Sophomore Thomas Velez’s family moved from church to church, looking for the perfect place of worship that suited their needs. Eventually, they found the right place. Religion has played an important part of Velez’s life for as long as he knew how to read and intends to become a pastor in the future.

-Nicole Khudyakov

“I started going to church in second grade. We were always looking for a church to go to. My friend introduced us and we just fell in love with the church. You can tell if a pastor is in it for the money. You can tell when they preach – you can tell if they spend hours putting time into their speeches. They seem really excited about preaching – it’s awesome. I like talking in front of people and spreading the word of Jesus. [Pastors] know a lot about the Bible. If I can inspire kids to wonder and question about faith and what they believe in then they can come closer to knowing Jesus.”