Last month, the Committee Chair of Traverse City Young Life, Dr. Sherry Small, was able to announce that Erin Iafrate had been hired as Traverse City’s first-ever Area Director. The Western Great Lakes Regional staff is thrilled about the addition of Erin to the team.
Erin comes to this new position having faithfully served Eastern Ottawa Young Life for the past seven years, two of those years serving as Associate Area Director. During this time, Erin played an integral part of the building or rebuilding of three of the eleven Young Life clubs in that area. “She has served as a leader and team leader at Allendale High School. She pioneered ministry at Allendale New Options, restarted Young Life in the community of Coopersville, and has recently done much of the legwork of moving our area to starting YoungLives,” wrote EOYL Area Director Ryan Elders.
In reflecting on what God has taught her in the past seven years, Erin shared: “Eastern Ottawa has taught me how to love people, live in community and serve Jesus. I am so excited to equip a new community in how to do what Eastern Ottawa has been doing for 20 years.”
Erin has as large vision for the growth of Young Life in Traverse City. “I am extremely passionate about marginalized populations of kids, creating new things, growing in my own leadership and building it in others. I am so thankful for the ways that God has used Young Life to bring lots of great relationships and adventure into my life!”
Erin begins her new role in Traverse City on Monday, April 27th. This is a huge step forward for the growth of Young Life in the Western Great Lakes Region–one that has been five years in the making.
For five years, parents in the Grand Traverse area have been dreaming big about Young Life. For five years, leaders have been taking one step of faith after another with kids at Central High School. For five years, volunteers have been passionate about introducing adolescents to Jesus Christ. For five years, a community has been persistent in prayer.
The area’s anticipation and excitement is so evident in recent comments made by Jack Boyd, Development Chair for TC Young Life, on the fundraising efforts: “After two years of working towards our goal of hiring an Area Director for the Grand Traverse area, we can finally say we did it!”
They did it! But really, God did it. All these years, God has been actively working throughout the Grand Traverse area. The hiring of Erin as Area Director only seeks to expand the ministry that’s already being done to reach more schools and more communities, so that more and more young people will come to know and follow Christ.
Please join us in welcoming Erin to this position and praying for her as she transitions into this new role for Young Life in Traverse City.
You can follow Erin on Twitter here and follow Traverse City Young Life on Facebook here.
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