“Sandie and Nathan are there for you in every way that you need,” Zach, a junior on Edinboro University’s wrestling team, told me when we talked on the phone a few weeks ago. “My family says they are Christians, but they curse a lot and are really negative. Sandie and Nathan are like a second set of parents for me.”

One of the coolest things about my long tenure with the CCO is that I get to see how God works over time. The latest issue of On Campus magazine is a great example of this.

I first met Sandie Starr Everhart when we were both students at Allegheny College. I was a student leader of the CCO’s Allegheny Christian Outreach, and Sandie helped start the CCO-sponsored Fellowship of Christian Athletes group. When she was a senior and I was a junior, we co-led a discipleship group for freshmen. A couple years later, we were both on staff with the CCO—and we still are.

And there was that time in 1989 when we accidentally showed up at our friends’ wedding in the exact same dress. How embarrassing! (And hilarious!)
Sandie has always been a gifted campus minister. This looks different today than it did in the ’90s, when she was single and ministering to students at Ohio Wesleyan University. Now, married to Nathan and stepmother to three mostly-grown daughters, Sandie’s outreach to students at Edinboro no longer involves late nights hanging out with them in their dorm rooms. Now it’s about inviting students into her home and feeding them—both literally and spiritually.

Sandie goes to track meets and football practices and wrestling matches. Her background as an All-American collegiate athlete helps her connect with student-athletes in unique way.

But it’s her warmth and humor and love for students that really gets through—and that points to Jesus Christ.

“Throughout the week, I get texts from Sandie to see how I am, to make sure nothing’s wrong,” Zach told me. “Sandie and Nathan opened my eyes that you really can live the life of a good Christian if you surround yourself with people who are positive. They’ve helped me to grow into the person I need to be.”

Thank you for making it possible for me to tell stories like Zach’s and Sandie’s. (You can read the full On Campus article about Sandie here!)

Because CCO staff members like Sandie are on college campuses, students’ lives are being changed. And because of your love and support of me—and this mission to college students—this ministry continues to thrive.

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I need to raise a significant amount of my monthly salary in order to work for the CCO. Are you interested in joining my support team? Donate online, or find out other ways to give. Thank you!