HILLSONG UNITED

When Hillsong Church started in 1983, known as Hills Christian Life Centre, a youth group was established. The first youth pastor was Darko Culjak who was a bible college student at the time. Donna Crouch was appointed as an assistant in late 1984 due to the expansion of the youth group. Donna Crouch became the youth leader in 1987 . Phil and Lucinda Dooley became youth pastor in 1996, when the youth comprised of two age groups, Wildlife and Powerhouse. After a revival at the 1998 Summer camp, the youth ministry began to have "United Nights" when both age groups came together. This is where the name of the youth ministry, Hillsong United, came from. When Sydney Christian Life Centre became the "City Campus" of Hillsong Church, they adopted the Hillsong United youth format, as have all extension services. In 2007, Paul and Andi Andrew became the new youth pastors, as Phil and Lucinda Dooley moved into other areas..... In March 2008, Hillsong United released their first "hits" compilation called "The I Heart Revolution: With Hearts As One" which consists of two CDs containing live performances of the band's hit songs.After the 1998 Summer Camp revival, the worship team of the youth ministry began writing songs and after releasing an EP, the 1999 album Everyday was released. Since that time the Hillsong United worship team has released an album each year and has grown in popularity. Along with playing in Sydney, the team currently travels the world, touring and holding conferences with thousands of attendees. The Hillsong United band is currently led by Joel Houston, the son of Hillsong Church senior pastor Brian Houston. The current Youth Pastors of Hillsong United are Paul and Andi Andrew, who took the position in early 2007.Hillsong United hosts a variety a of different camps and conferences throughout the year. The conferences held at Hillsong Church are the Hillsong United Youth Conference during Hillsong Conference and Encounterfest (where the live Hillsong United albums were recorded). On Nov 10, 2007, Hillsong United along with Brian Houston and Phil Dooley will host a conference in Orlando, Florida. The band will also experiment with broadcasting their performance live on Xanga as an interactive concert event.