Wuerffel to speak at Back to School Bash

Published 4:08 pm Tuesday, July 30, 2013

The Community Youth Association will help usher in the new school year with its 11th annual Back to School Bash Friday night at the Hank Williams Music Park in Georgiana.

Former University of Florida standout Danny Wuerffel will headline the event.

Wuerffel, the 1996 Heisman Trophy winner, played six seasons in the National Football League before retiring to work full time with Desire Street Ministries, a ministry founded by Mo and Ellen Leverett in 1990.

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Desire Street Ministries was created to serve New Orleans and particularly the Ninth Ward, which is one of the most dangerous and crime plagued areas in the country, with the goal of seeing the impoverished neighborhood revitalized through spiritual and community development.

Wuerffel, a two-time All-American that led the Gators to the 1996 National Championship and was recently inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, is a sought-after speaker sharing how his experiences playing football have helped shape his life. He has written one book, “Danny Wuerffel’s Tales from the Gator Swamp:  Reflections of Faith and Football.”

Event organizer Allen Stephenson said his organization hopes that students attending the Back to School Bash will find answers to life’s biggest question through Wuerffel’s message.

“We keep doing this because we continue to see that our youth are searching for meaning in life and we want to convey that true fulfillment is only found in a relationship with Jesus,” Stephenson said.

The event is slated to begin at 6 p.m.

Attendees will be treated to a hotdog dinner. The Community Youth Association has also purchased 1,000 Bibles to pass out to students in attendance.

The Next Level Band will perform at the free event.