As we are now into the 2015-2016 school year for Young Life’s Western Great Lakes Region, we have incredible reasons to celebrate!
Little Traverse Bay Young Life Leaders
Our Young Life mission is to introduce adolescents to Jesus Christ and help them grow in their faith.
Our 8 year regional vision was set in 2008 and is: Through teams of volunteers, equipped and supported by paid staff, by the end of 2016 we will live out our calling to reach every kid by:
1. Increasing the number of kids we know by name 50 percent (from 15,111 to 22,834).
Currently, we know 21,792 kids by name in the region! We started at 15,111 in 2009.
2. Having 120 excellent ministries.
Currently, we have 108 ministries in the region! We started at 80 in 2008.
3. Growing to 1,000 volunteer leaders.
Currently, we have 747 leaders along with 45 staff (part-time and full-time)! We started with 505 volunteer leaders in 2009.
Greater Holland Young Life | September 2015
In order to do this, we are centering in on:
- recruiting, training, equipping and sustaining teams of volunteers,
- focusing on quality at every level of our ministry,
- growing both deep and wide—deeper into the communities where we already operate and wider into new communities,
- having every area operate in financial health.
Kenowa Hills Young Life | The newest club in the region
Since this strategic plan started in 2008, we have grown from 13 areas to 25 in the region, by adding in these 12 new areas:
Little Traverse Bay
Grand Traverse
Muskegon
Spring Lake
Elkhart
McBain
Middleville
Grand Rapids Academies
Lake City
Eagle Village
Grand Haven
Three Rivers
Kenowa Hills
Hopkins
With 15 months to go, we are zeroing in on completing these goals and we want to take this time to reflect on what Young Life in our region is today: why it works, the values we stand on, and how we will serve in order to expand our mission to kids. Young Life of the future will be based on the values that drive us today.
Healthy people on healthy teams doing healthy ministry, is our overall aim when it comes to living out these values.
Eastern Ottawa Young Life | Summer 2015
Jesus Christ is central in our lives and message. We remain solidly Christocentric. Everything in Young Life begins and ends with Jesus. He is our message and our method. He is our power and our motivation. He is our life and our breath.
Our ministry method is Incarnational. We continue to go where kids are. We don’t wait for them to come to us. Kids don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. We are out there in the world of kids, building friendships and in His mysterious way, bringing Jesus Christ with us, when we go.
All of our ministry is supported by prayer. We look to pray continually. Currently we are finishing up a prayer project where we will have physically prayed at every school in the region.
The role of paid staff is to recruit, train, equip, and sustain teams of volunteers to do ministry. Leadership development is what our staff do. We believe that we will simply reach more kids by having more leaders. Young Life is a leader-centered mission.
Western Great Lakes Region Staff | September 2015
We look, think, and act multi-culturally (race, gender, ethnicity). Honestly, Young Life in our region has a lot of work to do in this area. We do fairly well with reaching out to all kinds of kids. We are not strong when it comes to people of color on staff. The place we are focusing on in the region is volunteer leaders of color. This year each of our full-time staff are praying for God to give them three leaders to develop. We are following the Leadership Tree model in this initiative, which we learned from our Young Life peers in Africa.
Grand Rapids SouthWest | Isle Royale Trip 2015
We create an environment which encourages longevity for volunteers and paid staff. We believe it should be fun and enjoyable to be a Young Life leader and be on Young Life staff. Therefore, we work hard to thank, appreciate, and care for our leaders and staff, with the goal of a healthy ministry culture where they will continue for years in the mission.
We work responsibly in relationship with the larger church of Jesus Christ and pursue strong relationships with churches and other like-minded organizations. This has always been a very strong value in our region. We have informal and formal covenant partnerships in all of our areas. Formally, we have partnered with Calvin College, Wedgwood Christian Services, Eagle Village and 10 churches:
First Reformed Church – Grandville
Second Christian Reformed Church – Fremont
First Allendale Christian Reformed
First Presbyterian Church of Petoskey
Westview Christian Reformed Church – Grand Rapids
First Presbyterian Church – Harbor Springs
Fellowship Reformed Church – Muskegon
Immanuel Reformed Church – Grand Rapids
Searchlight Ministries (CRC) – Hudsonville
First Christian Reformed Church of Grand Haven
First Reformed Church – Zeeland
We train and equip at every level of our ministry and encourage both theological depth and creativity. Training happens when someone first asks about being a Young Life leader. Equipping happens throughout the year in the local areas and at our regional leadership weekend. Training happens through trips like the Student Leadership Project and Work Crew. Equipping happens within our Regional Training Group. Equipping happens at our regional staff meetings. Equipping happens as our staff pursue graduate degrees in theology and/or counseling. Leaders are learners and we seek to reflect this throughout our mission in the Western Great Lakes Region.
As we look to complete our vision of having 120 ministries in the region, please pray with us for official Young Life clubs to start in/at:
Young Life Leaders | Leadership Weekend 2015
Penn High School (Michiana)
Bridgeman High School (Southwest Michigan)
Portage West Middle School (Kalamazoo)
Portage Northern High School (Kalamazoo)
Capernaum – Ottawa Intermediate Schools (Greater Holland)
Grandville WyldLife (Grand Rapids SouthWest)
Alger Middle School (Grand Rapids Urban)
Wellsprings High School (Grand Rapids Urban)
YoungLives (Eastern Ottawa)
Coopersville Middle School (Eastern Ottawa)
West Michigan Aviation Academy (Central Grand Rapids)
Charlevoix Middle School (Little Traverse Bay)
Traverse City West High School (Grand Traverse)
Glen Lake Middle School (Grand Traverse)
Rockford WyldLife (Northeast Grand Rapids)
NorthPointe Middle School (Northeast Grand Rapids)
Battle Creek
Comstock Park
Fennville
Timberland Academy (Muskegon)
Three Rivers
Hopkins
Lake City
As always, we are incredibly grateful for your continuing prayers and support.
God’s peace to you,
Chris Theule-VanDam
Regional Director
