A meet and greet will be held from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at the Colton's Steak House annex to introduce a new Fellowship of Christian Athletes representative to the area.
Longtime representative Bill Ray is retiring from the organization, after 11 years serving the Three Rivers area in Southeast Missouri.
Ray's last day will be Aug. 31.
He is now helping Josh Mills, a Sikeston minister, become acquainted with the community.
"(FCA) gives students a chance to be around other kids that their faith is important, and it gives them a place to belong at school," said Ray, a retired coach and teacher who first worked in the Poplar Bluff School District for 24 years. "They get to hear how other high school, college and professional athletes involve their faith in sports."
The FCA representative acts as a resource to schools and coaches. They provide support, information, organize events and guidance in how to keep programs in compliance with state and federal laws.
One of the biggest area events for FCA is Fields of Faith.
This year marks the 10th event for the annual Poplar Bluff gathering, which draws upwards of 2,500 participants.
It will be held from 7-8:30 p.m. Oct. 4 at the new Poplar Bluff High School football stadium.
"That night will be focused on their relationship with Christ, encouraging them to read the Bible for themselves and to get involved with a local church," Ray said. "We have churches from all over Southeast Missouri attend this."
This will be the first year at the new campus, after rain forced Fields of Faith to relocate to the Black River Coliseum last year. The coliseum has also been reserved for this year, in case of inclement weather, Ray said.
Ray has spent the last few weeks introducing Mills to local youth pastors and helping him get ready to take over organizing this event and other activities.
"Being able to see peers that are just like them, with the same mind set and intentionality (helps students)," said Mills.
Mills' region will cover portions of Butler, Carter, Ripley, Reynolds, Wayne, Stoddard, Scott, New Madrid, Pemiscot and Dunklin counties.
With Ray's retirement, FCA has converted his part-time position into two full-time positions. A second person will serve other portions of Southeast Missouri, including the Cape Girardeau and Jackson areas.
There are about 26 schools in Mills' region currently.
Both he and his wife, Brittney, were involved with FCA while in school. The couple lives at Sikeston and has four children, ranging in age from 2 to 10 years old.
Mills has been involved in ministry for the past eight years. He previously worked as a sports writer and photographer for the Sikeston Standard-Democrat, covering high school teams as part of his work.
"I could really kind of see the need for influential, transformational coaches," said Mills. "Just knowing what high school students were dealing with, but also seeing where sports played a vital role in their everyday life, when I went into student ministry, one of the things I made sure to be a part of was an organization like FCA, where I could combine my love of sports and my love of Christ."
Mills said while he's only known Ray for a couple of months, he has seen the impact the other man has made on coaches, youth and the area.
"It's something that I look forward to carrying on in this area," Mills said.
A ministry like FCA can mean a lot of time away from family, said Ray, who wanted to recognize his wife, Bonnie, and their children David, Sarah and Leanna.
"Ministry in any job can be hard on family and I appreciate my family for supporting me through these later years," Ray said.
Mills will be working with young leaders in the area, including a growing presence in Sikeston and Charleston.
He would like to see a Power Camp held in Poplar Bluff, similar to a program held this summer at Cape Girardeau. It brought 125 youth together from grades fifth through eighth for a summer sports and faith camp.
High school students provided Bible study during the camp, Ray said.
Student leadership plays an important role in what FCA does, he said.
"The kids really should be the ones leading the huddle," he said, adding, "I'm amazed at the ministry of FCA that is growing, not just in Southeast Missouri, but in the United States and abroad."
Ray retired from the education system after 33 years, before joining FCA. He spent the final nine years of his education career as principal for the Camdenton Junior High.
Anyone interested in FCA or its events can contact Mills at joshmills@fca.org or 573-258-0730. T-shirts for this year's Fields of Faith event are available for $10.