Learning to See: A Summer with Project 658
9/8/2026 8:44:00 AM | Spiritual Formation
Each summer, Lipscomb Athletics Spiritual Formation offers student-athletes the opportunity to intern with Project 658 Nashville, a nonprofit that supports at-risk families, particularly within Nashville's international and refugee communities.
The internship includes a retreat, a VBS-style summer school for Project 658 families, one-on-one tutoring, sports camps, leadership and spiritual training activities, prayer and time spent building relationships. Throughout the summer, student-athletes are given opportunities to serve others, grow as leaders and see how God is working in their lives and throughout Nashville.
For Anna Claire Brown, sophomore volleyball player from Texas, the summer became a lesson in slowing down and noticing what God was already doing. "Over the last few months, I have learned that sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is become still enough to recognize what God is already doing. I entered this summer with expectations, questions, and a desire for God to move, but I did not know what that would look like. I thought I would be serving the kids, investing in their lives, and hopefully making some kind of difference. Instead, God continually reminded me that this summer was never dependent on what I could accomplish. It was about making room for Him to work—in the kids, in the families, in the people serving, and in me."
Junior Neeley Giessinger, also from Texas, learned to recognize God in the ordinary moments of the summer."I realized that the pages in my journal weren't filled with extraordinary events but ordinary moments where God taught me to notice. A forgotten Bible, a front porch, a wooden cross, the other interns, a baby bird, stopped traffic, became the very moments where God revealed His heart and showed me that this summer had nothing to do with how much we were able to accomplish. It was about the God we encountered through it. This summer opened my eyes to not only recognize God in the big moments but in the ordinary, unexpected ones. Project 658 did not simply teach me how to serve. It taught me how to see. Thank you Jesus for summer 2026 and for 658!"
The summer also helped the interns understand the importance of prayer, hope and loving the people God placed in front of them. For senior soccer player from North Carolina, Noah Kump, he shared, "One of the biggest things that I learned during 658 and continue to learn is the power of praying to a powerful God. I loved how much we prayed. I love how prayer is a weapon for good for believers. There were many people we met with 658 that it was also amazing and inspiring to see how God was working in every person's life and the deep and intimate relationships he has with every single one of us."
Tatum Ahlemeyer, junior soccer player from Alabama, described the summer as an opportunity to better understand what it means to live a "cross-shaped" life. "God began to reveal what would become a repeated theme throughout the summer— the reality of living a 'cross-shaped' life. Yes, there was grief and being broken and feeling the weight of it all. But above and beyond, and deeper still, an eternal weight of glory and joy and hope beyond all comparison!! I got to experience deeper glimpses of life, and life to the full; a cross-shaped life, learning to walk with the One who faithfully lived out His."
For Mikey Polizzi, senior runner from Illinois, the internship showed him the importance of loving the person directly in front of him. "This summer I saw that sometimes, the 'purpose of life' is simply loving the person right in front of you as best as you can. We're all just looking for something to hold onto, and looking to be seen, and this summer more than ever I saw that the only thing that will satisfy those longings, is Christ. From seeing the true lives that these refugee families have to go through on a daily basis, to experiencing the kindness and hospitality of those who support Project 658, they all lead towards one simple answer. Christ is our father, who loves us, who wants us, who sees us and hears us, and once we understand that, we are truly alive."
The lasting impact of Project 658 can also be seen in the former interns who now help lead the program. Addison Pelham ('25), assistant director of spiritual formation for Lipscomb Athletics, served with Project 658 for three summers as a Lipscomb volleyball student-athlete. She describes the internships as invitations to step out of her comfort zone to "learn what the Lord is doing right here in Nashville – both in my heart and life and in the lives and hearts of refugees in our city."
"This summer, I was no longer the athlete, still in school and playing my sport. I got to step back, help lead the team, and watch each of the interns come alive in the same way I did three years ago during my first summer as a 658 intern. I can think of nothing more rewarding than seeing them experience the same joy and purpose that it unlocked in me."
Mackenzie Barnett ('25), a former Lipscomb women's cross country and track and field student-athlete who now serves as an assistant coach, also returned to help lead the interns and support the tutoring program.
"I had the privilege of serving as an intern with Project 658 Nashville three summers ago. My time as an intern profoundly transformed my life. Before becoming an intern, I was a Christian committed to following Jesus, but the Lord encountered me in new ways and taught me more about His character through Project 658, inspiring me to live my life fully on mission surrendered to the Lord. This summer, I had the opportunity to assess each child and identify the academic skills that needed the most attention. I then paired each intern with a child and provided support and strategies to help the intern work with the child and meet their specific learning needs. Watching the interns faithfully invest in these children was incredibly encouraging"
Project 658 gives Lipscomb student-athletes more than an opportunity to serve during the summer. It gives them space to grow in their faith, develop as leaders, build meaningful relationships and discover how God can use their gifts to love others. Through serving, tutoring, camps, prayer and ordinary moments, the interns learned not only how to serve, but how to more clearly see God at work around them.
