True Life Christian Church outreach volunteers Alicia Ireton, Dave Fisher, and Pam Czarnecki stand near the steps of Wilson Children’s Home in West Union during their November 8, 2025 visit.(Submitted photo)
By Ryan Applegate
People’s Defender
True Life Christian Church in Williamsburg has found a second home in Adams County, where three lay mentors are building steady, faith-centered relationships with youth at Wilson Children’s Home in West Union. The work is simple by design. They bring a meal, sit together, listen well, and talk about things that matter. What makes it effective, they say, is not a program or a script but consistency. Volunteers who visit regularly are Pam Czarnecki, Dave Fisher and Alicia Ireton, and they typically make the trip about once a month.
Fisher came to True Life nearly two years ago after visiting many congregations and found a church culture that encouraged outreach. Ireton, who teaches and previously worked in pediatric health care, felt the same pull when she saw the outreach table during a visit. Czarnecki, who speaks openly about navigating a difficult adolescence, joined them soon after. Together, they stepped into an effort that had existed in different forms over the years and gave it a clear purpose. Show up. Share a meal. Invite conversation about faith. Keep every interaction voluntary. Come back next month.
On a typical visit they connect with eight to twelve residents, depending on who is home and who is working or engaged in other activities. The age range at Wilson is roughly 11 to 17, and the stories are as different as the young people themselves. Some are there because of choices they made, some because of safety concerns in the home, and some because a caregiver died and there was nowhere else to go. The mentors do not treat any one story as more deserving than another. They accept whoever comes downstairs for dinner or steps outside for a game, and they leave enough food behind for those who were not ready to join in that moment.
Meals are the backbone of the visits. The group asks for input on what to bring next time, and they pay attention to small details. A resident who mentioned brownies will get homemade brownies. Someone who loves a particular snack will find it in the bag. Gifts around holidays stay thoughtful and modest. Ireton created a simple interest sheet this year to capture sizes, favorites, and small wishes so that the team can shop with care rather than scale. They have seen what happens when outside efforts become extravagant, and they prefer to invest themselves, not only their wallets. Presents are given privately. No one is asked to open anything in front of a group. Food that is not eaten stays at the home for later.
The conversation is as important as the menu. The three mentors aim for a family feel rather than a class. They sit together at one table. They ask what each person is thankful for. They invite questions about God, purpose, and hope, but they never force a response. Some nights are lighthearted. Some nights are serious. When the weather cooperates, they take the gathering outside with oversized games or a casual activity to keep things natural. They have found that the most honest questions often surface while passing plates or walking back from a game.
Czarnecki believes those deeper talks mark the turning point. In earlier seasons, the outreach sometimes tilted toward a short devotional or a purely social drop-in, and participation waned. The current approach combines presence with honest dialogue. Fisher describes it as engaging in every moment they can and keeping the door open for the next conversation. Ireton frames it as answering a straightforward call to serve people who need food, support, and to be recognized. All three agree that the mission rises and falls on trust, and trust is built by returning when you said you would return.
That consistency has earned cooperation inside the home. The visits are voluntary for the youth, and the team has not encountered pushback about faith conversations because the gatherings are built around food, fellowship, and choice. Staff members, they say, often join the friendly atmosphere, and a few have shown interest in the discussions as well. The mentors also bring their own families at times, which helps the evening feel like an extended household rather than a program. Teens often open up more when they see caring adults interacting naturally with their children and with one another.
The commitment does not end when a resident leaves the home. Fisher recalls helping a young man move into his first apartment last year, rounding up furniture and basics, and celebrating his step into college. The team expects more moments like that. They know that aging out can mean starting adult life with almost nothing, and they want to be present at that threshold with a truck, a table, and a familiar voice. They also understand how fragile trust can be. The young people at Wilson have endured broken promises, so the mentors are careful to avoid promises they cannot keep. A missed visit can undo months of patient work.
Holidays bring extra activity, but the philosophy stays the same. Give thoughtfully, keep it real, and keep it relational. The team politely turns away from extravagance and insists that love looks like time and presence. A favorite example inside the group is not the biggest gift they have given but the quiet shift they have seen in a teen who once sat apart and now asks a question about faith. Czarnecki calls it a light coming on. Ireton calls it the moment a teen realizes they have purpose. Fisher calls it a blossom of God’s gift in a young life. Whatever the words, they agree that those small shifts are why they drive forty-five to sixty minutes from Williamsburg to West Union and back again.
They also dream beyond their once-a-month rhythm. The three mentors hope to widen the circle by networking with churches and civic groups in both Brown and Adams counties. A few congregations have already reached out about aligning efforts for Christmas. The team welcomes help and is glad to answer questions for anyone curious about volunteering. They are candid that there are steps to complete before serving at Wilson, including background checks and coordination with the home. The process can feel confusing. Leadership changes and agency procedures sometimes slow things down. Their advice is to expect a few hurdles, keep calling, and remember that persistence is part of protecting youth. If the desire is only emotional, it will fade. If it is a genuine calling, patience will see it through.
In the long view, they imagine a broader community response for local teens, including those who are not residents at Wilson but still need steady adults. A community space where young people can find tutoring, meals, activities, and mentors would meet a visible need, they say, and the church community already has many of the ingredients. For now, the next step is the next visit. They will announce it at church, shop for a familiar menu, print a few interest sheets, and load the car. They will sit at one table and ask how everyone’s week went. They will tell a bit of their own stories so that the youth know this is not charity but companionship. They will leave food behind for anyone who was not ready today. And if history is a guide, they will be back next month, the same three faces at the same table, ready to listen again.
