"For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." -- Matthew 18:20

Organizers are expecting many more individuals to gather for the fourth annual Fellowship of Christian Athletes/Orangeburg-Calhoun Association of Clergy Prayer Breakfast, which will be held at 7 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 20, at the First Baptist Church Family Life Center in Orangeburg.

This year's theme is "Rescuing and Embracing Our Youth and Our Community Through Character." Six Orangeburg pastors from various Christian denominations will speak at the event, including the Rev. Cary Hilliard of First Baptist Church, the Rev. Jud Jordan of First Presbyterian Church, the Rev. Charcey Priester of St. Paul Baptist Church, the Rev. Kristen Richardson-Frick of St. Paul's United Methodist Church, the Rev. Ceasar Richburg of Williams Chapel AME Church and the Rev. Mike Smith of St. Andrews UMC.

Organizers said attendance at the fall event has been great since its inception. It usually draws more than 200 individuals, with young people representing several local schools and FCA chapters in attendance.

"The main emphasis is we kind of want to support the youth of the area," said the Rev. Paul Hamilton, Regional Medical Center chaplain. "Several schools will be bringing their students. ... I think it's a good way to support our youth and the challenges they face, to motivate them and let them know we are behind them. They are the future."

Also featured at the event will be music by Orangeburg Idol 2008 Eden Graves.

The Rev. Nate McMillan, pastor and founder of Petra Community Church, said all local churches and FCA groups have been invited to participate in the breakfast.

"With all the churches' involvement, we are anticipating a large crowd. The season is right for the encouragement of youth, and we want to support that level of encouragement," he said.

In the past, speakers have included sports officials from Clemson University, South Carolina State University or the University of South Carolina, but this year, organizers said they wanted to change things up a bit.

"We have new ministers with a lot of energy who are showing a lot of concern for our young people," FCA representative Earl Humes said. "We just wanted to give them a chance to say how they can impact the community, impact young people. It's very encouraging."

He said having local ministers speak at the breakfast gives the FCA a chance to connect students to churches that will help them grow in Christ.

"We have some great people who care about our kids, and this is a chance to hear from them," Humes said.

Money raised from the prayer breakfast will go to support local FCA endeavors.

"We want to empower them with this session," McMillan said of local students. "Our hopes are they will take that empowerment of character into their huddle groups and school environments."

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