Westside Stories: Kenser Heck & Rosemary Torres

Some of the most instructive faith stories don't come from a dramatic before and after. They come from young people quietly figuring out what it means to follow Jesus in real time. This week's Westside Stories episode features two of them: Kenser Heck and Rosemary Torres, both high school juniors who have grown up at Westside and are already shaping their community in tangible ways.

Rosemary and Kenser talk honestly about what it's like to be a Christian as a teenager, the pull of friend groups that aren't good for your faith, the discipline of a two-minute prayer squeezed in before bed, and the ongoing work of choosing who to surround yourself with. Neither describes a single dramatic turning point. Instead, their faith has deepened gradually, shaped by small group, by family, and for Rosemary, by walking through a frightening accident involving her younger sister at age eleven.

The heart of the episode is the story of Recess, a respite ministry Kenser started at Westside for families raising a child with a disability. The idea traces back to a week at Camp Hope Heals, a camp for families like Kenser's own, since her older brother Teddy has Down syndrome. There she met a girl named Hazel Mooney, whose family had founded an organization called 99 Balloons after the death of their infant son Elliott, who lived 99 days after a diagnosis doctors said wouldn't let him survive birth. rEcess, named for Elliott's initial, is one of that organization's programs, and Kenser brought the idea home.

What started as a text to Rosemary, asking if she'd help start something like this at Westside, has become a once-a-month respite night where parents of children with disabilities can drop their kids off for an evening of rest, knowing they're safe and having fun with trained, caring volunteers. Kenser admits she worried about being taken seriously, forming a leadership team as a rising sophomore surrounded by adults. Rosemary describes watching the first respite night unfold and feeling stunned by how many volunteers showed up to make it happen.

Both girls talk about leadership as something that isn't tied to age, about realizing that everyone, regardless of experience, brings their own strengths and weaknesses to the table. And both describe what they've learned about God through rEcess: a fuller picture of beauty and belonging, and what Kenser calls a glimpse of heaven in the space they've created together.

As you listen, we want to invite you to sit with one question: how can you change one person's life by extending a simple act of care?

And a challenge, if you're willing: find one service opportunity you can commit to in your community in the coming months.

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or find the full episode on our website.