Collecting and sorting food for the food drive are Charis Wirtley (above, left) and Greta Schwandt, Sydney Wade (left in photo at right), Leah Wons, Jessica Slaby and orga- nizer Maria Rose Belding.
were still in high school when they researched and wrote it with World Hunger. Belding, now a student at American University, Washington, D.C., traveled with World Hunger staff to be part of St. John’s event.
‘One big family’ T roughout the day members brought donations and good cheer to the church, showing up with boxes of food and words of encour- agement for the youth. St. John is a rural congregation
that draws from as far away as 30 miles but feels like “one big fam- ily,” according to several youth. When Charis Wirtley, 14, who was responsible for building congrega- tional support for the drive, fi rst approached St. John’s evangelism committee, this was clearly evident. “I told them, ‘We need everyone together for this,’ and all they said was, ‘How can we help?’ ” she said. Jerry Wirtley, pastor of St.
John and Charis’ father, said, “T e youth here are really open to any- thing, especially in the community.” Wagner echoed his
sentiment: “I’m always surprised at how willing they are to take charge and show responsibility for their church and their community.”
T e youth care deeply about their
faith and what it means to be believ- ers in the world. Being active in the community “helps people without faith see how loving Christians can be,” said Leah Wons, 16. Sydney Wade, 15, agreed: “T ere
are so many negative stereotypes about Christians. T ings like this food drive help show them a diff er- ent side of the church.” Following the “Road Map to Food
Drives” also helped them “learn a lot about world hunger, local hunger and their faith,” Wagner said.
Hunger & faith In Oconto County, where St. John is located, more than 3,300 people (about 9 percent of the population) rely on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefi ts to meet their food needs. Pantries help families fi ll the gaps when SNAP benefi ts run short. Kingdom Come welcomes as
many as 200 families each week. Partners like St. John help provide the average of 30 pounds of
For more information or to order or download “Road Map to Food Drives: A By-Youth, For-Youth Guide to Feeding Communities,” go to www.
elca.org/resources/elca- world-hunger (click on “Hunger ed”).
food each family receives. As Belding reminded the youth
during the event, it is important to celebrate the success of the drive, but the nearly 900 pounds of food they collected would barely meet the weekly needs of a pantry like Kingdom Come. T e passion and leadership of
the youth at St. John show no signs of slowing down. Wagner, whose own energy for ministry is no small infl uence, said the youth are always asking, “What’s next?” Whether it’s a food or clothing
drive or helping teach their congre- gation and each other about hunger and faith, the youth are ready to meet the challenge. In the process, they may teach the rest of us what it means to be church in Little Sua- mico and elsewhere. As Charis, pointed out, going
into the community with an open- ness to learn from others and to work together is part of what it means to be a person of faith. It may not solve everything, she said, “but I’m here doing what I can.”
Author bio: Cumming is program director for hunger education with the ELCA.
June 2015 31
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