About
Our Mission and Purpose
The mission of REYS Youth Center is to reach local youth in Christian love, to encourage, develop and equip them to experience Godly wholeness and success by praying, sharing Christ, teaching God’s Word, and offering supervised activities.
The purpose of REYS Youth Center is to initiate and develop mentoring relationships with community youth through REYS, toward fulfillment of the Center’s mission statement.
Methods of Engagement
Spiritual Direction
Through our Spiritual Direction program we hope to be an example of Christ’s love through our programs, staff, and volunteers. Through these we try to bring glory to God by showing those who come how important Christ is to us.
Academic Assistance
Academic Assistance programs are free for all students of the Donegal School District and surrounding areas.We focus on teaching our students the importance of homework comprehension, organization, and consistency.
Social Support
Our Social Support program’s purpose is to help the students in their everyday lives by fostering relationships, so that they can have a strong positive role in the community.
Statement of Faith
All those who participate in the on-going work and witness of REYS Youth Center attest to the the Gospel of Jesus Christ and following articles of faith:
- The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, being given by divine inspiration, are the Word of God, the final and supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct.
- In the Scriptures God reveals Himself as the living and true God, Creator of all things. Perfect in love and righteous in all His ways this one God exists eternally as a Trinity of persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
- God made us in His image that we might have fellowship with Him. Being estranged from God by our disobedience, we are incapable of a right relationship to God apart from divine grace.
- The only Mediator between God and us is Jesus Christ our Lord, God’s eternal Son, who as man fully shared and fulfilled our humanity in a life of perfect obedience.
- By His death in our place, Jesus revealed the divine love and upheld divine justice, removing our guilt and reconciling us to God. Having risen bodily from the dead and ascending into heaven, He rules as Lord over all and intercedes for us as our great high priest.
- The Holy Spirit, through the proclamation of the gospel, renews our hearts, persuading us to repent of our sins and confess Jesus as Lord. By the same Spirit we are led to trust in divine mercy, whereby we are forgiven all our sins, justified by faith through the merit of Christ our Savior, adopted into God’s family as His children and enabled so to live in the world that everyone may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven.
- God by His Word and Spirit calls everyone into the fellowship of Christ’s body. Thus He creates the one holy, universal and apostolic church, united in the bonds of love, endowed with the gifts of the Spirit and summoned by Christ to preach the gospel and to administer the sacraments, to relieve human needs and to strive for social justice.
- God’s redemptive purpose will be consummated by the return of Christ to raise the dead, judge everyone and establish His glorious kingdom. Those who are apart from Christ shall be eternally separated from God’s presence, but the righteous shall live and reign with Him forever.
History
- 1981- The Mount Joy community expresses interest in opening a youth center
- 1982- A board is formed from interested members of the community. The boads is commisioned by the Mount Joy Inter-Church Council to open a community youth center.
- July 16th, 1982-The Mount Joy Youth Center opens
- 1991- Rainbow's End Youth Services becomes an independent non-profit ministry
- 1999- SICO Oil sells building at 105 Fairview St to REYS. Capital Campaign begins to fund renovations.
- 2001- Renovations begin on 6,200 square foot of space including 5,000 sq ft of gymnasium construction
- April 2002- Renovations of facility completed
- 2007- REYS acquires adjacent 2.25 acre field to expand property
- 2010-present- REYS expands on after-school and evening programs to meet community youth needs
About our Leaders
Joel Hughes
Executive Director
Joel Hughes is the Executive Director of Rainbow’s End Youth services. Having degrees in both Accounting and Theology, Joel enjoys speaking to both business leaders and churches. Prior to joining REYS, Joel served as Executive Pastor at a local church in Berks County for four years and also previously spent seven years in the banking industry.
Joel and his wife, Laura, live in the Mount Joy area and enjoying spending time with one another and with their five children- Jackson, Emily, and the Triplets – Tyler, Lincoln, and Allison.
Joel also enjoys basketball, ping pong and the occasional game of competitive scrabble.
Joel would be glad to share with your church or community group about REYS Youth Center and how you can be involved in reaching the children and young people of Mount Joy and the surrounding Lancaster County area.
You can reach Joel by email at jhughes@reys.org.
Jeremy Freimark
Program Director
Jeremy Freimark is the Program Director at Rainbow’s End Youth Services (REYS Youth Center). Jeremy joined the REYS team in January of 2016. After receiving a degree in Engineering Technology, Jeremy served with international mission projects in the suburbs of San Jose, Costa Rica, where his passion for youth ministry was instilled and Spanish speaking skills were refined. He continued the path of youth ministry as he served in multiple Christian camps in the Lancaster County area and is now pursuing a Master’s in Christian Ministry. Jeremy and his wife, Christi, live in Elizabethtown and have organized and currently lead a Spanish ministry to reach Latin families in the local community with Christ. Jeremy enjoys spending time alone in nature with his dog, rock-climbing, fishing, mountain biking, and carpentry. You may reach Jeremy via email at programs@reys.org.
Lauren Reyes
Music Director
Lauren Reyes is the Music Director at Rainbow’s End Youth Services (REYS Youth Center) and oversees all Music at REYS programming. Lauren joined the REYS team in 2016. Having grown up in Mount Joy, Lauren is enthusiastic about sharing her love of music with young people. Lauren holds an undergraduate degree in Music Education and is a certified music teacher in the state of Pennsylvania. You may reach Lauren via email at music@reys.org.
Harrison Burch
Office Manager
Harrison Burch is the Office Manager at Rainbow’s End Youth Services (REYS Youth Center) and oversees day to day operations and special projects. Harrison has been a part of REYS since 2014 starting as a volunteer, then moving onto an internship position, and now a full time position. Harrison brings an enthusiasm for student outreach and youth ministry to the position coupled with administrative strengths. He recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Biblical Studies from Lancaster Bible College. Harrison and his wife Taylor have a dog named Ruger who enjoys chewing up anything that is made of wood. Harrison has always had an interest in working with youth. He has spent many summer weeks volunteering at youth camps and working in youth ministry. He enjoys flying his drone, making YouTube videos, and losing to Joel in ping pong. If you would like to contact Harrison you can email him at office@reys.org.
Our Board Members
Partnerships
FAQs
List to be added later