From The Youth Director

Six years ago I felt the call to go into youth ministry. After many prayers, and a couple of interviews, I decided to move from where I had been living for the first nineteen years of my life. I moved to a little town in Indiana called New Paris and began working with the youth at Maple Grove Church.

I was so excited and nervous at the same time, to be moving out of my parent's house and going out on my own. I spent the next two years working thirty to thirty-five hours a week at the church. During that time I received my license into the ministry.

It was in the second year I was out here that I met a beautiful young woman during a counselor training weekend at Camp Mack by the name of Angela. Shortly after we met, we started dating and it did not take long for me to realize that she was the one! So I decided to find another job that would be full time and continue doing the ministry part time in order to make enough money to support myself and my soon to be wife.

For the past four years not much in my work status changed. I still worked a full time job and did the youth ministry part time. This past

May, Angela and I celebrated our three year wedding anniversary.

I have seen many youth come and go during the past six years. Hopefully I have had a positive impact in all of their lives. I have stored many, many memories from these years and have also developed many good friendships with the young adults that were once in my youth group.

Over the past six to eight weeks, Angela and I have been in prayer specifically asking God for direction and guidance as to where we should settle down. We wanted to be closer family and New Paris was not close to my side of the family or hers. We decided to send out some resumes and test the waters. Our thinking was that if God wanted us to relocate He would open doors for us.

God opened doors for us almost immediately. We both got calls from companies wanting to set up interviews in PA. Shortly after the interviews I got a good job offer and Angela got some encouraging leads. We felt confidently that God was leading us down this path.

So, after six great years in Indiana, I am moving back to PA. Only this time I am not moving alone, I will be taking one of your beautiful Indiana women with me! ; I have no regrets about moving out here and I would do it all over again if somehow I ended up back in time having to make the same decisions. Thank you for all of your love and support. I will miss you all very much.

Love,

Keith Runkle