In 1972 the late Rev. Cato Bush, o ur District Overseer at the time, and other pastors on the East Coast District of the Apostolic Faith, including the Rev. Leon C. Dicks of Brooklyn, NY, and the late Rev. Mary G. Kelley of Washington, DC, and many of the saints from the churches on the East Coast met at Apostolic Faith, 265 Lafayette Avenue to establish the very first Youth Conference. From that moment on, over the past 44 years, young people from around the country and at times from around the world have gathered to worship God together, to connect in fellowship and to share effective practices of ministry in their context.

In the early days of the Youth Conference the concept developed where churches through the East Coast district would send delegates to the youth conference. Many visited but delegates were required to come and fully participate in conference activities. Delegates would be the people assigned to participate in services, attend conference teachings, engage in “street meetings” (this is simply an outdoor service that is usually held outside the church gates or on a street corner for thirty to forty minutes. During the service there are usually a few saints are assigned to hand out tracks and engage the people on the street), work around the altars during altar service and platform service by working in the kitchen, cleaning the facilities. Delegates were responsible to come back to their home churches with information, insight, and Holy Ghost fire. Many former delegates often speak of how they were impacted by serving as a delegate, especially being asked to preach, or sing, or give testimony during street meeting.