Faith guides Myerstown teen’s donations to Lebanon-area charitable organizations

Caleb Nolt is a firm believer in practicing his faith through his actions. 

For the past two years, the Myerstown teenager has lived his faith by donating $48,000 to several area charities through the livestock sale of his steers at the annual Lebanon Area Fair. Three years ago, he was part of the county’s dairy beef 4-H club that also donated proceeds from that sale – another $20,000 – to the Lebanon Rescue Mission.

“My parents and my family, we’re a God-loving, Christian family and we’ve been given these opportunities to give back to the community, and it is great that we are able to do so,” Nolt said.

In 2024, Nolt donated $28,000 Lebanon County Christian Ministries (LCCM) from the sale of the steer he raised. This year, he evenly split the $20,000 sale proceeds for a donation to Lebanon County-based Jubilee Ministries and to Penn State Health in Hershey for Crohn’s disease research.

The meat from last year’s steer was also donated to LCCM. This year, the charity to receive the meat remains unknown since that animal is still being raised. A tentative butcher date for that steer is February, according to Nolt. 

Ryan Newswanger, chief executive officer for Jubilee Ministries, said his organization is grateful for Nolt’s generous donation. He said Jubilee Ministries exists to serve those affected by incarceration by being ambassadors of life change through the gospel.

“It’s very impressive to see someone his age have such a heart of generosity and service to his community is amazing,” Newswanger said. “So it’s a big credit to Caleb and his family and the values that he was raised in.”

Newswanger said Jubilee Ministries has 18 chaplains working in 12 county and state prisons across Pennsylvania, reaching thousands of inmates annually. 

“We serve in two ways, providing chaplains in prisons and aftercare programs for people being released. And so what we’re really about is life change through the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Newswanger said. “So those funds help support that mission and literally a chaplain being in a prison, introducing someone to Jesus and having that person have their life be transformed.”

Newswanger added that he appreciates how the community came together to support Caleb’s donation by purchasing his steer.

“I just want to express thanks to Caleb, his family and then also to those who sponsored that sale and bought and donated the steer,” Newswanger said. “There was a group that came together to do that, including Wengers (Foundation), Bell & Evans, the Alera group, K&K Feeds and Woodland Contractors.”

Nolt said he has a special interest in Crohn’s disease research. He was diagnosed with it in 2020, and that was a guiding factor in deciding to split this year’s donation to two charitable organizations. Crohn’s disease attacks an individual’s digestive tract. 

“I think one of the biggest things for me is just people realizing about chronic disease and how it’s affected me,” Nolt, the son of Duane and Kathy Nolt, said. “That’s something that I hold so dear to my heart that I really wanted to give back and be appreciative of the research and what they’re doing down there at Hershey Med and Penn State Health. So I think that’s a big factor of why I continue to give back.”

The doctor at Penn State Health who was most qualified to speak on Nolt’s donation was unavailable for comment.

Nolt, who recently passed the five-year anniversary of his diagnosis on Aug. 9, 2020, said it’s been a tough road.

“It’s a long journey, I’ll tell you for sure. Back in 2019, I suffered severe symptoms of Crohn’s disease going through lots of appetite issues, gaining weight, nausea, lots of tests, hundreds of doctors appointments and then in August of 2020 I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease,” Nolt said.

The 2025 fair is one that Nolt said he will never forget but because he was dealing with a bout of Crohn’s in the days leading up to the fair.

“I don’t think many people know this, but last year I was in the hospital for three nights and four days. Literally two days before weigh-in for fair and I came home that Friday morning and we loaded up Friday night and went to the fair, and that’s probably a fair I’ll never forget,” Nolt said. “I was not at the fair much but my siblings really stepped in, friends and family really stepped in to make sure my animals were taken care of. I was at home resting a lot because those days in the hospital really kicked my butt.”

Nolt said research into the disease has a special place in his heart since he is a clinical patient at Penn State Health.

“Some cases are considered unique. My doctor just informed me a couple years ago that my case has been ultra unique just because of the way I’ve dealt with it, the way my body reacted to it,” Nolt said. “So I’m part of the Crohn’s research program.

“They don’t take everyone’s case into the program, but those that they’re really trying to understand how can we treat this better? How do we go about this? So being a part of the research program is something that I really invest in and I want to be invested in. Therefore, that’s why half of my proceeds are going to that foundation because the end goal, just like any other, you know, chronic illness or disease is to find a cure someday.” 

The 18-year-old Nolt, a 2025 ELCO High School graduate, said he will attend Ohio State University this fall to major in animal science with a specialty in beef production and management. Additionally, he’ll be on a scholarship for the collegiate livestock judging team.

Since he’s 18, he’s aged out of the county’s 4-H program, meaning he’ll be unable to make another donation next summer via the livestock auction. 

However, he hopes his example will live on through other club members. It should be noted that many youths use the proceeds to further their education or, while still in the club, purchase new animals to raise as they learn about agricultural practices during their club membership.

“I’m gonna really hope and pray that someone will continue to do this because while I don’t want kids to feel obligated because that’s not at all what’s going on but if they have an organization or anything they want to give back to, I want these kids to know that it’s okay to give back, to reach out. Make sure that if you have something you want to do, there’s nothing stopping them from achieving their goals,” Nolt said. “I think that’s just a big part of it.”

Despite being out of 4-H, he said he’ll still seek ways to give back to others.

“I know there’s other ways to give back to organizations but having an animal to donate is something that I’ve aged out of,” he said. “I’m definitely going to seek other opportunities and other interests because I want to continue to do that. I’m gonna seek other opportunities and chances to do so.”