Young Life’s Western Great Lakes Region is thrilled to welcome Luke Trombley as Staff Associate for Manistee County Young Life—the newest ministry in the region. The following article was first published here and is reposted with permission.
Young Life has expanded its outreach to Manistee County.
As a global organization with local focus, Young Life is a Christian ministry that reaches out to middle school, high school and college students. It operates in all 50 states and in more than 100 countries around the world.
Young Life has 80 years of experience working with kids by meeting them as they are and believing in who they can be.
To help lead the charge locally [in Manistee County], Young Life has hired its first staff person, Luke Trombley, a graduate from Northern Michigan University. Trombley will be responsible for student outreach and growing Young Life in Manistee County.
“I’m really looking forward to moving to Manistee and engaging with kids,” said Trombley in the news release.
Trombley is no stranger to Young Life. He was active in Young Life in high school in Midland, and continued his involvement as a Young Life leader and intern in Marquette during college.
“I had the pleasure to be part of launching Young Life in Marquette and that experience will be extremely useful in my new role in Manistee,” Trombley said. “Plus, it’s a bonus that my family has a place in Bear Lake so I already know I love the area.”
Young Life and the Armory Youth Project will be collaborating in their endeavors as the organizations are like-minded and share a focus on creating a safe and encouraging environment to help youth reach their full potential. “Young Life will be instrumental in helping us serve our youth, particularly as they help us design programming around our Christian spiritual pillar, one of our four pillars of our mission which includes educational, physical, emotional and spiritual development,” said Armory Youth Project executive director Amy Wojciechowski.
When asked about the Armory, Trombley said that it is a perfect place to engage with students and help them grow.
“Not only is the space great, but the staff, volunteers and the focus of the Armory is perfectly aligned with Young Life,” Trombley said. “We have so many opportunities for Manistee County youth, I’m excited to get started.”
Trombley started in his position on May 10; his office is located in the Armory.
Trombley will be responsible for recruiting volunteers to help implement Young Life’s approach which involves connecting with kids through weekly club — a get together for games, fun with friends and the opportunity to hear about God’s love; camp — where deep relationships are formed in the midst of week-long experiences; and “Campaigners,” a weekly gathering where kids go deeper in Bible study, service and leadership.
This is Young Life’s first entrée into Manistee County. It currently has successful teams operating in the surrounding areas such as Grand Rapids, Traverse City, Muskegon, and Shelby.
For more information about Young Life or for anyone interested in becoming a Young Life volunteer, visit manisteecounty.younglife.org or email Luke Trombley directly at luketrombley.yl@gmail.com.
From the WGLR Editor: The hiring of Luke is an answer to many prayers in the Western Great Lakes Region. It all started about three years ago when a group of adults in Manistee came together with a shared love for the Lord and for kids, and a common vision of starting Young Life for kids in their community.
Erin Wanschura, who serves as Young Life Area Director in the Grand Traverse area and Associate Regional Director for Young Life in Lower NW Michigan, has been walking alongside the Manistee Young Life Committee throughout the process.
“Over the three-year journey of starting Young Life in Manistee, we became more convinced that Jesus wanted a relationship with kids there,” shared Erin. “Now, here we are celebrating the fact that Luke took three middle school guys to WyldLife camp in August, just weeks after starting his new job—Jesus heard every prayer!”
Young Life in Manistee County has a strong foundation but continues to depend upon donor gifts to keep the ministry running. The support of financial partners will ensure that teenagers in Manistee County receive the support and guidance they need while learning about God’s love for them. Donate online.
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