Several new leaders have joined Marshall University’s campus as part of the Campus Christian Center’s University Church (UKIRK) this semester.

Claire Butler, John Yeager and Rob Laukoter all have different roles in UKIRK, but have similar reasons for becoming part of Marshall’s campus.

Butler said she really enjoys having the opportunity to be in a space with college students who are discovering new aspects of their faith and want to have a place to come and talk about their faith. And also to have a space for people who may not have grown up in the faith, but are curious about what it means to be a Christian on a college campus.

Laukoter, pastor of the Presbyterian Church of the Covenant (PCC), has been in the ministry for over 23 years, serving at the PCC for more than 16 years.

“I have a great heart for college students,” said Laukoter. “It’s a time in their lives when they get exposed to a wide variety of beliefs and very different views of the world than most of them have ever encountered. I believe that part of my role would be to help them think through the issues and see that the Christian faith, more than other any worldview, offers the most thoughtful, comprehensive and coherent understanding of the most basic of human questions: our origins, meaning in life, morality and our destiny.”

Yeager, commissioned ruling elder, said he often learns from students and enjoys their openness.

“The energy, the excitement and willingness of young people to be open to hearing God’s word motivates me to keep doing what I’m doing,” said Yeager.

Butler said she believes it is comforting for students to have a safe place to go to on campus, which is one reason why she joined UKIRK at Marshall.

“I know what it meant to me to have a place like UKIRK when I was in college,” said Butler. “That was definitely a time in my life when I began to see my faith transition from the faith that was instilled in me by my parents to really understanding what it meant for me to be a person of faith. To know that those campus ministers have an open-door policy if [students] just need someone to come and talk to, that’s another reason why we’re here.”

Olivia Zarilla can be contacted at [email protected].