
David & Summer Williams and Family
An Update on Our Leadership Plan for the Next Generation
By Curt Williams, Founder & Executive Director
Eight years ago this month, Youth-Reach Houston stepped into a 10-year succession plan strategically aimed at preparing for the next generation of leadership. This was not just a process for Youth-Reach Houston, but it also involved Youth-Reach Gulf Coast and our newest ministry location in Atenas, Costa Rica.
Youth-Reach was “born” on a cold night in 1984 when the first boy found refuge in what soon became a fledgling residential program in east Houston. Since that day, I have been in leadership. I am deeply grateful for the grace of God and the patience of so many as I awkwardly learned the many processes and procedures that come along with pioneering a credentialed juvenile residential program.
Forty years is a long time, though in some ways it seems like yesterday that all of this began. There are a few of you who have been on this ride with me from the beginning, but most of you have stepped in to support this work along the way. Now, I have two more years in leadership until I fully turn over the reins to David Williams, the man the Lord has raised up for just a time as this.
We are incredibly grateful to have had a mentor and guide throughout this process. Dr. Dave Robinson has been critical to the success of this transition. When I first contacted him, he asked how long we planned the succession plan to take, and I said ten years. He confirmed that was a healthy and realistic timeframe, but to me, ten years sounded like a long time. Now that we are entering the ninth year, I must confess that the eight we have completed have flown by. Dr. Robinson helped us gain a better understanding of who we are as a ministry and a better recognition of the individuals the Lord had assembled. He asked the tough questions, provoked deeper introspection, tested us all, and helped us to see the obvious.
What became crystal clear was the fact that God had brought David Williams through a lifetime of preparation for the role of Executive Director of Youth-Reach. Before he was married he was serving in ministry and has served in licensed juvenile care ministries along with youth services programs. More than any of that though, David is highly gifted as a leader who possesses keen discernment, boldness and humility. David walks with Jesus, and with his wife Summer, they make a strong team that hears from the Lord and possesses the courage to follow Him.
Within weeks of sensing the Lord’s leadership to develop David for my role, the Board of Directors of both Youth-Reach Houston and Youth-Reach Gulf Coast unanimously endorsed the succession plan. Since then, I have been handing off ever-increasing portions of my role and connecting David to key relationships that will be vital to his work. He is now spending time at all three ministry locations and developing his own teams at each campus.
David and I are very close, and the transition process has been remarkably smooth. It is when you sense and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit and operate free of personal agendas that peace will certainly follow, and it has. If you have not yet had the opportunity to meet David, I certainly hope that chance arises soon. I am sure you will be as impressed with him as I am, and I can rest assured that the future of Youth-Reach is very bright.