Rio de Janeiro. The second largest city in Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area in South America, boasts 6.3 million people. Rio, the city with the looming statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado, long stretches of scenic beaches, shops and large carnivals that last for days will not only host the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, but will also host Sion students from around the world at the first International Sion Youth meeting and World Youth Congress where students will have the chance to meet the new Pope.

The purpose of the ISY meeting, held July 15-21, is for Sion students from Brazil, Costa Rica, Canada, the United States, France, England, Turkey and Australia to meet and learn about each other, explore the Sion mission and experience the sights of Rio de Janeiro. The WYC is meeting July 23-28, a meeting held for the purpose of youth all over the world to come together as disciples of Jesus Christ and grow in faith, love and unity.

“I am most excited to see the Statue of Christ the Redeemer, being in a new culture and meeting new people,” chaperone Jennifer Campbell said. “I look forward to gaining a greater awareness of what Sion means on a global scale.”

All meetings and events will be translated into English, Portuguese, Spanish and French. Students will be grouped by language similarities.

“We will be doing a variety of activities. We will listen to Sion sisters lecture about the Sion identity, each school will present information about their school, go on excursions, and finish with a Mass led by the new Pope,” Kay Walkup, Associate Head of School for Curriculum and Mission Formation and organizer of the trip, said.

There will be hundreds of people in Rio for World Youth Day from Sion Schools all over the world. Sion Students that signed up for and are attending from our school include sophomores Catherine Ancona, Maddy Lewing, Sydney Manning and Abby Snyder, as well as juniors Jackie Meister and Kirsten Rasmussen. Chaperones are Mr. Bill Ray from the grade school and high school librarian Campbell.

“I am excited to get a greater sense of Sion’s community and enhance my knowledge of other cultures,” Manning said. “I think seeing the new Pope will also be a very special and memorable occasion as well.”