CCO Campus Ministry

Kristie Martel

During my first week as a student at Kenyon College, a student who lived across the hall from me said that I was only a Christian because I was raised in a Christian home and grew up in the church. If I had been raised Muslim, I would be Muslim. I wondered, was this true? I was also confronted by other classmates and professors who held worldviews that challenged my beliefs. I remember encountering a number of faith crises and having extensive conversations with my CCO staff worker, Byron Pryor, to discuss these questions.

It was through the ministry of Byron, the Jubilee conference, and the Ocean City Beach Project, a summer leadership program sponsored by the CCO, that my life was transformed. I learned that my identity rests in Christ alone and that the purpose of education is not to pursue the American Dream and materialism, but rather to serve others and bring wholeness to a broken world by restoring creation.If it were not for the CCO ministry and the Christian community at Kenyon, I do not know where I would be today.

Although I had considered becoming a chemist or going into the medical field, I realized that I was most passionate about the college ministry I was involved in while at Kenyon. I felt called to work with college students who are dealing with many of the same questions and issues that I encountered as a college student. Because I realize that the college years are vital for students and will set the trajectory for the rest of their lives, I know that campus ministry is essential. I joined CCO staff in 1998, and I continue to count it a privilege to be able to participate in this work.

I currently serve students at Geneva College, along with my husband, Keith. We strive to assist students wherever they find themselves on their faith journey. A large portion of our work involves equipping student leaders in the hopes of carrying out the mission of Geneva College and the CCO to produce servant-leaders who will transform the world.

I believe that the holistic understanding of Christianity that the CCO introduced to me has helped to make sense of my life beyond Sunday mornings. It informs our marriage and the decisions we make as a family, vocationally and financially. We bought a home in downtown Beaver Falls which is a more depressed area in order to support and be part of our community. We are planning to send our children to the Beaver Falls public school in order to be more fully invested in the community and develop relationships with other children, parents and teachers. Although we still have a great deal to learn, we realize that faithfulness involves the decisions we make everyday.

If it were not for the ministry of the CCO and the Christian community at Kenyon, I might have walked away from Christianity. Because of the amazing impact of the CCO while I was a college student, I have a calling to instill a vision in students to be agents of change and to care for their neighbor whether in their residence hall, in Beaver Falls or around the world. My hope is that we are developing leaders who will be globally-minded and care for the poor in whatever field they enter.

Transformed Lives