“The amazing community and the opportunity to find fellowship in God and create an amazing church basically in a school,” said Natalie Raff, a student at Conestoga Valley High School, about Focus. Focus is a Christian club that meets every Friday mornings for prayer, worship, and community.
Some Fridays, there are small groups, speakers and testimonies that happen. Some of the best memories come from the environment of the group and the community that Focus brings for all members.
Owen Gensel (freshman) has been coming to Focus since the beginning of the 25/26 school year. He wishes “that other people knew that it was so worth it to go. You start out your Friday with worship and prayer, and it is really fun to do.” One of his favorite parts of Focus is small groups, and being able to connect with the guys in his group easily.
“It’s not just a place for perfect people. Spaces like Focus are meant to be safe environments for those who need it, and the leadership tries everything we can to help facilitate that,” says Gwen Unruh (junior), a member of the leadership team who has been attending Focus since her freshman year. Focus is not just a crowd of people that gather on Fridays, it’s a closely woven community that allows students the freedom to express their religion with others with the same beliefs.
Raff (senior, left) has been attending Focus since sophomore year, ever since her friend Hannah Gensel (senior, center) told her about the club. Focus is a big part of Raff’s life. “My favorite memory is probably the Unrestricted I got baptized at,” she said. Unrestricted is a Christian group that focuses on bringing God’s word to schools, creating community and word to students.
Focus takes students on trips to other countries to help other communities that need it. Guatemala was one of the places some students decided to go, doing service with orphanages. There will be another service trip over summer 2026 to the Dominican Republic that all students of Conestoga Valley can attend, which Unruh is a student ambassador for.
Before the meeting ends and all the students head to their first class of the day, friends get together and talk, hang out and laugh together. Some students choose to help clean up the LGI after the meeting, preparing the room for the rest of the classes that use the LGI.
The meeting is concluded when staff of the club read what’s in the Prayer Box, a drop off place for students and teachers to put prayer requests in for anything they need. These can be anonymous.
