About Us
What is the Toledo YES Project
The Toledo YES Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with the purpose of serving those in the Toledo, Ohio area who are in need of free manual labor. Our organization spends the year planning for our annual summer project.
Our annual summer project is a unique opportunity for high school students and young adults from the Toledo area to come together to do as Jesus did: love and serve those who are most in need. Each year, our summer project consists of 120–150 youth and over 100 adult volunteers coming together for four days and doing service in and around Toledo, Ohio.
To learn more about how the Toledo YES Project has gotten to where it is today, check out our history page!
Our Mission
Community Service
Teach high school students the value of volunteering and encourage them to strengthen and develop a relationship with God
Spiritual Growth
Bring the love of Christ and His healing presence to those whom we serve including homeowners, other non-profit organizations and various kinds of shelters throughout the Toledo-Area.
Board of Directors
Nicole Susdorf
President
Tom Kirkham
Vice President
Dan Rivas
Treasurer
Marissa Fernandez
Secretary
Tommy Dzierzak
At Large
Emma Faehnle
At Large
John Faehnle
At Large
Nicole Fernandez
At Large
Bailey Henry
At Large
Pam Hunter
At Large
Toni Marsteller
At Large
Samantha Meklus
At Large
Kurt Susdorf
At Large
Joshua Szymanski
At Large
AJ Wawrzyniak
At Large
The Annual Summer Project
Our summer project only takes place once each year: generally, around mid to late July. We gather high school students, college students, and adult volunteers from around the country (people keep coming back) over the course of four days (Wednesday night through Saturday evening) to give praise to God, to grow in friendship with our peers, and to help those in need in our local community.
Most of our work consists of helping private homeowners who are physically and/or financially unable to maintain or improve their homes. We also help at various non-profit groups, including women's shelters, family shelters, community centers, churches, and homeless outreach facilities. Each year we choose around 12 sites throughout the greater Toledo area where we will scrape, paint, clean, landscape, and perform other tasks that may be needed to improve the living situation of those we are helping.
Our primary goal and our purpose is to serve the people of Northwest Ohio, no matter what religious background they come from. A secondary goal is to foster the change in the hearts and minds of young people through their encounters with people in need and situations that they may have never seen. We at the Toledo YES Project are confident that Christ makes Himself known and present through the interactions with people in need, as can been seen throughout the history of the Church and the lives of the saints. These sorts of encounters can transform the lives of people.
Check out our volunteering page to see how you can be a part of our annual project!