Origins of The Program
The group began as "Sky Teens" in 1954 at Waverly Road Baptist Church in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, which is affiliated with the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada.
The pastor (J. F. Holiday) and the youth pastor (Roy Lawson) of the church felt the need for a youth program for their own church members and neighbourhood youth. Rev. J. F. Holiday had been a Canadian army chaplain during W.W. II and pastor of numerous churches during his lifetime. The youth pastor was Rev. Roy Lawson, who went on to pastor several churches, lead other youth and family organizations and led the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada for many years as General Secretary.
They saw a growing problem of restless youth in the 1950s and wanted to provide a safe and fun environment for children in the neighbourhood. There were few youth ministry organizations at the time and they decided to create their own program, calling it Sky Teens. The program was designed for youth ages twelve to fourteen and included games, crafts and Bible teaching. It provided an opportunity to build positive relationships for the young people and to train youth in both practical life skills and spiritual matters. Unlike other significant programs of the time, (such as Boys' Brigade and Pioneer Girls) Sky Teens was co-educational.
The program quickly became popular in the immediate area. Other Baptist churches in Toronto became interested and started similar groups for youth in their churches. The groups then organized jointly as Sky Teens of Canada and was promoted to other Fellowship Baptist churches.
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