Thirty years ago, in 1996, Youth for Christ began youth programming in St. Pierre-Jolys, Manitoba. Since that time, many meaningful relationships have been built and countless youth have heard and experienced the love of Jesus through our ministry. Young people that are lost and broken have experienced belonging and healing. Marginalized youth have found a life giving community.

In the early years of ministry, a YFC staff member made a deal with some of the youth in the community: If you let me talk to you about Jesus, I’ll make you guys lunch! This was an easy bargain. The few young boys grew into a large bunch, then some young girls asked if they could join as well. This happened on a weekly basis. The small group continued to grow and soon after, YFC acquired the old movie theatre in town and it was renovated into a youth drop-in centre. The youth kept coming, week after week to hear the gospel and enjoy a free hot lunch. We began setting up rows of chairs in the room upstairs because the main floor was full. Twenty five students. Thirty students. No room left to sit, students are now standing at the back of the room to hear this good news! Fast forward to the present day: On April 23, 2026, 80 students attended the free lunch program and got to hear about Jesus!!

Over the years, the YFC staff team in St. Pierre has been involved in young people’s lives, not only caring for them spiritually, but also meeting practical needs. Here are a few practical needs the staff have been privileged to be a part of: helping obtain driver’s licenses, helping to find a safe home, mentorship, prison visits, hospital visits, yard clean up, helping to find jobs, officiating weddings, attending funerals, teaching skills, and helping to graduate.

Graduation is a “rite of passage” in our culture and a special time for any young person who makes it to this point. Since the beginning, YFC in St. Pierre has had the honour of gifting a bible to each graduate obtaining their grade 12 diploma. The bibles are personalized with each graduate’s name on the cover. This has been an incredible privilege of ours to plant the word of the Lord in the hands of each one of these students as they move on from being a youth in school to adult life. We don’t know how and when the bibles will be used on their journey but it’s one last gospel seed we can plant before we say goodbye.

Help us celebrate 30 years of ministry in St.Pierre by giving a special gift to our Building Futures renovation project. We need $140,000 more to reach our fundraising goals. For more details on the project and our vision for the future, please check out our website. Our new space will set us up for the next 30 years of changing lives through ministry in our community!