Today we are shining the spotlight on nine staff members in the Western Great Lakes Region—some are familiar faces in the region while others are brand new. We are grateful for the Lord’s hand in leading them to these roles. Take a moment to get to know these nine incredible individuals below and join us in giving them a warm welcome.
Meet Dan Adams, Church Partner at Community Reformed Church of Charlevoix.
Dan is from Sacramento, CA and recently graduated from William Jessup University with a degree in Youth Ministry. When Dan was 16 he got tricked into being a WyldLife leader and led until college. Following that, Dan stayed loosely connected to Young Life for another eight years until this fall when he and his wife moved to Charlevoix and Dan became a YL Church Partner. In Dan’s words: “Young Life earns the right to be heard by showing up. It is something that I have adopted into my everyday life, that if you love someone you show up for them.” As for hobbies, Dan has more than he can afford and is always looking for more.
Meet Hannah Busch, Mission Staff for Harbor Springs (Little Traverse Bay area) Young Life.
Hannah grew up in East Lansing with her parents and two younger brothers. She attended Aquinas College in Grand Rapids and spent many summers working on Mackinac Island. After college, she spent some time traveling and doing mission work overseas and the Lord grew in her a passion for reaching those who need to know of Jesus’ love. A friend who is on Young Life staff in Illinois inspired Hannah to look into joining staff and here she is! In her spare time, Hannah loves to travel and be outside.
Meet Holly Daly, YoungLives Coordinator for Grand Rapids Southwest.
Holly, her husband, and their four boys moved to the Kentwood area from Chicago. Holly attended Taylor University and currently also works remotely for Sunshine Gospel Ministries. Holly has a background in social work and is incredibly gifted in caring for teen moms and their babies. Holly began her journey with YoungLives first as a mentor for Grand Rapids Southwest and now continues as YoungLives Coordinator, training and raising up mentors to love and support teen moms. Grand Rapids Southwest YoungLives is blessed to have her!
Meet Paige Deur, Area Administrator for Lakeshore Young Life.
Paige has been a volunteer leader with Grand Haven Young Life since 2015 and is excited to serve her area in a new role. In addition to working for Young Life, Paige serves as the copywriter/editor at Crossroads Prison Ministries in Grand Rapids. When she is not working or hanging out with high schoolers, you can probably find her reading a book, petting her dog, or dreaming about traveling.
Meet Brenda Dickman, Mission Staff for Shelby Young Life.
Brenda comes to Shelby Young Life with decades of experience with kids in Youth for Christ in Grand Rapids. Brenda, her husband, and their three children have called Shelby home for a few years now and was part of the initial group of adults helping to start Young Life in Shelby. Brenda felt the Lord nudging her to do more than serve on committee and took on the role of the first Mission Staff for Shelby Young Life this past fall. Associate Regional Director Kevin Eastway had this to say: “Brenda understands how to show up with consistency, lead spiritually, and build teams. She is a wonderful example of what it means to be spirit-led and missional!”
Meet Sarah Ismond, Mission Staff for Petoskey Young Life (Little Traverse Bay area).
Sarah is from Petoskey, recently graduated from Central Michigan University, and loves outdoor recreational activities (hiking, kayaking, running, swimming). In fact, in 2018 she ran more miles than she drove! Sarah was a WyldLife kid who wasn’t always fully committed but had leaders who were committed to her and kept showing up in her life, helping her through one of the biggest life challenges. What she’s looking most forward to in this role is meeting kids where they are and empowering them to see their worth.
Meet Sam Javed, Church Partner at Faith Reformed Church of Traverse City.
Grand Traverse Young Life announces a new partnership with Faith Reformed Church and welcomes their first Church Partner, Sam Javed. Sam grew up in Traverse City and graduated from TC West High School in 2013. He loves all things basketball (playing & coaching) and is married to Sara and has a very outspoken 10-month-old daughter, Norah, who brings them so much joy. He hadn’t heard about Young Life prior to learning about the Church Partnership, but soon after realized just how influential Young Life was in his brother and friends’ lives. Sam is passionate about reaching young people, sharing the love of Jesus with them, and enfolding them into the body of Christ.
Meet Avrey Smith, Mission Staff at Comstock Park (Northwest Grand Rapids area).
Avrey grew up on the west side of Grand Rapids and currently leads Young Life at Comstock Park while attending Grand Rapids Community College. Avrey discovered the love of Christ during his freshman year of high school after getting involved with Young Life. He’s been part of the mission ever since. He shares, “What drew me so close was being noticed. Growing up the youngest of 4 it was nice to be in a community where I didn’t feel like the ‘runt’…I hope we can create an area deeply rooted in Christ and the support of others. My dreams are that when our students look back to high school, they do so with the lifelong mentors and friends they developed.” Something you may not know about Avrey is he’s a huge sci-fi and comic book geek.
Meet Jennifer Walters, Area Director for Southwest Michigan Young Life.
Jennifer isn’t new to Young Life staff, having served as Area Admin in Southwest Michigan for the past five years. Jennifer was a “club kid” back in the day at Lakeshore High School and served as a volunteer leader and on summer staff during her Ball State University years, where she graduated with a degree in telecommunications. She then worked as a TV reporter in South Dakota and later earned her Master’s in Public Administration from Western Michigan University, which led to a couple of jobs in higher education. Jennifer is married to Ryan (a teacher at St. Joseph High School) and they are the proud parents of three kids. We are pleased to welcome Jennifer as the new Area Director for Southwest Michigan Young Life. Learn more about Jennifer in her area newsletter.
“Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God’s Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.”
Philippians 1:3-6, The Message
