August 30, 2024 —FOCUS North America announces the appointment of Wadeed Fakhoury as the new Director of its national program, Youth Equipped to Serve (YES).

YES is FOCUS’s national youth & young adult ministry. It invites individuals into experiences of relational growth and servant formation. YES offers these experiences for individuals and groups/parishes and is a crucial part of the new Center development process. 

Wadeed was born and raised in Springfield, VA, where he graduated from George Mason University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is a Sub-Deacon at Saint George Antiochian Church in Washington D.C. and the Assistant Director of Saint Nicholas Camping Program in Los Angeles, CA. He has been involved in YES since 2014, where he started as a participant and has worked in a variety of capacities. 

Wadeed is dedicated to helping this ministry prosper and feels that YES is important because it empowers everyone to make a difference. It also shows that service is love, and that we can all love anyone and everyone in small, yet meaningful ways.

“It is a great joy to see the fruit of YES in Wadeed as a Leader,” said Katrina Bitar, Interim Director of Operations of FOCUS North America. “Our mission to Equip Youth to Serve comes to life in seeing him embrace this role as Director of YES. I look forward to supporting Wadeed and YES as they continue to grow and thrive.”  

“It is such a blessing to serve the ministry that has given me so much throughout my life in this way,” said Wadeed Fakhoury, Director of YES. “I am excited to continue the work that has been established of equipping youth and young adults to serve and love each person as the image of Christ.”

“We’re thrilled to see Wadeed take this next step in his career and serve this vital ministry that has been so instrumental to his formation,” said Steven Christoforou, Interim Executive Director of FOCUS North America. “As we prepare to celebrate 20 Years of YES this November, this leadership transition sets us up for an exciting new chapter.”

More information is available at yesnorthamerica.org as well as YES’s social media accounts: facebook.com/walkwithYES and instagram.com/walkwithyes.  Inquiries can be directed to yes@focusna.org.

About FOCUS: FOCUS is the Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve. A pan-Orthodox ministry affiliated with the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, FOCUS serves the poor by bringing together Orthodox Christian churches and community partners to provide Food, Occupation, Clothing, Understanding, and Shelter and other assistance to address the needs of local communities. FOCUS operates nine FOCUS Centers across the country as well as Youth Equipped to Serve (YES).

Source: Assembly of Bishops