Before the 62nd General Conference Session convened in St. Lous, Missouri, Adventist Youth Ministries of the Seventh-day Adventist Church recognized a prime opportunity to demonstrate God’s love locally.

Once the July 3-12, 2025, church meeting was underway, dozens of young people worked with leaders through the Impact! St. Louis initiative to tangibly tell the Arch City how valuable it is in the Savior’s eyes.

Mwenya Mpundu, media coordinator for GC Youth Ministries, expressed how important it was to bring these efforts to fruition.

“In recent history, impact! has happened at almost all the sessions,” said Mpundu. “Last Session [also in St. Louis], because of COVID and budgetary constraints, it didn't happen. But we saw young people take money out of their own pockets and find ways to impact the community, even though there wasn’t something officially [organized].”

With Mpundu and her team moved by these sacrificial examples in 2022, they knew it was necessary, with opportunity knocking a second time, to provide outlets for the young people to serve this city more extensively. In partnership with Youth Ministries departments of the GC, North American Division, Mid-America Union and the Iowa-Missouri and Central States conferences, all involved hope to positively impact the communities of St Louis during the GC Session.

Plant, Cultivate, Grow

In the heat of the St. Louis summer, young adults from Cabo Verde, India, Brazil, Guadeloupe, Samoa, and the United States pitched in at a notable project that one of the Impact! St. Louis sub-teams undertook: the beautification of Fresh Starts Community Garden, founded in 2009 and still run by Rosie Willis.

“This garden started because people used to throw everything that they didn't want in their house over on this [old city] lot — all kinds of trash,” Willis stated. “I live next door to this garden, and I’m one of the remnants of what was in this community. I felt and I still feel we need something more positive than trash … and crime in our neighborhood.”

According to Willis, initial discussions occurred between Impact! leaders and Mary Lou Green, executive director of Brightside St. Louis.

“[Green] sets up volunteers for community gardens … that’s how I got involved with this Seventh-day Adventist group. A wonderful group of people!” Willis exclaimed. “She called and wanted to know if I needed some volunteers. Well, of course! This is a large garden, and I always want and need volunteers.”

Fresh Starts is more than just a pretty face in an urban setting. “We raise broccoli, asparagus, cabbage, [sometimes] spinach — a whole lot of cool crop [vegetables],” said Willis. In closing, she shared Fresh Starts’ motto: “‘Plant a seed, grow a community’; that’s what we are about.”

Youth Perspective

One of the young people participating in the Fresh Starts cleanup is Side (sih-‘day), fashion design student from South Africa. This is not her first impact! involvement.

“This is my second time. My first time was in 2015 in San Antonio, Texas,” said Side. “However, I am the daughter of the current GC Youth director [Busi Khumalo], so I've been involved in youth for a very long time at this point. I was definitely happy enough to volunteer.”

The service options were divulged to the young people ahead of time, and for Side, Fresh Starts was an easy choice. “I decided to go with this project mainly because when I was younger, I [worked] in the garden. So, I felt that it was fitting for me.”

Spreading the Light

Mpundu briefly detailed some of the other Impact! projects being executed throughout St. Louis. Another garden cleanup was underway at the Southside Wellness Center. General city cleanup transpired in multiple locations, including near the America’s Center Convention Complex, the host venue, and at the Great Rivers Greenway Park, near the Gateway Arch and along the Mississippi.

Some young people distributed literature on Sabbath (July 12) afternoon. Books included The Great Controversy and several volumes from the Hope series, written by a variety of specialized authors. A sub-team stationed itself near the arch while others walked through portions of the city.

For more coverage of the 2025 General Conference Session, including live updates, interviews, and delegate stories, visit adventist.news and follow ANN on social media.