The five teens who attended the Quake Youth Conference and met Peder and Allison Eide.
By Charlotte Caldwell
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JACKSON CENTER – A newly formed group called Growing Community in Faith will host a worship night under the tent on May 31 to kick off Jackson Center Community Days, and it came to fruition with the help of teens from a local church.
The event will start at 5:30 p.m. with free walking tacos and prayer stations near the fire station, then a youth choir directed by Kristin Vaubel of New Horizon Music Studio in Botkins will perform at 6:30, and finally, father-daughter duo Peder and Allison Eide from Minnesota will take the stage at 7. Bleachers will be available to sit or people can bring their own chairs.
Growing Community in Faith is a group that was formed in January 2023 and includes members from about a dozen churches in Shelby County and in the surrounding area. Some teens from one of the involved churches – Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jackson Center – attended a Quake Youth Conference where they were introduced to the Eides, their music and their mission. This sparked a dream to have the duo perform in the county as part of a worship night for all ages.
“The teens who attended really wanted an event where teens (and families) could get together for the Eides to perform,” said Cari Beth Noah, the worship director at Sidney First Methodist Church, also part of Growing Community in Faith. “Many of the young ladies that went were very inspired with Allison especially because her focus on mental health challenges that she herself has struggled with and how her faith has kept her going. The teens were able to meet with Allison and get to know her a little better. They also loved the messages in Peder’s music as well.
Once the event planning happened we had a vision to include a local group of musicians before the Eides and Kristin Vaubel who runs the New Horizons Music Studio has a great group of students who have been working on worship music to present as an opening for the Eides. Kristin has been on the planning committee for this event as well.”
As for future activities that the group will host, Noah said, “We are discussing plans in the future based on how this year goes and where we feel God is leading our group.”
She also thanked Jackson Center personnel and everyone who has donated or will be helping with the event.
“We hope many people come to the event. We are excited about this vision of a few teens that has turned into a community worship night reality for community near and far,” she concluded.
For more information about Growing Community in Faith, visit their Facebook and Instagram pages.
