The Experience ministry and Young Life are teaming up to present Impact!, a free community event designed "to bring the message of hope to a world in need."

Open to people of all ages in the community, Impact! will be staged at John Marshall High School's Performing Arts Center in Glen Dale at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17.

Representatives of the YWCA Wheeling's Family Violence Prevention Program also are joining Young Life and The Experience members at this event to share a message of preventing teen dating violence.

Linda Seidler, co-founder of The Experience, said Impact! organizers want "to be able to strengthen people in our community, both the young and not so young." Through music and messages, they want to show people how "to grow to be strong and to be able to get through situations," she said.

Debbie Wood, director of the Family Violence Prevention Program, said the YWCA has received a grant to work with Young Life in area high schools to focus on prevention of teen dating violence. Thus, she said, the tie-in with Impact! "seemed so appropriate, with all of us trying to work on this issue."

The grant for prevention of teen dating violence comes at a critical time because the incidence of domestic violence in the area has reached a shocking level, the number of protective orders involving teenagers is increasing and the area's teen pregnancy rates are "very scary," Wood said.

Regarding the basic message to be imparted through Impact!, Seidler said, "It's all about relationships, strengthening relationships. When we strengthen these, we strengthen our community ... Kids don't understand the basics of relationships with one another."

Seidler remarked, "As a teacher, it's hard for me to see kids down on themselves." Wood added, "We see this as a crisis in the community."

A goal, Seidler said, is to cause "lasting, positive change." Observing that change involves breaking patterns of behavior, Wood said, "What seems to be normal in so many families is not normal. It has been 'normal' for them for generations." The organizers want to show people how to handle various situations and be set free from feelings of anger, jealousy and bitterness, Seidler said.

The presenters hope "to reach parents as well as kids," Wood said, adding, "Parents might know there is something else, but don't know how to get help." The organizers also want to point out "red flags" for parents to notice in their children's behavior and attitudes.

The Impact! event will feature music by The Experience band, which has released a compact disc, "Souled Out," and skits by Young Life members. Kirk Wilson, area director of Young Life, said teens will use humor to deliver their message. Also, Wilson said, "We will have a person talk about how Young Life has changed her life."

Well-known saxophonist Curtis Johnson, formerly of Wheeling, will be a special guest and will sit in with The Experience band, Seidler said. Two area bands, A Fixx and West Finley, will play in the parking lot at John Marshall, beginning at 5:30 p.m., she said. Young Life and the YWCA will have tables set up in the school to distribute information for youth and adults.

"This is going to be a lot of fun, a lot of music, multi-media," Seidler said. "We are going to touch upon all these (serious) areas, but at the same time, we're going to have fun."

High school students who need transportation to the event should contact Young Life leaders at their schools, Wilson said.

The organizers would like to offer Impact! on an annual basis, Seidler said. "If our community of faith could come together, lock arms and strengthen ourselves, we could be all moving together in the same direction. It could be the start of something great," she commented.

Seidler and her husband, Tim, founded The Experience in 2003 as "a multi-media ministry that goes out into the community spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ," she said. "We want to go out in the community and meet people who might not go to church."

Presently, 30 people serve on The Experience team. The ministry has a 12-piece band.

Young Life has operated in the Ohio Valley for 30-plus years, offering "interdenominational Christian outreach to high school kids," Wilson said. "Our leaders go into high schools, practices, games, reaching them (young people) where they're at ... The scope of what we do is building relationships with kids."

Currently, Young Life conducts five clubs in six area schools: Linsly School and Wheeling Park, John Marshall, St. Clairsville, Union Local and Martins Ferry high schools, Wilson said. St. Clairsville and Union Local have a combined club, he explained.

While Young Life emphasizes relationships rather than numbers, Wilson estimates that about 260 youth attend club sessions around the Ohio Valley each week and another 50 students go to weekly Bible study. "We took about 140 to summer camp last year," he added.

Meanwhile, the Family Violence Prevention Program's teen dating violence initiative is the first program of its kind in West Virginia, Wood said. The grant has allowed the Family Violence Prevention Program to hire a teen dating violence specialist who is on duty at Wheeling Park High School five days a week, she said.

The presence of a specialist in the school has made "a huge difference in kids feeling safe," Wood said. The specialist also helps teens with "safety planning" as a precaution against violent situations, she said.

More information on all of the programs is available at these Web sites: www.ywcawheeling.com,www.younglife.org and www.TheExperience.us.