The Marshall Co. Prayer Task Force is sponsoring a citywide gathering at the Roundhouse called “Come Together” on Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. with prayer, music and talks from local pastors.

After the Uvalde school shooting, Danielle Gudith was mourning the loss of lives as others did across the country. She said it stretched her faith. She was scared for her kids and wondered about the state of the world her family lived in. She prayed to God to take that fear away from here — she says he did.

“When he took that fear he laid this event on my heart. He told me that what the world, what Marshalltown and what our community needed was him,” Gudith said.

When she would wake up and reflect in the early morning hours the idea came together in her mind. Pack the roundhouse. Praise and worship.

“A time for the community to cry out to God and ask for healing,” she said. “Prayers of blessing over our school and community.”

Gudith was born and raised in Marshalltown, graduated from MHS in 1998 and attended Central College. She works at Pinnacle Bank, is married and has two children currently attending her MHS. She attends Grace Church. Although she became a Christian at summer vacation bible school when she was seven, she’d never felt God ask her to do something so specific until this.

As she shared her vision she was put in touch with the Marshall Co. Prayer Task Force and Kyley Leger, who has extensive marketing experience through multiple avenues including Vision Marshalltown and Trails Inc. These connections, along with others, helped turn the idea into something concrete.

“The Prayer Task Force is a powerful team who has stood beside me and helped more than I can tell you. Kyley Leger has been my partner throughout this. Without hesitation, she said yes to God’s call. She organized the Facebook event, did all the flyers and set up the promotion video, ” she said.

The 641 Project will provide the worship music, which is comprised of musicians from various churches around Marshalltown: Martin Downs, Jon Rottink, Bryan Leger and Doug Norton. Pastors Bob Kosbau, Jacob Rahrig and Steve Bensema will speak their individual messages to those in attendance.

“The goal of this event is to bring Marshalltown together — unified to praise and worship God. That means the event is for all community members, churches, denominations, families, leaders and ethnic races to come together and be encouraged with music, prayer and more,” Gudith said.

The event sponsor, the Marshall Co. Prayer Task Force, is made up of six local churches. It was formed from several local prayer teams under the direction of the National Day of Prayer leadership in Colorado Springs.

Gudith doesn’t know if Come Together will be an annual event, but she hopes so. Because so many have gotten behind her efforts and expressed enthusiasm, she is optimistic about the possibility.

“We believe this can be a gathering that will bring the sound of hope into lives and the courage to believe in healing and restoration as never before,” she said.