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Love Week Challenge Inspires Ontario Adventist Youth

October 22, 2025 | Chris Perrott | OCN

Inspired by the words of 1 John 4:19 — “We love because He first loved us” — the Ontario Conference Youth and Young Adult Ministries, through its Compassion Ministry, launched the Love Week Challenge. Designed to inspire and empower young people, this initiative features a week of daily outreach challenges that encourage youth to actively share love, kindness, and compassion within their communities.

“I believe it’s important for young people to be encouraged to show love and kindness to others because these values shape the way we grow and interact with the world around us,” said Isabella Paculanang, a youth from the Willowdale Seventh-day Adventist Church.

The daily challenges that took place from October 5 to 11 were as follows:

Serve Someone Sunday: Serve someone at home or in your neighbourhood.

Messages of Hope Monday: Send uplifting messages to friends or classmates.

Thankful Tuesday: Write a thank-you note to a mentor, teacher, or leader.

Wellness Wednesday: Share a healthy snack or check in on someone’s well-being.

Thoughtful Thursday: Donate an item to someone in need or participate in a community drive.

Faith in Action Friday: Pray with or for someone or share an encouraging verse.

Smile & Share Sabbath: Welcome a new face at church or invite someone to lunch.

Divine Domingo Padayachy, one of the leaders of Compassion Ministry, was very pleased by how the youth stepped up to the challenges.

“We’ve seen participation from regions such as Near North and Metro North Central, where young people have been actively promoting the initiative, completing the challenges, and submitting their entries online,” she stated.

The hope of Divine and the Compassion team is that Love Week will continue to grow and gain recognition at the provincial level. Schools and churches can adopt these challenges at any time to cultivate in our youth the understanding that compassion is a way of life.

Diana Achim, co-chair of the Compassion Ministry, agrees that schools and churches can play a vital role in promoting this lifestyle of compassion.

“Churches and schools can play a vital role in empowering and inspiring young people to make Love and Care Week truly impactful and lasting by involving teachers, staff, pastors and other leaders in initiating and leading different challenges and sharing their testimonies,” she said.

Isabella shares why encouraging our youth to be kind is important.

“When kindness becomes a standard from a young age, it sets a positive example for future generations to follow,” Isabella explained. “It teaches empathy, respect and compassion - qualities that strengthen relationships and build supportive communities. Encouraging kindness not only fosters a more positive environment among young people but also promotes a culture of understanding and unity within our communities as a whole.”

As Love Week wrapped up on Saturday, October 11, Diana led the children, youth and families of the Metro North Central Region in a personal challenge. On September 10, a car crashed into a daycare facility in Richmond Hill, tragically killing one child and injuring several others. Diana encouraged the region to write supportive cards to those affected by this tragedy and to pray for them and their families.

Furthermore, Diana believes that overall, the Love Week Challenge was a success. Young adults stepped up and participated in the various challenges throughout the week. As leaders, Diana and her team inspired the youth by fully committing to the challenges they had set during the week. She expressed her gratitude for the collective effort that made this Love Week a reality.

To view a video recap of the youth in action during Love Week, visit the Adventist Youth Ontario Instagram page @adventistyouthontario.

One of the upcoming major initiatives for Compassion Ministry is the Coldest Night of the Year 2026. The goal is for young people to serve others by sharing the warmth of Jesus with those in need. Compassion truly is a lifestyle.

Chris Perrotte
OCN News Reporter