InterServ is a United Way Community Partner. Other Partners include: United Women of Faith and the Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church, The Heartland Presbytery (PCUSA); The Missouri Mid-South Conference of the United Church of Christ; St. Joseph Community Development; and the USDA - The USDA is an equal opportunity employer and provider, MO General Revenue & DHSS/ Division of Senior & Disability Services through the Older Americans Act of 1965 and a contract with Young at Heart Resources, Inc.; and a contract with Second Harvest of Greater St. Joseph.
InterServ Youth Programs
21st Century Learning Center
Southside Youth 21st Century Learning Center
During the school year: Monday-Friday - Mornings 6:00 am ($5 cost) - After School 3 pm - 6pm (free).
The Wesley Weightlifters
A part of that Program is an Olympic weightlifting program, Team Wesley, that has produced numerous national champions, United States Olympic Weightlifting Team members and world-class youth who know the value of hard work to achieve their goals in sports and in life.
The name “Wesley Weightlifters” originated from our two time Olympic weightlifter Wes Barnett. Barnett earned silver and bronze medals in 1997 world championships in Chang mai, Thailand. His coach Dennis Sneethen continues coaching young Olympians and is our Fitness and Weightlifting Director. Wes Barnett now lives in Colorado and continues to support Dennis & InterServs mission by serving as a InterServ Foundation board member.
Big dreams are often born in simple beginnings. So it is with the Wesley Weightlifters of InterServ in St. Joseph, MO. Beginning a weightlifting program in the corner of the Wesley gym, Jon Carr, a volunteer coach, started paved the road to the Olympics for local youth in 1978. The club hit hard times in 1983 when Carr’s work schedule forced him to withdraw as coach. Only one team member remained when Dennis Snethen, current Youth Director at InterServ, took over and began rebuilding Team Wesley. The days with only a handful of lifters working out in the corner of the gym are now shadowed by a program that trains over 130 boys and girls ages 10 and older.
Younger athletes have seen living proof of what hard work can do and many of them have champion-sized dreams for the future. There have been too many youth to name who have been a part of the Wesley Weightlifters and have gone on to become model citizens. Youth who decide to travel with Team Wesley and “go for the gold” must maintain a 2.5 grade point average, not miss more than two days of school per semester, and avoid drugs and alcohol. These demands nurture self-discipline and a work ethic that will sustain them for a lifetime. The rewards go beyond ribbons and trophies to self-confidence and self-esteem and the dedication and love of the sport can last a lifetime.
Each day after school you can hear the clang of weights echoing throughout the InterServ weightroom. It is the sound of hard work, dedication, and dreams. You can also hear the sound of Dennis Snethen, urging, coaching, teaching; and yes, sometimes yelling to be heard over the clanging weights. If you visit the InterServ weightroom, what you will see first are the trophies, plaques, and posters from across the United States and around the world where Team Wesley has competed and won. What you may not see is the real success of this program—the youth that have been able to become successful not only at lifting weights, but at life. Striving for the Olympics is admirable, winning trophies is great, traveling to meets is fun; but developing a strong character—learning how to be dedicated and achieve goals—is a far greater skill to pass on to generations of youth. At InterServ, and in life, that is the true measure of a champion.
