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Leading college baseball players and coaches into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

OUR MISSION

Will Mackenzie.png

“Turn2 Ministries is a much-needed resource for every college baseball program that cares for the health and well-being of its players.

Will Mackenzie

Stetson University,

Class of 2016

JOIN THE MOVEMENT

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We Provide Shepherd Coaches for College Baseball Programs
 
What is a Shepherd Coach?
 
SHEP•HERD

/ˈSHepərd/

 

noun

1. a person who protects or guides a person or a group

 

verb

1. to watch over carefully

2. guide or direct in a particular direction

Testimonials

WHAT PEOPLE SAY

Alex Childers

Since partnering with Turn2, we are having more success on the field. But more importantly, the spiritual impact of this ministry on our players, coaches, and their families is beyond words!

Head Coach

Goshen College

Will Mackenzie

Turn2 Ministries is a much-needed resource for every college baseball program that cares for the health and well-being of their players.

- Stetson University 

Class of 2016

Jesse Quintanilla 

One of the most significant impacts during my four years at Goshen College was made by our Shepherd Coach, Casey Cavell from Turn2 Ministries.

- Goshen College 

Class of 2016

Hampton Clark

There’s a lot of influences in college life, and most students need someone to guide them through it. A Shepherd Coach is a perfect way to make this happen.

- University of
the Cumberlands 
Class of 2019

Luke Sawyer

There are few more impactful roles than a coach and few more impactful years than time in college.

- Assistant Coach
St. Petersburg College 

 

Will You Join The Movement?

Join us and make an impact on college baseball players and coaches.

Start by learning more.

What are you turning to?

DO YOU REMEMBER BEING 18?

Do you remember leaving home for your first semester of college? The excitement of new freedom mixing with the stress of navigating a new campus and a new season of life?

 

College can be an incredible time to build meaningful and lifelong relationships and make amazing memories.

 

College can also be a season filled with unmet expectations, poor decisions, and numerous disappointments along the way.

 

What makes the experience so different?

 

Having a mentor – someone who invests their time to help students navigate through these challenging years.

 

In the quest for self-discovery and adventure, students often turn to the wrong things while trying to find love, acceptance, worth, and security. 

 

One may think that if he comes from a Christian or stable home, he won’t make poor decisions, but 70% of people that come from loving home environments turn away from the principles they have been taught.  Source: Campus Renewal

 

The temptations college students are facing daily are seemingly never-ending and threatening to their well-being. 

 

Anxiety, depression, and other significant mental health disorders are increasingly prevalent in young men.  45% of college males today say they feel hopeless. According to the American College Health Association, young men in the 17-24-year-old category are five times more likely to commit suicide than young women.  Unfortunately, only 19% of college campuses have adequate services to support such issues.  Source: American College Health Association (ACHA).

 

Young people today face incredible challenges: the real world is roaring towards them and the issues they face when they don that cap and gown are greater than ever before.

 

The solution: finding opportunities to invest in the lives of college students.

 

In Proverbs 29:18 it says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish” 

 

Our vision is to use baseball as a platform to give young men in a struggling generation a means to find hope and truth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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WHAT ARE YOU TURNING TO?

Our Story

Our Story

WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE DO

 

My name is Casey Cavell.  I am a follower of Jesus Christ, husband to my beautiful wife, Konny, and the founder of Turn2 Ministries. My time as a college baseball player, coach, and entrepreneur has prepared me to grow this ministry.

 

Turn2 Ministries exists to lead college baseball players and coaches into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

 

Our ministry asks those we serve one simple question: “Who or what are you turning to?” 

 

2 Timothy 2:22 says we should “flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart."

 

We desire to help guide players and coaches in their pursuit of the Lord.

 

 

MY STORY OF STRUGGLE

 

I was as prepared to enter college as anyone is at 18-years-old. I grew up in a loving Christian home and knew the difference between right and wrong.  Yet, I discovered quickly that college is full of trials, stresses, and temptations.

