WENDY COLLINS,  71Five Mentors Coordinator  

541.441.2495 | wendy@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

BUD AMUNDSEN,  71Five Executive Director  

541.301.0897 | bud@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

As you may know, many of the youth today lack a direction and a purpose for living. Here at 71Five our goal is to assist young adults to find that direction and purpose. One wonderful example of this is a young man that has attended 71Five VoTech Training and came back again and again. He was the first to arrive and always the last to leave. I was very impressed with his dedication and willingness to help as needed. The only drawback was that he almost never spoke and in his own words is ‘socially awkward.’ As I sat next to him at graduation a thought came to me to invite him to become a volunteer here at 71Five VoTech in Medford. He said, “Can I do that?” I told him that he would be a great asset to the program and that he could be a great help to the students. He nearly immediately went to our main office and filled out an application and has now finished the process of becoming not only our youngest volunteer but our first alumni student to become a volunteer. On his application there is a question that asks, what is your greatest challenge to being a volunteer. He answered, “I lack social skills.” I am sure that will change in time, but I see this also as an asset, as he can relate and connect with so many of our students that also lack social skills.

LARRY LICATO,  71Five VoTech Coordinator – Medford 

541.890.1819 | larry@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

Has God ever shown up in your life when you really needed Him? Odds are you just nodded your head “Yes.” TJ experienced God showing up in his life recently in a profound way. It was 11:30 at night, and he called me to tell me about what God had just done for him. He told me that he had been struggling with forgiving himself for his past, and God kept putting Mark 2 on his mind, which he had never read before. As he opened his Bible, TJ witnessed God reveal Himself in a way that spoke directly to what he was dealing with. He found that the passage teaches about God’s power and authority to forgive sins. He said, “I just knew that God was telling me that I am forgiven.”

PETER KUHL,  71Five Ministry Director – Eagle Point 

541.630.0648 | peter@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

Violet is a sixteen-year-old girl who found out that she was pregnant. Looking at the positive pregnancy test, she felt heavy fear and unrelenting dark waves of panic mixed with disbelief. “Is this real?” She went to her mom hoping she would help, instead her mom replied: “I don’t know what you are going to do about this problem. You got yourself into this mess.” When Violet finally had the courage to tell her child’s seventeen-year-old father, he said “You aren’t going to keep it, ARE YOU?” She knew he didn’t love her, and he wouldn’t walk this road with her either. Violet felt a connection with her child, a love for the life inside of her despite what everyone else said. Violet did have one person who listened to what she wanted to do, it was a kind lady she talked to at the Pregnancy Care Center, this woman helped her get into The Magdalene Home, a homeless shelter for teen mothers. Violet knew she couldn’t do this by herself; however, she was encouraged because someone cared and showed her how to get the help she needed to have her baby.

BREANNA STOUTENBURGH,  71Five Parents Coordinator  

541.941-7697 | breanna@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

Some of the coolest moments to be a part of in youth ministry happen on our drives on long trips. On this trip I witnessed the work of our staffs fostered relationship and encouragement in Sophia’s life. I would ask Sophia prior to our trip to South Umpqua Falls, “Sophia, what do you want to do when you grow up?” Sophia is good at singing and acting and dancing and caring for others. Her possibilities are great, but she doesn’t see it. She would always say, “Will, I don’t know… I am just a kid.” But this time was different. She did lead with the same comment however, upon my response of, “Welp, fair enough.” She began asking questions about my job. How much school is needed, do you have to be 18, how do you start, do you make a lot of money? And finished with saying, “I would really like to do what you and Ryann do because I like encouraging and loving people and that’s what you guys do all the time. Without you, I wouldn’t have a relationship with Jesus.”

WILL ARIAS,  71Five Campus Coordinator – Shady Cove

541.841.6400 | will@71Five.org

“Lord God, you are my hope. I have trusted you since I was young.” Psalm 71:5 ICB

Eli and David are two unlikely youth who have bonded at Station 71Five. Eli is two years younger than David who just recently graduated into Middle School. David was ecstatic to get his prize for bringing someone new to 71Five. This was Eli’s first experience… He jumped right into the mix and sprinted around the building to help set up our laser tag arena. As I was checking on everything for the second time, I heard David yell, “My mom said yes!” David was affirming that a sleepover was at hand. Eli usually has trouble fitting in, so I knew this meant the world to him.