Today ( Friday Sept 7) , I had the opportunity to see Red Frogs in action. Jeff
Price, campus pastor ( and prospective Mission Canada worker ) for Central Community Church in St. Catharines, at Brock
University, is now taking over the
reigns from Mr Red Frogs Canada, himself, Roy Olende. Roy is departing in order
to pursue further ministry training.
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| aforementioned Roy |
For the record, Jeff is also re-booting the student church “Collide”
on campus. It just re-launched last night.
Jeff texted me that it got off to a great start with over 300 in
attendance! He also texted me that it was the result of his amazing staff/volunteer
team who rose up BIG and helped to make it all happen. Also, for the record,
Collide is a combined PAOC/ MB ( Mennonite Brethren) intiative on campus. It
has huge potential.
Anyways, back to Red Frogs.
Begun as an outreach to Australian students, and named after
a yummy red gel candy with slightly addictive properties J , there is no real
Canadian equivalent. The closest thing we can think of is Tim Bits. I will have to give you more on the history
of it at another point.
Suffice it to
say, under Roy Olende’s leadership, it has taken off at Brock and its success
has led to a huge demand for its services on campuses across the country. The
challenge is finding churches to rise up to the challenge.
Last year, Jeff worked with the Brock Student Union in envisioning events for the initial week. Red Frogs envisioned the field becoming the site of a huge paint fight with hundreds of students and then spinning off into a dance off and a tarp water slide. The SU was all over it. They loved the idea.
So, RF provided the manpower and the execution and the SU
provided the funds.
It also needs to be said that RF tied into all of the major
events on campus and they were visible and involved throughout. They provide a
safe alternative to the alcohol fueled culture connected to these events. They
provide safe walk-homes for young women. They provide freezies and candy and fun
stuff for any and all partiers. More important, they connected at a
real/relational level. They built relationships.
And this is the tip of the iceberg. While obviously there is
little chance to build anything in depth during what is essentially a party
week, they do build bridges which facilitate more depth as the term goes on.
Red Frogs will throw alcohol free parties for dorms and also clean up and cook
pancakes. What an amazing way to meet people. And without fail, their fun and
service ethic leads to questions.. “ Who are you” “Why are you doing this?”
I am simply stating the obvious when I report that RF has
build enormous good will on campus.
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| Roy (l) and Jeff greet volunteers |
So, on to the Friday night event at Brock….
Epic event . The
reenactment of the War of 1812 with colored water balloons.
Students lined up for a couple of hours and hundreds of them ( nearly a thousand)
received Tshirts and divided into two teams that faced off against each other.
The RF gang worked the crowd with spray guns and buckets of
liquid.
Jeff talked up the students and did an amazing job of
schmoozing.
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| the line went wayyy down the block... |
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| Teams were formed.... |
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| War of 1812 Paint Version |
It was fun, clean, bridge building.....
As a result of the track record at Brock they are being invited every where across the country.
Red Frogs @ McMaster Saturday evening, Sept 8
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| Concert in the Faculty Hollow 4000+ students |
t turns out that Red Frogs had been invited back to McMaster by the student union as a result of their involvement last year. As student leaders walked by as Jeff and Co were setting up, they not only recognized RF but spontaneously sange its praises. I wish my video were out to record it....
This was amazing. The largest event of the week, and they wanted RF there. And so they were. And I was there to see it ( for the first few hours, anyways)
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| crew at work.. prime real estate.. |
Josh Reinders ( Lift Student VP) represented Lift Church ( a student church at Mac, and one of our own ministries , where I serve as a board member) and we had a chance to see
RF set up a cotton candy and hydration booth at a huge concert. And we also got
a chance to see the impact this group had as a result of their efforts last
year.
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| Breather.. calm before the storm... |
And as a result of doing what
they do, they have been invited to be involved in a whole lot of school
activities, including the Homecoming Week at Mac. The student leaders booked it
right there on the spot.
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| Jeff explaining RF to Mac student leaders |
Listening to Jeff explain the rationale and modus operandi
of RF is illuminating. RF opens doors.
It provides a platform. It gives a context for conversations. I heard him
present it to one student leader after another. Many of them were incredulous
that RF would actually care about the students and want to simply give them
things without strings attached.
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| The lines begin asap.. and RF meets hundreds of students.. |
I call it hospitality on steroids. But it is so simple. They do a few things
really well. They leverage fun ideas and add value to whatever is going on.
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| Happy, Happy people... |
They build bridges. They add personality. There might be a
catch, but I haven’t seen it. I can’t see what is not to like.
Student service organization. Help students have the most
fun year of their lives and the safest.
Let’s talk about what it is and what it is not. Pardon the bullet points and lact of grammar/diction.
- from a Discipleship standpoint.... . Servant ethic. Getting out of yourself. Conversion to other… Moving from the natural to the supernatural or the seen to the unseen. Like Jesus in the gospel of John.
- Meeting people where they are on their own turf and pointing them beyond it.
- Depth.. well it depends. It is both a great entrance into the Christian faith and it is a great outlet or place of service. ....Well outside of the walls of the church, encased in silos of cultural indifference and irrelevance. It is meeting people as people. Students meeting and serving students. Looking beyond the markings, clothing and chemical props.
- It is another arrow in the quiver. Another tool in the kit or the Swiss Army knife.
- Not only is there more than one way to skin the cat, but there is more than one way to do Red Frogs. I saw its flexibility first hand. It depends on the event and the venue. It depends on the number of volunteers and the budget. But it can do a lot with a little, with the right people with the right vision.
At Brock, it is both a natural connection point for Collide,
but it is a beautiful way for the students of Collide to serve the broader
community. It connects them to other students where they actually live and relate.
At Mac, it was a great way to meet the students and break out of self imposed silos of obscurity. If you know what I mean...
There is much more to say, but let me say this....
This is a superb way for a medium to large sized church to
impact the campus.
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