Young Life LAX History

With a 25+ year history, outreach ministry in the LAX area has served many communities. Here's a very brief overview of our area's history -

Young Life LAX (formerly 'LA Airport Area') began in 1999 at Lennox Middle School with the lead of Carie Olashian & her husband, David Olashian. As the lunch club grew, several members of the community began to help out. Impactful volunteer leaders like Kerry Ryan, Steve & Marina Wallis, and Jennifer Wimer, kept the ministry going strong for a decade before any area staff was hired.

As the Lennox Middle Schoolers grew, the desire to stay connected birthed a new beginning at Hawthorne High School. Thanks in large part to Steve Wallis' position at Hawthorne, the Young Life club at HHS continued to grow. Even after the volunteer movement of the area passed, when our first staff person came along, Makana McCarty, he continued to carry the torch at Hawthorne.

After years of successful ministry at Hawthorne, Wallis's new position at Da Vinci Schools opened up a new door for Young Life ministry at Da Vinci High. Keeping the connection to HHS students, a combined off-campus club formed. YL kept a strong presence at Da Vinci until 2019, thanks to Makana & his successor, Annah Cameron.

With amazing leaders in the 2012-2017 era, ministry grew beyond Da Vinci & Hawthorne to include Lawndale High as well. Leaders like Stephanie Márquez, Anthony Pur, Yvette Duarte, Yamara Barba & Keren Romero dominated & documented their work with YL kids - as seen on the area's former Instagram Page (@laairportyounglife).

Once Makana joined athletics at El Segundo High, ministry with the Eagles took flight. With incredible support from the El Segundo community, churches like Oceanside Christian Fellowship (OCF) opened their doors to host YL Club on Monday nights. Ministry at El Segundo resurfaced in 2022 with the help of new staff, Michael Miller. Michael & his leaders grew the area's lunch club to an average 170 kids before his exit in 2024.

What about COVID? During those uncertain times, students craved community & hope even more. YL leaders like Annah Cameron continued to meet kids where they were. Thanks to more great church partnerships, Westchester Cornerstone pastors, Jeff & Heather Dallas, connected Annah with LMU students that were eager to help lead the ministry.

After almost a year of inactive ministry, the volunteer committee - Justin Smith, Gloria Johnson, Amber Romo, Dave McNeil, Alicia Simmons, Ryan Taketomo, Yolanda Collins, David D'Angelo, & Rae Adsila - held strong to the mission and vision of Young Life. With continued support of legacy donors, in January 2025, Jake Laney was hired to rebuild the chapter. In the summer, with help from New City Church in El Segundo, three kids and a leader went to YL Camp at Woodleaf. Since then, outreach events & hangouts take place at Del Aire Park and beyond.

If you have more info on the history of YL LAX, please reach out at younglifelaxarea@gmail.com to help us preserve the most accurate account of our area's ministry. Thank you!