More Than A Mentor
Serena Mueller
Feature Editor
There’s no question that teenagers can’t handle everything on their own.
Without adult figures, the pressures can impose serious problems.
Parents don’t always have a clear view on a situation and provide advice that doesn’t really click with the issue.
“Parents have biased opinions, and lean towards one solution with problems,” senior Kody Cooper said.
Having another perspective on a situation is better for some, and particular challenges are difficult to address with parents.
“Sometimes I feel like I would be judged by my parents if I told them certain things,” junior Greg Wetzel said. “Parents are supposed to be people you can go to about anything, but it doesn’t always feel that way.”
Teachers, coaches, mentors and parents’ friends are a few of the prospects for inspiring adult figures. One place that leaders are found, and are often overlooked, are youth groups and church organizations.
A particularly well-known youth group that never ceases to drag in a large number of teens is Campus Life.
Campus Life, also known as CL, has over 160 chapters throughout the nation. Every single one of these chapters has brought together substantial amounts of kids with various influential adults.
Of these impactful adults, one stands out to a portion of Waverly High School students: Cara Lacey.
“Cara’s just someone that’s always there,” sophomore CL member Hunter Radenslaben said. “She genuinely cares and goes out of her way to show it.”
Lacey puts herself in the kids’ shoes and sympathizes, leaving out the fake concern some adults provide.
“She really speaks from the heart and is understanding about everything,” senior CL member Emily Knouse said.
The Waverly Campus Life chapter made its way here, and thanks to Lacey’s husband, it wasn’t just by chance.
“Chris made it a priority to meet up with this guy in charge, always asking him ‘when can we make this happen?’ ‘When can we get Campus Life set up in Waverly?’” Lacey said. “In 2008, they met up once more, and I will never forget: Chris came home and asked if I would do it, if I would set up the chapter in Waverly.”
Cara Lacey has been in charge of CL for six years. She’s had a major influence on a number of teenagers, and in more than one way.
Her goal, as well as the goal of Youth for Christ, which runs CL, is to bring kids closer to God, or at least open their minds up to the idea of Him.
“I’m merely planting seeds,” Lacey said. “It may take a long time for kids to get there, but if I can plant that seed sooner rather than later, and help them come to that understanding even sooner, that would be awesome.”
In the process of “planting seeds”, Lacey is still there available to students for anything they need. The support she offers doesn’t end when the teens get home after a Campus Life event.
“I am so passionate about being there and being that voice for kids, to go alongside them and let them know that their mistakes do not define them, that they’re going to be okay,” Lacey said.
The impact she has on teenagers that need her help is huge, but teenagers probably don’t realize what they mean to her.
“They’re incredible kids, every single one of them,” Lacey said. “They inspire me, and
some adults miss that, and that truly makes me sad. Kids are fascinating, and honestly, we can learn a lot from them.”
Lacey had struggles as a teenager, which is what has instilled that drive to keep helping, yet at the same time, holds her back from easily believing that she has made an difference.
“Growing up, I made so many mistakes,” Lacey said. “I still have this voice in the back of my head telling me ‘you’re not worth anything,’ so when I hear that I’ve made a difference, it’s hard to accept, but it is so humbling.”
Often times, students make negative assumptions about groups like Campus Life and think it's just another ministry to get a lecture at when, in fact, it’s not like that at all.
“We take kids where they’re at in their life; Campus Life is really open to anyone,” Lacey said. “If I have a kid that says he’s an atheist, then I want him to tell me all about that. I’m gonna listen because that’s what he thinks and if I expect him to hear me out, I need to hear him out.”
Ultimately, the goal is to help teenagers build that relationship with God and fulfill what’s missing from their lives, and she succeeds in doing all of that.
“Campus Life is where I go to learn about God, and the leaders make it personal, and relate it to situations we deal with now,” Cooper said.
Parents appreciate it just the same.
“You are truly amazing and impact those kids more than you know,” high school parent Chris Thede commented on a post, about CL, of Cara’s.
With club on Sunday nights, the students are provided with a safe place to hang out, respectful peers, snacks and games.
Five different graduated classes have been blessed with her guidance, and with continued efforts, classes to come will also receive the blessing of that positive adult figure.
