More than 1,000 students show up for 2015 See You at the Pole prayer in U.S. 280 corridor
More than 1,000 students showed up for See You at the Pole prayer events at schools in the U.S. 280 corridor this morning, according to First Priority, a Christian organization promoting the gatherings.
The events seem particularly popular with middle school children, with more than 300 showing up at Oak Mountain Middle and about 250 students coming to pray at both Berry Middle and Chelsea Middle, said Debi DeBoer, the Hoover and Shelby County area leader for First Priority.
There were about 100 students reported praying at Oak Mountain High School and about 60 each at Spain Park and Chelsea high schools. Chelsea Park Elementary had about 70 students for See You at the Pole, and Forest Oak Elementary in Chelsea had about 45, DeBoer said.
At Spain Park High, the students gathered in the courtyard, sang worship songs, broke into groups by grade for prayer and then came back together for more worship and a final prayer before heading off to class.
The event was organized by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and First Priority clubs at the school.
“We think it’s a great way to start off the school year,” said Olivia Pride, a Spain Park 10th-grader who helped lead the sophomores in prayer.
There are a lot of students with different beliefs at school, and this is a way to bring students together and remember to keep God as their main focus during the school year, she said.
Wade Streeter, a senior in the Fellowship of Christian athletes, said the whole purpose of the event was for people to come together, glorify Jesus Christ and lift up prayers for one another and their community.
Students face so much anxiety and stress and personal problems, and it’s important for others to know that people care about them and what happens to them, Streeter said.
Across the Birmingham metro area, See You at the Pole gatherings were planned to occur this morning at roughly 250 schools, according to First Priority.
See You at the Pole is held every year on the fourth Wednesday in September. It started at a Texas school in 1990 and has spread across the globe. More than 2 million students typically gather each year for the event.
Learn more about See You at the Pole and First Priority of Alabama.