Jeff and Linda Leon first met when they were students at the CCO’s Ocean City Beach Project in 1991. In 1993, they joined CCO staff, and in 1995, they began ministering to students at Malone College (now University) in Canton, Ohio. This summer, they were among the 29 CCO staff members who were recognized for doing excellent ministry.
According to Randy Heckert, university chaplain at Malone, “the Leons are an exemplary team of what it looks like to live out our Christian faith in action. They love students and regularly open their home to them for meals, fellowship, mentoring, and Bible Studies. The positive impact they have had, and will continue to have, on Malone students will be evident for generations to come.”
Click here to read an interview with Jeff and Linda, published on July 28, 2012 in the Akron Beacon Journal. Click here for a related news item published in the July 25, 2012 issue of The Press-News (Southeastern Stark County, Ohio).
While all of our staff are doing great ministry on their various campuses, criteria for the Excellence in Campus Ministry Honor include quantitative evidence of transformed students from their ministry, weekly Bible study with students, regularly sharing the Gospel, participating with students in the CCO’s annual Jubilee conference, cultivating applications to CCO staff and/or summer opportunities, consistently raising their full financial support, and intentionally and actively supporting diversity.
Here is a full list of the 29 2012 Excellence in Campus Ministry Awardees: