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Karl Thomas

thomas_karl.jpgKarl Thomas fell in love with the city because of the CCO.

“The CCO has influenced how I spend my money, where I live, where I work, where I send my kids to school. I grew up as an affluent Christian, but because of the CCO, I fell in love with Pittsburgh, stayed here and got involved with the city.”

Karl Thomas graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a degree in chemical engineering in 1994. Today, he and his wife, Bea, are raising their two children in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

“I am part of the second generation of the Rippey Street community, started by CCO staff in the 1980s. It is a multiracial neighborhood. We have a ministry of presence—we’re involved with the youth, we have relationships with our neighbors, their kids and our kids play together. We have gotten involved with the homeless via advocacy, food, and encouragement.

“I was mentored by several CCO staff people during my years as an engineering student at Carnegie Mellon University—Hank Suhr, Brian Vander Wel, Dan Moss and Annette Post (Ediger). I was involved in Bible studies, student fellowship groups, Sunday worship and one-on-one meetings with CCO staff.

“Today, I attend the same church that I was involved with as a student. I came to Church of the Ascension because of college ministry. I was married there, my kids were baptized there. I was involved with a small men’s group there. During my senior year of college, Bea and I were involved with a small group there—it was the best transition to real life outside of school that I could have had.

“After working for an engineering firm for several years, I now run a nonprofit called RiverQuest. Our mission is to connect people to the environment through the rivers. We do education adventures for regional school children and the general public. Through this, I have been able to integrate my faith with my love of the environment.

“If it had not been for the CCO, I would not have had had such an awareness of the need to live out my faith in everything that I do. My vocation would have been more about just making money than investing in the city and its people. I love the city because of the CCO.”