'It's worth all the work to get here'

"It’s worth all the work to get here," says 13-year-old Sawyer Rickman, an incoming 9th grader from Soldotna, Alaska. Rick is attending Momentum for the first time.

It’s his second day at the conference and he’s only been in the lower 48 for less than 48 hours. He and members of his youth group from the Peninsula Grace Brethren Church arrived at the campus of Robert Morris University, where the conference is being held, late Monday morning. They had traveled more than 15 hours through the night (and four time zones) from the Kenia Peninsula of Alaska to Pittsburgh via Anchorage and Atlanta. (They left Soldotna around 2 p.m. Alaska time.)

But it’s a trip that he and the seven other teens for the 49th state almost didn’t make.

“We estimated it would cost about $1,500 a kid,” says Jeremy Norton, youth pastor at Peninsula Grace. He says the church felt such a commitment to sending their teens that they covered travel costs, leaving only the $356 conference registration fee to be the responsibility of each student. Plus they covered the expenses of Jeremy and another youth worker, Kanani Lackey.

“The economy was just beginning to drop when I came on staff ten months ago,” say Jeremy, a Canadian with steely blue eyes and the enthusiasm of the Energizer Bunny. He says that many of the men in his church who are employed by the oil companies have been laid off and other work is hard to find. But the students worked hard through the year to raise funds for their trip.

By the last fundraiser, a barbeque and youth-for-hire auction, they still needed to raise about $1,500.

The auction began. Church members and friends were committing to “buy” a student for yard work and snow removal. (They can use the hours throughout the next year.) Jeremy remembers thinking the kids were worth about $7 an hour. The first couple paid $160 for six hours of work by one of the teens and the excitement began to build. By the end of the evening, they had raised $2,300.

“I didn’t tell them (the congregation) the amount we needed,” recalls the youth pastor. The additional funds have been set aside for emergencies during the trip.

Jeremy credits the support of his pastor, Keith Randall, for encouraging the teens to come and honoring their efforts to raise funds. “The elders and our pastors continued to pray that we’d receive above and beyond what we needed,” he says.

"Having our youth attend Momentum is a high priority for our church," says Keith via e-mail. "One parent who has had four children who have attended Momentum told me recently that it is one of the best investments they have made in their children."

He notes that the week at the youth conference changes the young people’s perspective by helping them see that they are part of something bigger. "The challenges that they receive from God’s Word and the opportunities that they have to apply what they are learning, have a lasting impact on them throughout the year," he adds. "The enthusiasm that they have when they return is contagious."

This was a tough year for raising travel funds, he admits. "Airfare was higher than we had paid in the past," he explains, "but the people of Peninsula Grace came through in a big way and gave generously to meet the need.”

“It’s been eye-opening,” says Lauren Countryman, a 14-year-old 9th grader who is also attending Momentum for the first time. She’s enjoyed the sessions. “It’s been inspiring to do better, to live life to a higher standard.”