Testimonials

Hannah

Senior, Class of 2016

I am a firm believer in the idea that one’s environment makes a huge impact on their character and growth. There is no doubt in my mind that God placed me at Eastern Christian High School my junior year for a reason. I had been challenged academically before, but transferring to EC came with new challenges that engaged my mind, nurtured my spirit, and prepared me to transform the world, just like their motto upholds. Classes not only challenged me academically, they have changed my worldview. Learning about history was not about getting a good grade, but rather made me think about how my life today has been impacted by great men and women who have gone before me. I am encouraged to not be satisfied living an ordinary life, but rather one that will inspire students like me in years to come to take stands for their values, to stay updated on current events, and to live for something bigger than themselves.

Eastern Christian offered me opportunities to share my own unique voice through SOAR, Connection Groups, Choir, and Cross Country and track teams. Through seasonal concerts and talent shows I have been challenged to jump out of my comfort zone and become confident in myself and my abilities. At EC I felt like my individual voice was something of extreme value and was never overshadowed. Through discussion-based classes, I was able to speak my opinion without fear of judgement and I was able to learn to listen with an open mind and a discerning heart. By the example of those in authority at Eastern Christian, I have been encouraged in my faith and have been given the opportunity to go to Guatemala and Lynn, MA on mission trips. