Nate Noss began volunteering at a local food pantry at age 11, and by the time he was 15, he started making trips to the New Life Evangelistic Center downtown and bringing food to those in need. However, at age 16, when he attended Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY), Noss wasn’t expecting for his life to be completely altered.

“During the three-day seminar, HOBY allowed me to step outside my comfort zone while being surrounded by 150 of Missouri’s best high school leaders,” said Noss, 18, a senior at Lafayette High School. “I went on to represent Missouri at the week long HOBY World Leadership Congress. A few days after returning home from the conference, I founded St. Louis Food Rescue.”

St. Louis Food Rescue, an organization that is 100 percent teenage volunteer run, became an overnight success. It has distributed about 300,000 meals worth of produce and bread, all of which would have been otherwise discarded, to shelters and food pantries. While St. Louis Food Rescue is undoubtedly a huge success, Noss admits there have been some challenges to overcome.

“The biggest challenge is my age,” he said. “When I began asking stores for their leftover bread, many did not take me seriously, and one manager even laughed at me. As I grew, I learned that age does not matter; [teens not being taken seriously due to their age] evolved into one of the reasons we are 100 percent teenage volunteer run.”

Noss has proven that people of all ages can make a difference, as long as they’re willing to face their challenges head-on.

“I look forward to [volunteering] all day; sure it fulfills my requirement, but I am doing something good for the community,” one volunteer said.

Sam Pepose , vice president of St. Louis Food Rescue, says it’s important for leaders to be passionate about what they’re preaching, and Noss is definitely not lacking passion.

“He lives and breathes helping the hungry in our community,” Pepose said.

“When you hear Nate speak, you know he deeply cares about the subject. That has earned him a lot of respect in the St. Louis area.”

As his senior year in high school comes to a close, Noss is looking for the next generation of leaders for St. Louis Food Rescue. He wants only teen volunteers to continue to run the organization, and has already identified a group of juniors and sophomores who will take over after he leaves.

“Youth need more opportunities to volunteer and be leaders, and since I have the opportunity to pass the torch on, that is what I will do,” Noss said.

Although he is still in his teens, Noss is proof that dreams know no age limit, especially when fueled by unwavering determination and enthusiasm. He relates his mission to feed the hungry back to his Jewish roots, and to Israel. The act of doing good deeds, mitzvahs, has always motivated him.

Noss was recently accepted to the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, and will be leaving for Haifa this July.

“I have encountered many challenges that have been difficult, complicated, and demanding,” Noss said.

“But I have managed to overcome every single one and am prepared for the next journey in my life.”