Shepherding the Lost and At-Risk Youth of Our Current Generation

The purpose of this project was to develop a youth internship program that would encourage churches, community leaders, community programs, and mentors to collaborate with students who could be categorized as “at-risk.” The project involved selecting mentors, identifying the assets of the community of Enumclaw, Washington, and developing an awareness of social issues among the students. Relationships formed between the students and members of the community would later represent some of the most successful elements of the project. Another goal of the project was to provide opportunities for the students to have modeled before them godly behaviors and lifestyle choices, thus offering an alternative to the repetitive cycles of poverty that “at-risk” students see as normal in their lives. It was not the intent of this project to proselytize the students, but rather to demonstrate to them the goodness of the Gospel by sharing the love of Jesus through the collaborative efforts within the community. By exposing these young adults to the biblical mandate to “love our neighbor” and by behaviors and choices of Christians, it was the ultimate goal of this project to cause these young adults to examine the choices they make, especially those leading to cycles of poverty.
This project discovered a trend among the current generation of young adults (ages 12-25) within the local population studied indicating that they perceive churches as irrelevant and unnecessary in regard to addressing social issues. As pointed out in the project, while there are ongoing collaborative efforts by the churches in the community of Enumclaw that address social issues, there are no singular or concerted efforts by the churches that involve “at-risk” youth. Further, although there are several churches in the area that offer youth services, none accepted the invitation to participate in this study. Additionally, as indicated by interviews, some churches refrain from involving “at-risk” youth due to pressure by the congregants.
Although there was a lack of the hoped for involvement by local Enumclaw churches, this project successfully engaged youth in the community by partnering with other assets in the community. There was also success in providing Christian role models for “at-risk” youth that demonstrated godly life choices, including biblical examples of the nuclear family model, educational achievement, financial responsibility, sound mental health practices, and positive choices regarding drug and alcohol use. The long-term benefit of mentoring these students cannot be evaluated within the parameters of the time frame of this project. However, this project offers great hope for long-term results that may include these students’ involvement in other community projects, long-term relationships between mentors and students, positive life-long choices, and the end to the cycle of poverty of which “at-risk” youth are a part.