Meet Trailblazer Kelsey Berger

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelsey Berger.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Kelsey. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up an Oregonian, in good ol’ Wilsonville, Oregon. When I was in middle school, I was introduced to some caring adults while they were passing out sticks of gum after school as I got on the bus. I wasn’t sure who they were or why they were there, but I did like gum so I was intrigued. Come to find out, they are what I know now as Wyldlife leaders. They continued to come back to school, building relationships with students and soon inviting us to some fun events they were putting on. After a year of attending these outrageous events (and my parents checking it out), I was signed up to go to Wyldlife Summer Camp. Little did I know this middle school experience would be shaping the trajectory of my life.

Fast forward to my college days: I was now a California girl attending Point Loma Nazarene University. Within my first year, I was given the assignment of interviewing someone in the position of my “dream job.” I had never thought too much about what my ultimate dream job would be, but I did have memories of this impactful & wildly fun group I was a part of in middle school (Wyldlife) and high school (Young Life). I decided that working for them sounded exciting, so I googled the local staff person and started the interview. By the end of our time together, the Area Director asked me “well, if you love Young Life so much, why are you not a part of it?” This was a great question and there was no good reason not to be, so I signed up to go through their new leader training.

The next three years, I dove into the Young Life program. I mentored high school girls, helping run Monday night events (Club), meeting with them before school, going to their soccer games and art shows, and taking them to camp. It was amazing to get to know these girls better and get to be part of helping shape them into amazing young women. It’s safe to say I was all in!

Nearing the end of my senior year, the question everyone has on their mind is on mine as well “what am I going to do next year?” I was sitting in a Young Life leader meeting when the Area Director announces they have been trying to get Young Life started in Coronado for years but have been unsuccessful. He’s come to the conclusion the only way it will work is to have someone be there full time–boots on the ground. It was at this moment, I could feel my heart beating outside my chest. I knew from the very beginning that person was supposed to be me, and before I knew it, I was hired to be the next Coronado Young Life Area Director… the same “dream job” role I had chosen to interview four years prior.

This was overwhelmingly exciting and daunting all at the same time. I was 22 years old given the task to start a program from the ground up. Through lots of prayers, support from friends and family, and having some key families in the Coronado community step up, Young Life Coronado was launched! Young Life has now been on the island for six years! We have had dozens of volunteer leaders, hundreds of donors and through the support of many in the community, we’ve been able to reach, serve and impact hundreds of high school and middle school students! I truly believe I have the most meaningful job ever, and how fun I get to live it out in a place like Coronado. This really is my “dream job”!

Has it been a smooth road?
Smooth? Not exactly…
While there were some aspects of my journey over the last six years that seemed to go better than expected (I had lots of support from family and those around me, had some anonymous donors that ensured I’d continue to get a paycheck, etc.), it didn’t come without its difficulties, doubts, and disillusions. The role of a Young Life Area Director comes with lots of responsibilities. We like to describe it as “spinning plates”, the goal is to keep an eye on all the plates, try to keep them spinning and not let anything fall and break.

One of the biggest struggles I faced (and to be honest, still face) is self-doubt. I had to recruit, train, and lead teams of people most of whom were older and wiser than me. The question, “who am I to be leading these people?” nearly killed me more than once. I felt so ill-equipped, yet desperately wanted to maintain the respect of the team, thinking that meant I couldn’t let them see the ways in which I was struggling.

What I know now, and my advice to other women starting their journey is there is a reason YOU are in the position you’re in, and there is strength in vulnerability. Learn to ask for help in areas you need it in ways that can empower those around you. I think the best kind of leader is one who listens to their team, and who isn’t afraid to ask for help when they need it. There have been some leaders who haven’t seen eye to eye with me, but instead of letting that make me question whether or not I’m a good leader, I remember that teamwork is personality based. You may not be wrong, and I may not be wrong, but working together may not be right. YOU were put into the position of leadership for a reason, protect that. Not every teammate is always going to work out.

“My faith calls me to practice love over fear, and in this experience, I let fear trample all over self-love. I made every decision with the mindset ‘what will people think?’ rather than ‘I am enough.’ That’s as unholy as it gets for me. Courage calls me to show up and be seen.” – Brene Brown, Rising Strong.

We’d love to hear more about Young Life – Coronado.
Young Life as an organization has been around since 1941 and is in over 100 countries, there are many Area Directors but I happen to be the Area Director specifically of Coronado. There is a little bit of everything that goes into being an Area Director! Our mission is to introduce adolescents to Jesus Christ and help them grow in their faith. We (team of volunteer leaders and myself) do this by going where kids are and developing a relationship with them. We have weekly events as well as summer and winter camps.

Being an Area Director is kind of what I’d imagine being the CEO of a small business is like. Recruiting and training a team, planning events, public relations (branding) in your community, developing spiritual development growth plans, supervising, vision casting, fundraising, accounting, administration, data management, but of course the best part is “proclaiming and modeling,” meaning, hanging out with kids and helping them grow.

In my opinion, what sets Young Life apart is the emphasis on relationships. “Because kids don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” We truly try and start with the relationship rather than with a program; we want to go to them on their turf instead of just them coming to us. You also see this emphasized in the model for camp. For both winter and summer camps, leaders go with the kids they’ve met, have this amazing experience together, then come back home now with mountain-sized memories! Because of the way this model is set up, Young Life isn’t like the typical “youth group,” (whom we also love and appreciate!). It is an outreach–able to connect with kids who may never set foot in a church, but they’ll hang out with us.

Sometimes, I joke that all my friends are high school students, but it really is a privilege to go from a stranger in their life, to a friend.

So much of the media coverage is focused on the challenges facing women today, but what about the opportunities? Do you feel there are any opportunities that women are particularly well positioned for?
I feel the role of an Area Director can be executed equally well for men and women. There is so much that is gained when a staff meeting is composed of a diverse group–gender, race, background, etc. I realize that the room hasn’t always been as diverse as it is now. When it comes to women being in the room, there have been strong, smart, independent women who have gone ahead of me kicking down doors so I can sit in the seat I am.

That being said, I am realizing now more than ever (being 18 weeks pregnant) just how amazing, supportive and encouraging it is to be a woman on staff in Young Life. I have been given every opportunity to build a ministry in Coronado around a vision and strategy I set into motion. There is freedom in this position that most don’t have, and being a woman has never set me back from moving towards the vision. Being a leader is hard, there is a lot that rests on your shoulders. But I choose to not blame the hard times on being a woman, just as the great times aren’t solely because I’m a woman. They both come with leadership territory.

Contact Info:

• Address: 970 C Ave, Coronado, CA 92118
• Website: coronadoisland.younglife.org
• Phone: 503.927.7998
• Email: kelseyberger100@gmail.com
• Instagram: @nadoYL
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coronadoislandyounglife/

Image Credit:
@aldousphoto

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