December 6, 2002

Butch Ekstrom honored for a quarter of a century of service to developing youth ministries

by Patricia Porcase, A'03, Intern in the Offices of Public Affairs and Publications

For the past 25 years, Butch Ekstrom, associate director of the Loyola Institute for Ministry, has been at the forefront of the effort to officially establish youth ministry in the Catholic Church of the United States. For this lifetime of work and dedication the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry has selected Ekstrom as a 2002 recipient of the National Youth Ministry Award. The award recognizes Ekstrom's career contributions as an educator and trainer in the field of youth ministry.

Ekstrom has worked at the Institute for Ministry (LIM) since 1997. Prior to his time at Loyola, he was a staff member of the National Center for Youth Ministry Development from 1987 until 1996. Before that, he served from 1978 - 87 as associate director of religious education in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. "I arrived in New Orleans just as the Catholic Church was beginning to more broadly embrace the concept of youth ministry," said Ekstrom. While he was working for the Archdiocese, he spent six years as the Region 5 youth ministry representative for what is now the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry.

While he worked with the Center for Youth Ministry Development, Ekstrom traveled extensively presenting workshops and seminars. He also regularly taught both graduate and undergraduate youth ministry courses, in ministry education programs at several universities including Fordham University in New York, Incarnate Word University in San Antonio, and La Salle University in Philadelphia, as well as at Loyola and in many Catholic diocesan training programs across the country.

Recently, Ekstrom has worked with colleagues at the Loyola Institute for Ministry to establish a youth ministry concentration for LIM's master of pastoral studies graduate degree program, certificate of pastoral studies (continuing education) program, and new post-masters certificate in pastoral studies credential program. Ekstrom is also excited about applying this new youth ministry concentration in the Loyola Institute for Ministry Extension Program (LIMEX), which will make the institute's youth ministry coursework available to people throughout the country and world, with great national and international implications for the field of youth ministry. "Year by year national Catholic youth ministry events continue to grow in number quite dramatically. This speaks to the vitality of the field of youth ministry," Ekstrom said.

Ekstrom's accomplishments are not limited to the classroom. He has authored more than 200 published articles, essays, and reviews and is both writer and editor of several books including Guides to Youth Ministry: Media and Culture, Guides to Youth Ministry: Evangelization, and The Concise Catholic Dictionary.

Ekstrom accepts this recent honor with his usual modesty. "I am deeply honored to receive this award and was completely surprised by the announcement of it. I hope that what I have done over the years has made a positive impact on the ministries of many adults and youth who I encountered in my work," he said.

Ekstrom received his award December 5 in Denver at the bi-annual National Catholic Youth Ministry Conference. Although Ekstrom is pleased to have received such a prestigious award, he says that his greatest achievement "is the opportunity to influence thousands of people who work daily to accomplish their ministry faithfully. I take inspiration from their efforts on behalf of youth and the church."