Rev. Sam Kennedy is the Campus Minister at UNC-Wilmington
They say a picture is worth a thousand words.
I want to show you 3 pictures from the past 6 years of my tenure here as the Campus Minister at UNCW. The pictures tell a simple story of how God has used your prayers and financial support to reach students and develop future leaders for the church over the past decade at UNCW.
This photo is from our first Senior Night after coming back to campus in 2020-21.
It shows our 15 RUF students who graduated that year. This group helped us navigate ministry through social distancing, RUF watch parties in dorms, and Zoom small groups. They helped me learn what it means to do patient and faithful ministry in a difficult and disappointing time. I am grateful for them.
This next photo is from May 2024.
In 3 years, we had more than doubled in size.
We graduated over 30 seniors from our RUF ministry that year. Since then, I have attended the weddings of 4 different students in this photo, and officiated 2 of them. And our work at UNCW has continued to grow.
I have loved staying in touch with these dear friends. I am so proud of them. They have gone on from UNCW to serve in business, in health care, in graduate schools, in their local churches, and in full-time ministry. The growth of this ministry has been amazing to witness and I am proud of the work we have done and all the students that have been impacted. Your gifts made this growth possible.
There is one final picture, that tells a deeper story about the impact of RUF over the last decade.
This photo was taken at our 10 Year Alumni reception last semester.
This photo shows just 13 of the 19 past-and-current RUF staff that have served with us at UNCW:
There is Nathan Sharpton (’16) who now serves as a Youth Minister at Crossroads PCA in St. Louis.
Justin and Carey Helms (’21) who serve with RUF at LSU in Baton Rouge.
Matt Holdsworth (’23) who is currently getting his MDiv in Charlotte.
RUF interns Georgia Kibler (’22), Kam Holleman (’24), and Brad and Lucy Myers who are all continuing to serve faithfully as members of their local churches.
And of course, founding campus minister Jay Denton, who has gone on to plant Downtown Presbyterian Church in Wilmington.
And we could go on to name the handful of others (Rebekah, Jacob, Kevin, Matt) currently serving in full-time ministry in denominations outside the PCA!
When you invest in RUF, you are developing future leaders for the church.
This summer, many new faces will be fundraising and joining the ranks of RUF Staff. Would you join us in praying for them? For more information on giving to RUF, visit givetoruf.org.