With the first week of school well underway, tonight members from several local church Youth Groups are coming together for an event unlike any other Marshfield has experienced before.
The “Back 2 School Bash 26” as it’s referred to by organizers, is the first of its kind. Headed up by Jason Whittington, Student Pastor at The Well church, the event is being organized by multiple local church youth groups including: Marshfield Assembly of God, Four Rivers, Kingdom, Hope Church of the Nazarene, Hillside, and First Baptist.
“...I’ve been (at the Well) about 4 years now, and I just have a really big passion for the community,” explained Whittington. “What’s so special to my heart is how the community is coming together for this event…the importance of it- that churches are united and that youth/students are coming to experience Jesus, and those that aren’t connected with a church are able to get connected in a youth group…We want them to be able to have a relationship with Jesus.”
“We (local youth pastors) have a youth pastor group chat-Jason had this idea, and we thought it was a great idea so we ran with it,” shared Kylee Sampley, Youth Pastor at Marshfield Assembly of God.
The guest speaker for the event will be Cooper Roy, a young man who, after experiencing what should have been a fatal car accident in 2024, now travels the area to share his testimony.
“I’ve heard he’s got a great testimony; he’s been through a lot, and I’m excited to hear that,” expressed Sampley.
According to his website, strongerministry.com, his car accident on September 24, 2024 changed his life when he was struck head-on by a wrong-way driver, leaving him with over 100 broken bones, a punctured lung, lacerated spleen, and his left pinky and hand ripped from his body. Cooper has undergone 50 operations and now travels across the US sharing his story. “His single passion: to make the name of Jesus Christ known!”
The event will take place at 7:00 pm tonight at the R.A Barr Stadium, also known as the football field to students. Doors open at 6:45, and the first 60 students will get a free T-shirt. There will be free food, free drinks, and some pay-to-order food trucks on site.
“We are hoping for a great turnout of all the youth groups coming together, a place where they feel safe and they get to encounter Jesus,” noted Sampley.
Whittington explained that this event isn’t the only one the community can expect for the Youth of Marshfield. “What’s so cool about this event is that it’s the first of many to come; we will have Fields of Faith in October, 5th Quarter…and more and more churches are going to come together for this kind of ‘Youth Movement’. It’s amazing the way God has opened up the doors for this to happen.”
