Job Title: Area Director / Staff Associate — Young Life Military. Company: Young Life (Club Beyond / Young Life Military). Location: U.S. military installation near San Diego, California — work is incarnational, living near the community you serve. Schedule: Full-time; typical ministry hours with community events and volunteer coordination.
What You’ll Do:
Lead and oversee the Club Beyond (Young Life Military) program at a military installation: build relationships with teens and families, equip and manage volunteers, partner with chapel/military leaders, run outreach and discipleship events, and steward local community partnerships. The role often requires fundraising/support-raising and a multi-year commitment.
Required Qualifications (high level):
Deep commitment to Christian faith and youth ministry;
Experience in youth or community ministry preferred;
Willingness to live near the installation and raise or supplement salary through fundraising/support.
Why it’s unique:
You’ll do incarnational youth ministry specifically inside the military community—helping teens who move often and face unique identity and belonging challenges. It’s ministry that blends pastoral care, outreach, event leadership, and community building in a high-turnover, mission-focused setting.
Would You Take This Job?
Would you move into an incarnational youth-ministry role on or near a U.S. military base—living among the community you serve and committing to a multi-year placement? Why or why not?
If you haven’t worked on a base before, make friends with the chapel staff on day one — it fast-tracks room access and parent trust. When I helped with a base club, a quick monthly coffee with the chaplain’s assistant kept our events on the official calendar and brought two solid volunteers.
Get your DBIDS pass and a chapel sponsor letter squared away before week one - when I didn’t, I lost 30-40 minutes at the gate every visit and missed kids’ pickup windows. Coordinating with the School Liaison Officer let us host a 3:30 pm hangout on early-release Wednesdays, which doubled attendance.
Big win for us was linking up with the School Liaison Officer and the Youth Center — lunch visits and space approvals happened fast, and launching right after PCS season kept momentum; are you connected with them yet?