The internship includes a retreat, a VBS-style summer school for Project 658 families, one-on-one tutoring, sports camps, leadership and spiritual training activities, prayer and time spent building relationships. Throughout the summer, student-athletes are given opportunities to serve others, grow as leaders and see how God is working in their lives and throughout Nashville.
For Anna Claire Brown, sophomore volleyball player from Texas, the summer became a lesson in slowing down and noticing what God was already doing. "Over the last few months, I have learned that sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is become still enough to recognize what God is already doing. I entered this summer with expectations, questions, and a desire for God to move, but I did not know what that would look like. I thought I would be serving the kids, investing in their lives, and hopefully making some kind of difference. Instead, God continually reminded me that this summer was never dependent on what I could accomplish. It was about making room for Him to work—in the kids, in the families, in the people serving, and in me."
Junior Neeley Giessinger, also from Texas, learned to recognize God in the ordinary moments of the summer."I realized that the pages in my journal weren't filled with extraordinary events but ordinary moments where God taught me to notice. A forgotten Bible, a front porch, a wooden cross, the other interns, a baby bird, stopped traffic, became the very moments where God revealed His heart and showed me that this summer had nothing to do with how much we were able to accomplish. It was about the God we encountered through it. This summer opened my eyes to not only recognize God in the big moments but in the ordinary, unexpected ones. Project 658 did not simply teach me how to serve. It taught me how to see. Thank you Jesus for summer 2026 and for 658!"
The summer also helped the interns understand the importance of prayer, hope and loving the people God placed in front of them. For senior soccer player from North Carolina, Noah Kump, he shared, "One of the biggest things that I learned during 658 and continue to learn is the power of praying to a powerful God. I loved how much we prayed. I love how prayer is a weapon for good for believers. There were many people we met with 658 that it was also amazing and inspiring to see how God was working in every person's life and the deep and intimate relationships he has with every single one of us."
Tatum Ahlemeyer, junior soccer player from Alabama, described the summer as an opportunity to better understand what it means to live a "cross-shaped" life. "God began to reveal what would become a repeated theme throughout the summer— the reality of living a 'cross-shaped' life. Yes, there was grief and being broken and feeling the weight of it all. But above and beyond, and deeper still, an eternal weight of glory and joy and hope beyond all comparison!! I got to experience deeper glimpses of life, and life to the full; a cross-shaped life, learning to walk with the One who faithfully lived out His."
For Mikey Polizzi, senior runner from Illinois, the internship showed him the importance of loving the person directly in front of him. "This summer I saw that sometimes, the 'purpose of life' is simply loving the person right in front of you as best as you can. We're all just looking for something to hold onto, and looking to be seen, and this summer more than ever I saw that the only thing that will satisfy those longings, is Christ. From seeing the true lives that these refugee families have to go through on a daily basis, to experiencing the kindness and hospitality of those who support Project 658, they all lead towards one simple answer. Christ is our father, who loves us, who wants us, who sees us and hears us, and once we understand that, we are truly alive."
The lasting impact of Project 658 can also be seen in the former interns who now help lead the program. Addison Pelham ('25), assistant director of spiritual formation for Lipscomb Athletics, served with Project 658 for three summers as a Lipscomb volleyball student-athlete. She describes the internships as invitations to step out of her comfort zone to "learn what the Lord is doing right here in Nashville – both in my heart and life and in the lives and hearts of refugees in our city."
"This summer, I was no longer the athlete, still in school and playing my sport. I got to step back, help lead the team, and watch each of the interns come alive in the same way I did three years ago during my first summer as a 658 intern. I can think of nothing more rewarding than seeing them experience the same joy and purpose that it unlocked in me."
Mackenzie Barnett ('25), a former Lipscomb women's cross country and track and field student-athlete who now serves as an assistant coach, also returned to help lead the interns and support the tutoring program.
"I had the privilege of serving as an intern with Project 658 Nashville three summers ago. My time as an intern profoundly transformed my life. Before becoming an intern, I was a Christian committed to following Jesus, but the Lord encountered me in new ways and taught me more about His character through Project 658, inspiring me to live my life fully on mission surrendered to the Lord. This summer, I had the opportunity to assess each child and identify the academic skills that needed the most attention. I then paired each intern with a child and provided support and strategies to help the intern work with the child and meet their specific learning needs. Watching the interns faithfully invest in these children was incredibly encouraging"
Project 658 gives Lipscomb student-athletes more than an opportunity to serve during the summer. It gives them space to grow in their faith, develop as leaders, build meaningful relationships and discover how God can use their gifts to love others. Through serving, tutoring, camps, prayer and ordinary moments, the interns learned not only how to serve, but how to more clearly see God at work around them.
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Sunday, September 06
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