“The Lord has appointed the youth to be his helping hand.”1 They are to be “the light of the world.”2 During the culmination of this year’s 61st General Conference (GC) Session, a group of young people jumped at the opportunity to embody the church’s strategic plan focus, “I Will Go”, by lighting up the city of St. Louis with the love of Jesus. In less than 24 hours, many rallied together to collect non-perishable food items, toiletries, snacks, and evangelistic literature to share with homeless individuals and others within the community, resulting in a meaningful impact within the city.
The desire for the initiative emerged when young adult delegate, Danelle Cuffie, began to notice the needs of individuals in the city on her walks to and from the Dome at America’s Center. She explained,
“The hotel I stayed at was about a 15 minute walk away from the convention center and every single time I walked there and back, I noticed homeless people on the street. One day on my walk to the convention center, there was actually someone bare-backed, no shoes on, sleeping in the middle of the pavement, and it broke my heart.”
As a result, Cuffie reached out to two other youth delegates on Friday morning, June 10th, to share what she was feeling, hoping to brainstorm ideas to come up with a solution to help. “The morning I sent out the message, we went for a prayer walk and that’s when the idea initially struck.” As a result, not one but two outreach initiatives were organized to help the less fortunate in St. Louis; the distribution of care packages in Keiner Plaza Park and a planned dropoff of essential items at a nearby homeless shelter.
Immediately, Cuffie and other young people began to contribute the resources necessary to see the initiative come to fruition. By request, Streams of Light International donated 200 copies of The Great Controversy by pioneer Adventist writer, Ellen White, for the initiative. In addition, through the support of Dejan Stojkovic, director of Youth Ministries and Pathfinders for the Trans-European Division (TED), funding was obtained. “I’m proud of my treasurer and of the TED for quickly stepping up to respond to the need,” he said.
Many young people who became involved also contributed out of pocket to purchase what was needed. “We didn’t want this initiative just to be an easy project, we wanted to actually be invested in it personally. In fact, we didn’t use all the money we received from the TED!,” Cuffie stated. “By Friday lunch time we already had the books, funding, and a car to go grocery shopping with. On Friday evening, we packed the care packages and within 24 hours, everything was done.”
The following day, over 20 young people set out on Sabbath afternoon to fulfill their outreach initiatives. Care-packages containing items such as socks, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and snacks were given to individuals in need around Keiner Plaza Park. According to Cuffie, at least 100 individuals were impacted by the singing, praying, conversations, and evangelistic literature the youth distributed. “People were quite willing and appreciative ... The community’s response to what we did goes to show how much they needed it.” Cuffie added, “The homeless shelter was also appreciative of our donations and was connected to a local Adventist church to see what else could be done to help the individuals there long-term.”
Although a meaningful impact was made to the St. Louis community, the young people involved were blessed through their participation and disposition to “go!”. “It was so great that young people from around the world came together to create a project that supported the community we were in, showing we really all do have a common goal in sharing the love of Jesus,” said Valerie Donat from the South Pacific Division (SPD). Manessah Simms from the Inter-American Division elaborated,
Meeting new friends from all over the world and connecting in ministry in a more tangible way, compared to my sitting on the delegate floor, filled me with both satisfaction and disappointment. Satisfaction for being able to have a wonderful time in ministering to others but also disappointed that it was such a short time.
“I loved … to pour into that city,” said Lorraine Nozipho Roberts from the SPD. “We got to be the hands and feet of Jesus by roaming those streets and interacting with those who needed it.” Bryan Roberts, also from the SPD added, “It felt like a holy relief to be able to do what we believe.”
Young people are the church of today. Each has been equipped with different talents, skills, and passions to actively and effectively contribute to the mission of the World Church. The energies, resourcefulness, and organization demonstrated through this initiative reinforces that a few willing servants can make a difference. “We do not need a lot of people,” said Stojkovic, “but how amazing would it be if 100% of the church would get involved?”.
Whether young or old, all have a role to play in spreading the Gospel. Jesus is coming. Get involved.
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1.White, Ellen. Messages to Young People - Preface (Hagerstown: Review and Herald), https://m.egwwritings.org/en/book/76.6#12
2“In Being the Light of the World - May 11,” Ellen G. White Estate. May 11, 2022. https://whiteestate.org/devotional/sd/05_11/