Our focus is to engage young people with the vibrant life of the Church. We have key ministry areas that we coordinate and support, including: parish youth groups, our annual youth camp “Breakaway”, and youth rally nights “Breakaway Youth Nights”.

Once a young person graduates, we aim to create opportunities for them in their faith life too! There are many ways we seek to build community and friendships as well as young adult focused ministry, retreat days, and faith formation to keep them growing in their journey with Jesus!

The young adult space here in the NT is so important, as so many of these young adults are the key leaders and volunteers who help to run, lead, and journey with the youth of our diocese at youth groups and within CENT as school youth ministers. We give our young adults community support, ministry skills, and resources to do this good work well.

Fr Shehan, originally from Sri Lanka, has been Ordained a priest since just last year, and has been in formation since 2014. He was Chaplain for Cantonese speaking young adults in Melbourne from 2016 to 2018. He was a youth minister at Our Lady of Sacred Heart, Alice Springs from 2022 to 2023. He is an ordained priest for the Catholic Diocese of Darwin, currently serving as an assistant priest in the St Mary’s Star of the Sea Cathedral. He is the Director of Youth Ministry for the Diocese, Co-Director for Vocations and the Chaplain for the O’Loughlin Catholic College, Karama, Darwin.

Luke is 28 years old and has been in the Territory for 3 years now, originally from Texas, USA.

Has over 8 years of Youth Ministry experience with NET USA, Ireland, & AUS, and in the NT w/ Holy Spirit Catholic Primary School and Parish and has been a youth minister for the Catholic Diocese of Darwin and for Catholic Education NT for over 1 year.

Sister Jess is a religious sister with the Canossian Daughters of Charity since 2022.

Has been involved in liturgy ministry for 2 years in SA, and has been in the NT for 1 year now working in Youth Ministry for the Catholic Diocese of Darwin, representing Caritas and Catholic Missions in the Territory.

The National Evangelisation Team “NET” Ministries Australia, is a Catholic youth ministry organisation that has spread the message of the Gospel to more than 500,000 young people across Australia since 1988.

Each year NET accepts 40-50 spirit-filled young adults who have heard a strong call in their lives to proclaim the Gospel to the next generation. They are trained for six weeks and mentored by NET staff throughout the year. These missionaries, known by many as ‘Netters’, experience community life in teams, a deepening of their personal faith, and the joy of ministering to other young people.

Young people need to be met where they are at without judgement or expectation.NET Teams are trained do this through the three areas that form the core of NET’s ministry tools. This includes fellowship, proclamation, and invitation, and together they lay the foundation for the effectiveness of NET Team’s in their mission fields.

Here in the NT, we have been very fortunate to have a NET Team with us for the past few years, and again here in 2025! These young people have answered a big calling, and with their “Yes” to serve, The Diocese of Darwin has 5 new missionaries arriving mid-Feb!