Chris Alfson, the new director of The Refuge in Blue Earth, stands outside the youth center by the sign that welcomes kids.

Youth For Christ (YFC) in Blue Earth is bouncing back after some financial hardships, courtesy of a supportive community and a donation program through Dollar General.

“We had heard that the local Dollar General here in town does donation fundraisers for various organizations, and one of our Youth For Christ people decided to reach out and ask if they could do a fundraiser for us,” YFC interim coordinator Chris Alfson recalls. “They were more than happy to help us out, and we’ve been blown away by the amount of support that we’ve received through the donations that have already come in through that program.”

Youth For Christ is an international organization which, according to its mission statement, seeks to “reach young people everywhere, working together with the local church and other like-minded partners to raise up lifelong followers of Jesus who lead by their godliness in lifestyle, devotion to the word of God and prayer, passion for sharing the love of Christ, and commitment to social involvement.” Blue Earth’s chapter is one of many which makes up the South Central Minnesota Youth For Christ (SCMYFC) group, which is headed by the Albert Lea branch.

“The Blue Earth branch of YFC was started back in 2007, when a representative from the Albert Lea branch came to Blue Earth looking for a potential location for a drop-in center,” Alfson says. “This building, which used to belong to the United Methodist church in town and is now The Refuge, was the perfect solution.”

Alfson herself was part of the original committee of volunteers to restart the YFC group in Blue Earth, and was a part of the organization until 2010, when she had to step down due to illness. However, when she received a call from the SCMYFC board in February 2025, she was ready to rejoin the cause.

“Due to some recent financial struggles that our branch was facing, the Blue Earth branch of YFC decided to make some leadership changes, and that involved letting our previous director, Rodney Yates, go,” Alfson explained. “I got the call from Albert Lea not too long after, and now I’m in charge. I’m not officially the director, as we’re still looking for someone to fill that position, but I’m the one responsible of the upkeep and continued operation of The Refuge for the time being.”

The Refuge is one of many drop-in centers owned and operated by YFC, open on Mondays from 3-5 p.m., Wednesdays from 2-5 p.m. with an after-school club held from 2:30 to 3 p.m., and Fridays from 3-5 p.m. The center is fully run by volunteer staff of YFC, and services anywhere from 20 to 35 children ages 11-19 every day it is open.

“When you see how many kids come here and utilize our services, you can tell that there’s a need in our community for this sort of thing,” Alfson says. “I’m glad to see our center making a rebound financially, especially with the donations that have been pouring in from our fundraiser through Dollar General.”

The Refuge offers several facilities for use by the youth of Blue Earth, including several recreational areas with billiards and ping-pong tables, an art studio, a gym, a small chapel with a piano, and a well-stocked kitchen.

“Thanks to many of the generous donations that we’ve received, we’re able to keep our kitchen stocked with plenty of prepackaged snacks and drinks for the kids, including a few allergy-friendly options,” Alfson comments. “We also have a popcorn machine that the kids have access to, and we always try to keep bread, peanut butter, and jelly stocked so that there’s always supplies for making PB&J sandwiches.”

Alfson also mentioned that YFC would like to continue fundraising efforts in order to purchase a new boiler for The Refuge, which has already failed once over the past winter and may do so again.

“After that one particularly cold week earlier this month, our current boiler gave out, and we don’t want that to happen again while the weather is still so volatile,” Alfson says. “We purchased a bunch of space heaters just in case it happens again, but ideally we’d like to purchase a new boiler and not have to worry about it when the weather turns cold again.”

While The Refuge has a healthy group of volunteers who currently serve on its staff, Alfson shared that YFC is currently looking for more ambassadors for the Blue Earth area, and that interested parties are encouraged to reach out.

“Each branch of the YFC sends out a monthly newsletter so that everyone can be kept up to date on what’s going on locally, and we also have once-per-month meetings to discuss personnel changes and where all of our donations are going,” Alfson says. “We also host a once-yearly dessert banquet for the kids in the fall, which we’re hoping to host again this year, so they can share their faith journey with the community and reach out to the local churches to celebrate their budding relationships with Christ.”