A relationship with Christ and a call to ministry led Chad Young 鈥�06 to 黑料不打烊 as a non-traditional student. 听
鈥淚 was going back to school because I knew I had a ministry calling,鈥� said Young, who is the executive director of the Salina Rescue Mission. 鈥淚 wanted to grow in my relationship with the Lord and at the same time grow as a person and complete my education.鈥�听
He returned to college at the age of 32; he transferred to 黑料不打烊 at the age of 34 to complete his bachelor鈥檚.听
鈥淚 began volunteering at the mission partly to fulfill my volunteer requirements for Kansas Wesleyan, but also because of my own past. I struggled most of my life with drug and alcohol addiction,鈥� Young said. 鈥淚 started looking for places to volunteer that were connected with my passions. I connected with what was going on here 鈥� the ministry of helping others.鈥�听
The mission is a 76-bed facility that provides a place for homeless men to sleep, as well as offers lunch and dinner to anyone in the community who needs it on a daily basis.听
Young said homelessness might not be overtly visible, but it鈥檚 a reality in Salina. 听
鈥淭here are hundreds of homeless people in Salina. The perception is, 鈥楤ecause I don鈥檛 see them, we don鈥檛 have a skid row. Because we don鈥檛 have a skid row, it must not be that big of a problem,鈥欌�� Young said. 鈥淗omelessness comes in many forms. There are people who are homeless but are sheltered. Some we don鈥檛 see because they鈥檙e staying in hotel rooms or sleeping on a friend鈥檚 couch tonight. And they don鈥檛 know whose house they will sleep at tomorrow night.听
鈥淎 lot of our homeless people try to stay out of the sight of the public. They try not to draw attention to themselves.鈥�听
Kansas Wesleyan was the right fit for his education because it offered a religious, academic atmosphere. 听
鈥淔aith-based learning was important because of my calling from God to be in ministry,鈥� Young said. 听
During his senior year, Young was the pastor at Mentor United Methodist Church, a position he continued through his first year of seminary studies. 听
鈥淲hile I was in seminary, I traveled back and forth to Kansas City during the week,鈥� Young said. 鈥淚 was feeling a little burned out. I talked to my wife about it, and we agreed I need to do something I really enjoy doing. I missed my time volunteering at the mission, so I started again.听
听鈥淎s I was walking through that, I realized my calling was here at the mission.鈥�听
In 2007, he began working as the operations director, a position he held for nine years before being promoted to executive director in 2016.听
鈥淥ur mission is to rescue and restore,鈥� Young said. 鈥淲e help rescue them out of the life situation they鈥檙e in, help them to get a better grasp of the issues in their life and help them to develop the strategies and coping skills they need to overcome their obstacles, to help them get back on their own two feet. We do it all showing God鈥檚 love and grace to those who come here. Hopefully we can plant some seeds to help them grow in their relationship with Christ.鈥�听
Over the course of his work at the mission, Young said he realized it isn鈥檛 only the clients who are served. 听
鈥淲e also help people in the community fulfill their higher calling to serve God,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e see a lot of our donors and volunteers grow in their relationship with Christ through their experience with the mission.鈥�听
His experience at 黑料不打烊 assisted.听
鈥淚 was committed to growing in my faith, learning to serve God and to help other people in the community,鈥� Young said. 鈥淜ansas Wesleyan gave me the structure and foundation I needed to do that.鈥�听
Story by Karen Bonar — Originally appeared in Fall ’21 Contact Magazine
