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By Rachel Mari
For Jeff Boucher, parenting is something worth writing about. A Wyckoff, NJ-based pastor who has worked with youth for more than 25 years, Boucher recently launched a new blog to “help parents move their kids from apathy to energy.”
Boucher, senior pastor of Powerhouse Christian Church, is also is the president of Touch the World, a global missions organization for youth that he founded in 1990.
With all of his ministry experience and a passion for building healthy, Christ-focused youth, Boucher has a lot to say. He started his blog (apathytoenergy.wordpress.com) in May because he consistently receives calls from parents asking how to raise their children well. “It is easier to put these ideas out there on the blog, so that all parents can benefit [from the discussion],” he said.
Boucher kicked things off by addressing foundational issues like self-esteem. “In all the years that I’ve done seminars, parents in attendance have ranked self-esteem a nine or ten on the scale of importance,” he said, “Yet, no one is working to define it well. [In my experience], it has three parts—belonging, confidence, and worth.”
“Worth can be the most evasive component of all,” writes Boucher. “So many young people gain their sense of worth from what they do (sports, talent, artistic ability, etc.) or from their current rating in beauty or popularity – all of which is fleeting and temporary. But lasting worth will only come from who we are, not from what we do.”
His goal is to address questions using a combination of “biblical advice and common sense” and provide a blueprint for parenting. Future blog topics include: properly disciplining children, getting teens to listen, and setting boundaries. Boucher is committed to covering issues “where people need help.”
And it is clear from current media debates that parents need guidance and support. From raising a “genderless child” to same-sex parenting to single parenting, opinions on the right way to raise a child frequently grab headlines. This past winter, for example, the “Tiger Mom” Amy Chua was in the news. Chua chronicled her exceedingly strict rules for her daughters and contrasted the “Chinese method” for raising children with the “Western method” of parenting. Boucher wrote a rebuttal to Ms. Chua’s observations. He considered her recommendations of no television, three hours of daily music practice, only “A” grades, no sleepovers, and a host of other strict rules unrealistic. “It just doesn’t work that way,” he said.
With his blog, Boucher is hoping to give parents a tool that will help them raise healthy families.
“I really believe that family is the fabric of our country,” he said. “[But that fabric] can deteriorate because of issues like divorce, infidelity, and overmedicating our kids. There are so many problems that are ripping families apart.”
It is clear that Boucher’s commitment to child advocacy and families translates into his ministry efforts and community contributions as a junior football coach and Chaplain to the Wyckoff Police Department. Through his work with Touch the World, Boucher spearheaded plans for the Colegio James R. Ganley School for children grades K-6, which opened in Juarez, Mexico in 2005.
Juarez holds a special place in the hearts of Rev. Boucher and his wife Kris, because it is where they met their daughter Blanca. The Bouchers adopted Blanca, now 17, just before she turned 9 years old. In addition, the Bouchers have two sons, Tyler, 20, and Zack, 17, and daughter Katie, 16, who was added to their family last year.
“As parents, if we fail to lay out the boundaries, then we’ve doomed our children to a frustrating and painful experience of crawling through life,” writes Boucher. “If on the other hand, we erect bridges with fixed rope railings and secure planking, our children may start out cautiously, but will soon be enjoying the experience, viewing the world around them from a place of safety, and sometimes maybe even daring to run or lean over the rails for a real adventurous experience.”
Jeff Boucher’s blog can be accessed at www.apathytoenergy.wordpress.com.
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