Encounter Church hosted the second annual #FeedTheOwls block party Sunday, Aug. 28 to kick off the school year for Kennesaw State University students.
Encounter KSU, the student organization hosting the event, says it has one goal: uniting to spread the word of God.
“I love the feeling of community it brings,” said Chandler Walker, a second-year engineering major. “Starting college as a freshman, you’re trying to find your place, and I did.”
Encounter KSU President Kwame Paige is a senior studying music education and is part of the worship team at Encounter Church. After graduating, he aspires to teach and continue working in the ministry.
“This organization represents what I love: the ability to reach out to others,” Paige said.
The event was called #FeedTheOwls, so of course the real selling point was the free food. There were hot dogs, donuts, popcorn and an ice cream truck. Attendees could also participate in games, a photo booth, bounce houses, a rock wall and a raffle to win a free GoPro. Alongside the students in attendance were families with their children.
“They are very hospitable and they have amazing cookies,” Ben Bieseck, a freshman finance major, said. “I never heard of Encounter KSU before, but I heard about the event through sidewalk chalk on campus.”
The hashtag was scribbled on sidewalks all over the Kennesaw campus the week leading up to the event.
“We call it #FeedTheOwls because we feel that our purpose is to feed students spiritually,” Encounter Church’s head pastor Hunter Howard said.
The event is not just about throwing a block party with great food, he explained — it’s about inviting students to join a community and find God.
Last fall, KSU students came together with the idea to form the campus organization Encounter KSU. Every week, roughly 35 to 40 students come together to study the Bible.
“Our goal is to get the students to encounter God no matter where they are,” Pastor RJ Apostol said. He oversees Encounter KSU.
Despite the fact that Encounter Church only formed a couple of years ago, its KSU community is growing quickly. The church is located off of Lockhart Drive just minutes away from the Kennesaw campus.
Encounter KSU plans to host more events in the future, including one for KSU’s international student body.
