Last Thursday night  I had the privilege of speaking at the Eastern Oregon YFC fundraising banquet in LaGrande, Oregon. A quick flight to Walla Walla and then a great drive with my friend, Tim Gleeson, to their home in LaGrande. When we arrived at the banquet location that evening I was amazed to see a full room of 250 people, 75% of whom were “new” to YFC.

The evening was filled with stories of kids whose lives have been changed by Jesus Christ, through the persistence of YFC staff.  I was so impressed to hear the stories of young people who have been impacted through Campus Life club, the juvenile justice outreach but my heart was especially gripped by EOYFC “Loaves and Fishes” ministry.

“Loaves and Fishes” is an outreach to homeless/extremely disadvantaged kids who count on free or reduced lunch/breakfast during the week but are left without the right food on the weekends.  In partnership with the school district, EOYFC Executive Director Kevin Rainey mobilizes people to donate food that is put in bags and delivered to kids at the alternative school, middle school and high school. I helped with the “drop off” of these bags Friday morning to the schools.  The statistics in LaGrande show that there are 63 kids in the 11-18 age range, currently being served through “Loaves and Fishes” with another 40 who would qualify, but for some reason don’t take advantage of it.

Perhaps it’s a feeling of shame or embarrassment at asking for help but, whatever the reason, there are still a large number of kids who still need help.  As Kevin and I talked during the Friday delivery I was struck by how the EOYFC staff and Board are taking seriously Jesus’ admonition to take care of the “least of these”.  These kids may not come to Christ directly because of the food distribution, but they are seeing Jesus’ love in action because someone cares enough to provide a basic need.

My role Thursday night was to “inspire and challenge”–inspire the audience with stories of the ministry of YFC and to challenge them to get involved with their time, talents and treasure.  The great news is that people responded because 1) they were able to see the fruit (changed lives) of God at work in EOYFC and 2) God moved in their hearts to be generous.  Our goal was to raise $15,000…and Praise God, over $16,000 was raised!

Reaching the “least of these”–YFC making a difference around the Pacific Northwest and across the country.