SUN CITY – During the 1950s, there was no shortage of work to be done by the Young Christian Workers, an international group dedicated to social justice.
Embedded in conflict with Korea not long after the end of WWII, the U.S. faced challenges within its own borders as the makeup of its cities changed, further fanning the flames of racial tension.
Sun City resident Frank Ardito joined the YCW in Chicago in those days and has written the book “The YCW I Remember,” fee
Sun City resident Frank Ardito recently wrote “The YCW I Remember,” an account of his time with the Christian organization.
ling the organization’s story needed to be preserved in a personal form.
“We need to keep the stories going,” he said.
Readers are given a look into the YCW through Ardito’s eyes as a young man returning from Army service in Korea in the 1950s. He tells of the many colleagues and clergy members he met while working with the YCW first at Chicago’s St. Bartholomew Parish and later with the national team.
The people Ardito meets along the way serve as the story’s characters, each with their own unique personality. Ardito sprinkles his book with anecdotes, from serious theological discussions to pranks between roommates and Lebanese salads concocted in the wee morning hours.
Of course, the YCW was organized to serve serious missions, and during his time in the organization, Ardito was called to work toward solving racial inequality and the many problems spreading from it, like discrimination and urban violence.
“The label we had on it was ‘The Great American Problem,’ and that was part of our social inquiries,” Ardito said.
This problem would prove to inspire Ardito long after his YCW days.
“Those are the things that bothered me; those are the things that I wanted to try to do something about,” he said of racism and street violence.
He was moved to act on these problems through the YCW’s practice of social inquiry. Members were told to “observe” or realize a problem in society or their community, “judge” and discuss it with fellow members, and “act” toward its resolution.
“Once you are conditioned to that, it’s lifelong; it’s the way you operate, it’s the way you function, and hopefully it’s a very good thing and a very useful thing,” Ardito said.
As he comments toward the book’s end, Ardito believes the spirit of activism among Catholics has declined in recent decades. Ardito did mention he was impressed by the various ministries that are active at St. Mary’s Parish in Huntley, which he attends.
Another bright sign Ardito sees is in Pope Francis, whom he believes can connect with young Catholics and motivate them again.
“I like the word that [Northwestern University professor] Robert McClory used describing the pope; he called him the ‘generator,'” Ardito said. “But then McClory really said ‘who’s going to get the people organized?'”
That’s where groups like the YCW come in, and that is why Ardito crafted his memories into book form – to keep its legacies alive
“The YCW I Remember”
The book is available online through ACTA Publications at actapublications.com/theycwiremember
For more info on the book or the YCW, contact Frank Ardito at ardito13024@comcast.net or visit actapublications.com.