 

I struggled to balance how to be both a student and an athlete while maintaining some sort of personal life.

 

I fought anxiety daily. My sense of well-being came from temporary things: peoples’ opinions, my ability to keep everyone around me happy, my batting average, and our win percentage.

 

I had idols in my life and the biggest one was baseball. My sense of value and acceptance was based on my performance on the field.

 

I went down a path of self-destruction.  I made unwise decisions that left me with unmet expectations and “what if?” questions.  I needed a mulligan, but unfortunately, in baseball and life, there are no do-overs.

 

Looking back now, everyone was struggling around me - even our coaches. They were supposed to be the calm in the storm, but they were over-capacity, underpaid, and trying to maintain a family at home, while keeping the athletic department, administration, and donors happy.  Additionally, their success or failure was paraded around for everyone to see via their win-loss record.

 

We all struggled and although I know the coaches wanted the best for me, they couldn’t give me what I truly needed: TIME.

 

It’s a broken system where coaches simply must play the numbers.  Some make it; some don’t. So, who’s next?

 

 

FINDING THE SOLUTION

 

Turn2 Ministries is on a mission to change the future of thousands of college baseball players and coaches.

 

We invest our time, talents, and resources to help players and coaches reach their God-given potential.  We want to ensure that players leave college with a story worth telling and a solid foundation on which to build the rest of their lives.

 

Our ministry employs full-time team Shepherd Coaches for collegiate baseball programs.  These coaches are full-time members of the team, but their role is to be a servant leader to the coach and a member of each player’s support team.

 

These coaches have collegiate or professional baseball backgrounds which give them strong dugout credentials and helps them relate to the student-athletes. Attending all the games, practices, and off-season workouts allow the Shepherd Coach to build authentic and oftentimes life-long relationships. 

 

 

THE RESULTS

 

Although this program has been in existence since 2014 and has impacted both coaches and players, God has recently given us a vision and team to expand this mission to college baseball programs throughout the country.

 

It has been eye-opening to see into the lives of our student-athletes for the past seven years. They carry heavy burdens upon them from broken homes or relationships. They are struggling with substance abuse, addictions, or the stress of trying to fit in with peers. 

 

Long-term bonds have been created by offering a listening ear and a helping hand. Because we can relate to them, there has been a spark in the development of the discipleship process.

 

 

THE CHALLENGE ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES

 

The majority of colleges are missing the boat: they invest their money on the best professors, the best technology, and the best facilities, but they miss what their student-athletes need.

 

True, some colleges do have campus pastors or leadership development coaches, but they are overutilized. They are often in charge of multiple teams and rarely have the time to invest deeply in relationships. Jesus had twelve disciples, but we expect these campus pastors to disciple hundreds.

 

It doesn’t work.

 

Robin Dunbar has proven her theory (Dunbar’s Number) based on data that humans can only maintain between 5-15 deep relationships.  So why don’t college ministries go deep rather than wide?

 

More than ever, today’s students crave deep and meaningful relationships. They want a connection with a person who will help them navigate the challenges that college brings. They want a person they can trust that has their best interest in mind and no hidden agenda. They need someone with whom to laugh and cry, to be open and honest, and to be transparent. 

 

 

JOIN THE MOVEMENT

 

Turn2 Ministries is looking for people who believe in this mission and understand the importance of investing in the lives of student-athletes. If you would like to be involved in this, no matter the capacity, we want to hear from you.

 

This is an amazing opportunity to serve a hungry generation that is looking for an answer.

 

Billy Graham once said: “A coach will impact more people in one year than the average person will in an entire lifetime.”  This will either be good or bad.  Let’s make sure it is for the good of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

 

Now let me ask, “Who or what are you turning to?.”

“A coach will impact more people in one year than the average person will in an entire lifetime.” 

Billy Graham

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