NEW PORTLAND — Joel and Janna, brother-sister duo from Livermore Falls, are coming to the Western Mountains Baptist Church, Route 27, on Saturday, March 24. There will be a free evening of music and worship songs.

The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and the show will start at 7. Sponsoring and hosting the special night of entertainment is the church Youth Group.

Th concert is one piece of the WMBC Youth Weekend, where the teens and young adults of the church will exercise their leadership skills by taking on the responsibilities of providing a place for Sunday morning worship.

They will be do everything from opening the church doors, to teaching Sunday school classes, to providing worship music, to delivering the message and cleaning up.

Dee Menear, youth director and teen Sunday school teacher, said the concert and the Youth Weekend are part of the vision she and the other youth leaders have for the young people at WMBC, which is “to build relationships with each other, with people in the community and with other church members; in doing this, the adolescents will also build a strong relationship with God.”

The Youth Group meets at the Western Mountains Baptist Church from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursdays. They talk, play Wii games or foosball, have a challenging team-building activity, snacks, a Bible study and discussion. Transportation can be arranged if needed. Parents are welcome.

Menear said, “We look out for each other here at Youth Group and not just at church. It spreads out into school, on sports teams, at work places and within the community. Church doesn’t always happen just in church. Church is about being in relationships; growing with people, loving each other and learning how to live with each other, no matter where we are.”

In addition to Thursday nights, there are other opportunities for the Youth Group to have fun and be with each other, including on- and off-site retreats, movie nights, community service activities and soccer games.

The teenagers are raising money to complete the new soccer field being built at the church. “Playing soccer has proven to be an avenue for the kids to interact with other kids, with adults and with the younger children of the church; we would like to see that grow,” Meaner said Donations of bottles and cans for the WMBC Youth Group are accepted at the Old Mill Redemption Center in Kingfield.

Pastor Tom DuBois said, “I love to attend and just be a fly on the wall during the Thursday night Youth Group meetings, and see these teenagers get along with each other, support each other, have fun with each other, and do it in a safe environment. It can be a tough time for kids, and this group gives them the opportunity to deal with some of those tough issues, with people that really listen and encourage them.”

For more information about the Joel and Janna concert or about the WMBC Youth Group, call Dee Menear at 265-2256, or Pastor Tom at 557-3802. Telephone messages may also be left on the church voice mail at 265-2557.