Start A New Gift
Your Account
Carolyn Thomas
#0580910
Thanks so much for visiting our giving site!
Current roles:
We are passing the baton of ministry leadership in Carmel schools (USA) and undertaking training and making preparations to take up the invitation to join a Tandem ministry (Cru in New Zealand) with the long-term goal to reach and minister to school teens. We plan to move to Auckland in September 2024!
Why New Zealand?
Although 50% of New Zealanders would identify as a Christian only 5% of any faith group attend a regular religious gathering. This indicates that most people are culturally religious and do not have a living relationship with Jesus. As we consider the state of young people in many cultures globally we see the need for the presence and nearness of Jesus to cast away loneliness, the truth of the gospel to bring clarity in confusion and the peace of God to heal anxiety. We believe that we can help people encounter Jesus through authentic relationship and discipleship.
Thank you for considering partnering with us financially or prayerfully as we seek to Win students to Jesus Christ, Build them in their faith and Send them into the world. We could not follow this calling without your support!
Our story so far, briefly!
Carolyn has loved serving with Cru High School since 2007! Just out of College with a passion to see students reached with the gospel she moved down to the headquarters in Orlando for her first year doing marketing for the global team and working at University High School. The following year she served in East Asia with the high school team in a school there.
"God taught me so much and allowed me to see so many students receive Him. After seeing a whole Muslim family receive Christ, I knew I loved this job and felt the call to join Cru staff full-time!"
She served at Carmel High School for 5+ years which was incredible working with the students! She then felt that God was leading her to work in Australia to help see movement happen through students in high schools there too. She moved at the end of 2014 to Australia to serve with Cru, known as Power to Change in Australia.
"It was amazing seeing schools ministry change over the many years and watching students understand the gospel and transform into leaders with desire to reach their schools and the world."
After equipping and coaching chaplains for 4 years, we definitely saw movement happen in the schools! God was and is at work in Australia!
Dec 2018, a wedding! After marrying an Englishman, Jonathan, we spent 6 months in England while he finished his degree and I worked remotely with Cru. July 2019, Carolyn moved back to Carmel, IN to take over the Carmel Cru Director role rebuilding Carmel Schools ministry in the high school and 3 middle schools. Jonathan joined in October 2019. We have a whole band of volunteers, some being former students which is awesome! God has taught us so much in each area and we have loved having the opportunity to see students come to Christ, be built in their faith through bible studies, discipleship times, and conferences and then being sent into the world whether that has been overseas for some or sent back into their school to reach their school for Christ!
Our daughter, Eliza, was born in November 2022!
In Sep 2023 Jonathan formally joined Cru staff after joining Carolyn on a short term mission trip (taking teens to Fiji and New Zealand in June and July 2023).
"This trip encouraged and affirmed that God wants to use me and my story to share of His goodness, grace and healing in my life, walking alongside young people in a way that I needed when I was their age, with the hope they might avoid some of the pitfalls of my younger years when I lacked support, guidance or experience."
If you would like to know more about our work or to sign up to receive our monthly newsletters please email:
Jonathan.Thomas@cru.org or Carolyn.Thomas@cru.org
Thank you for considering partnering with us and together serving the Lord reaching high school students for Christ!
God Bless you!
Website: https://www.cru.org/hs/indy/
Need Help?
Call us at (888)278-7233 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday-Friday, or email us at eGift@cru.org.
Get help 24/7 from our FAQs.