Early Tuesday morning, as Park City High School students were entering their classrooms and their younger middle and elementary school peers were heading to their school campuses, a group stood outside the high school, adding a little extra spice to the first day of school by handing out doughnuts to passersby.

Emma Gorg, one of the candy distributors and a dance teacher at the school, explained that the group is a local branch of Young Life, a national Christian organization that aims to connect young people with older mentors.

Gorg said the organization was founded in Texas in the 1940s and expanded to Park City in the 1990s. Although there aren’t many other branches in Utah, Park City is a model for what further involvement could look like, she said.

“Our goal is to build deep, meaningful relationships with students,” Gorg said.

She explained that in addition to doing things like handing out doughnuts to children going back to school, the group also visits school cafeterias at lunchtime and organizes various activities throughout the week that young people are invited to attend.

Every Monday, she explained, the group meets in a student volunteer’s dorm room for Young Life Club, an event Gorg described as “an hour of organized chaos” where “kids are allowed to just be kids.” They sing, play games and eat dinner together.

“Then at the end we share a short message about why we do what we do,” she said. “And the reason we want to treat these students with love is because we are loved by God.”

Gorg said she first learned about the organization when she was in high school in Virginia.

“There was a woman, her name was Whitney Johnson,” Gorg recalled. “She was literally sitting at my lunch table with me. At first I thought, ‘Who is this girl? This is kind of weird. And now we’re best friends. I’m getting married in 18 days and she’s one of my bridesmaids.'”

Gorg said she went from being a lost sophomore to someone who found comfort in Christianity and the community Johnson gave her.

“I just want to be able to do the same for other young women in high school,” she said. “I’ve almost become a different person.”

Ethan Looney, another Young Life member who handed out cookies Tuesday morning, described a similar experience when he was in middle school.

He remembered fun, silly games and meeting a leader who was different from all the other adults in his life.

“Having an older person who is a little bit ahead of you in life, who is honest with you, supports you, but also calls you out when you do something wrong, that appealed to me,” he said. “The most important thing for me is that kids are treated like people, and I think that a lot of times, especially in middle school, younger kids aren’t considered and their ideas aren’t considered because of their age. That’s the reason I do it, because I think they have a lot more to say and they have a tremendous impact on their community, which is what we’re seeing now.”

While the group has no qualms about sharing their faith in Jesus Christ, they also say they are OK with children who do not believe or believe in their messages continuing to come to their activities and be part of their community.

James McKenzie, a student at Park City High, said he appreciates having people he can turn to with problems and knows they are willing to help.

“Come to the club,” he said.