For her senior project, Carson High School student Becky Ortiz asked for a higher power to guide her. She and more than 150 fellow students, siblings, parents and grandparents found their way to the commons area in front of Nevada's highest court Saturday to reach for that power.
"We are praying for every child, every student and every school in Nevada," said the 17-year-old Carson High student, dressed in a black t-shirt with the words "God can save the day" embolden in the front with a cross and a handprint. "Many youth struggle with feeling alone. That's why I wanted to do this — to show them they have an entire community behind them and that they have God behind them."
Becky built her project around the idea of having a day of prayer for not only her fellow Carson High classmates but for all Nevada youth. That's why she chose to have it on the Nevada State Capitol grounds in Carson City.
To prepare she had to engage her fellow students to participate as well as her Carson City church community, Adore to The Way Ministries, also known as Ministerios Una Puerta Al Camino.
And engage they did. Congregation members and the church's MUPAC band arrived to lead the group with songs, spirituals and prayer. Her fellow classmates brought signs, greeted each other with hugs, held hands and prayed for two hours.
Becky's mentor for the project, Martha Coscarart, is a member of Adore the Way Ministries and co-owner of Villa Basque Deli and Cafe in Carson City. Coscarart helped Becky make the proper arrangements and scheduling that included getting permission to use the capitol grounds for the event.
The prayer celebration was videotaped and will be edited and made available on Youtube as part of the project. Before the event got underway, Becky said she would be happy with 40 students to show. Instead she was greeted by a far bigger crowd than she anticipated, at one point having at least 150 people present. She said she couldn't have done it without her friends, family, church community and Coscarart's help.
And when the capitol grounds automatic sprinkler system kicked in on the grassy area, it forced the prayer group to move in closer, which made the event more intimate and arguably more fitting. The event had started out with people scattered from one end of the complex to the other. The sprinklers changed that. Perhaps it could even be seen as an act of God — a prayer ceremony where everyone was forced to move closer together instead of standing far apart.
Prayers were presented by Victor Romero, Emelina Romero, youth pastors; Veronica Valladares, and Becky herself. In a prayer guide she handed to participants, Becky writes:
"In today's age youth face struggles we often can't see. Some feel trapped. Some feel completely alone. Who are we to be silent when our youth suffer? Stand up and pray together to show youth they are never alone. Let's show the youth of this age that God can save the day for He is the truth, the light and the way.
"Join us in the fight for those youth who face bullying, for those who face peer pressure. Pray so schools can be places of security. Pray so they may know you support them and they may know God is greater. He can fix the struggles they face. Let's show the youth Christ is enough and pray united as one."