to focus more attention on youth and young adults who aren’t necessarily active in church ministry.
“We are called to serve everyone,” Garcia says. “So you can look at it as a more comprehensive ministry, a more integral outreach to our young people.”
While recognizing the need to serve all segments, García says he has particular concern for those on the margins. He quoted Pope Francis’ recent reference to the youth of Mexico as its greatest treasure, The Holy Father then pointed to the mountains and indicated that their raw materials were useless if they’re not extracted and utilized.
“Similarly, the youth we have at our parishes and in our programs are an example of these treasures shining and invigorating parish life,” García said. “But there are countless who have yet to discover God’s treasure within.”
His ministry now includes young adults, which had been served previously by the Pastoral Juveníl Young Adults Ministry in the Diocese. The Office of Young Catholics will include a coordinator position that focuses solely on young adults.
García says he is studying past practices and successes of the Ministry with Youth Office and Pastoral Juveníl Young Adults Ministry and will soon begin consulting with parish youth ministers.
“I’m eager to learn about the many gifts the youth ministers and youth ministry communities in [the Diocese of] San Bernardino possess,” he said. “I want to build on the good that has been done.”
Following the initial period of review, learning and consultation, Garcia said he will develop a strategic plan for the newly constituted ministry in collaboration with stakeholders and advisory committees of youth ministers.
A Bay Area native, Garcia considers himself a beneficiary of strong Catholic formation in his youth, including a Catholic education and involvement in youth ministry. He experienced a spiritual renewal, he says, when he began to pray with a missionary community in his late teens. This would eventually lead him to pursue life as a missionary in Mexico following his graduation from college.
Shortly after his return to the United States in 2008 he went to work in the Archdiocese of Baltimore as Coordinator of The Hispanic Pastoral Formation Institute, which he likens to the Ministry Formation Institute (MFI) of the Diocese of San Bernardino. After four years that included marriage and his first child, García returned to the West Coast to take the position of Director of Youth Ministry in the Diocese of Santa Rosa.
His journey now brings him to the Diocese of San Bernardino after helping to care for his second child, who experienced health complications at birth, for the past year and a half.
“It signifies a new chapter for me and my family,” García says. “I see a great deal of potential to respond to, and the desire for openness to be led by the Holy Spirit.”