We can be partners with Montreat!

My first experience with the Montreat Conference Center was back in 1988. I was about to enter my Freshman year of High School, and my church youth group was attending the Montreat Youth Conferences for the first time. It is no exaggeration to say that going to Montreat that week changed my life.

Simply put, I fell in love with the conference center. I went all five years I was eligible to attend the Youth Conference (for entering Freshmen to recently-graduated Seniors), joined the Planning Team for the 1992 Montreat Youth Conferences (with the theme "With Ears that See"), and have volunteered many times over the years since, sometimes serving on Work Crew, sometimes as a back home leader, sometimes as a small group leader.

But if my Montreat story was only about my experiences inside that iconic stone gate, it wouldn't be worth my time to ask others to commit to supporting the mission of the Conference Center. What's really important is that those experiences in Montreat have shaped my life outside of it.

Through my time in Montreat, I made connections and friends during awkward teenage years when it seemed impossible to do so. I gained confidence to share the joy of my experiences with others. Ultimately, I heard God's call to pursue a life of Christian service, earning a Bible & Religion major at Montreat College in 1996, and ultimately enrolling in seminary and graduating with my MDiv in 2002.

That life of service, perhaps surprisingly, has not been one where I have become a pastor of a church. Rather, I have worked for over fifteen years in academic support at Christian institutions of higher learning, first at Fuller Theological Seminary, and now at Azusa Pacific University. My pastoral training sees use not only in that area, but also through my relationship with my wife, an Episcopal priest. As I have retained my own Presbyterian identity, we often call ourselves "Episcoterian." We continue to support each other in our respective callings, and my experiences at Montreat perpetually inform my understanding of God's work in the world.

My story is just one. There are thousands of people who attend events at the Montreat Conference Center every year, each with their own story. Join me in supporting the powerful ministry of Montreat and help others encounter God through relationships, renewal, recreation and rest. Supporting the Montreat Fund helps equip God's people for their faith journeys.

Even a small donation will go a long way towards helping me meet my goal to support the mission of MONTREAT CONFERENCE CENTER.