On the Martello's Farm there is a 100x70 barn that we are converting into our main ministry center. Our dream is to have 3-4 classrooms for educational oppertunites and counseling sessions. We also are putting in a "projects" room that will be big enough for carpentry, automotive and farming projects. We will install a kitchenette for small meal preperation and of course some bathrooms. The main areas will remain open for basektball, group counseling, and other events and activities that we may plan. This will also require HVAC and insulation to be installled in the barn so we can use it year around for our ministry.
The counseling center will be the first ministry launched inside the ministry center. Laura Martello, who will finish her masters in Clinical Mental Health in December from Colorado Christian University, has been a part of developing a counseling method called the "Needs-Connection Model" that was first used by her professor and mentor Becky Welch. This model will be the basis of offering group and individual counseling for teens in Genesee County.
The future education center is going to target kids who do online school. Since COVID the amount of kids who have gone online and stayed online has been huge. In some ways this has been an advantage for a lot of kids, however online school brings it own hurdles. We have a ton of kids who are going online but have fallen behind because they have both parents working and have noone to help keep them on task. Our hope is our ministry center can be a place for kids to do their online school but receieve guidance and help from adults who will be there not as teachers but as an encouragement and mentor.
Because we have found a home on a farm to do ministry we want to use the farm life to help instill worth, accomplishments, connection and discipline the teen's life. 4-H is a proven program where kids and teen have been able to develop life skills that have served them well in every part of life. Our hope is to give this oppertunity to teens who would normally never consider 4-H.
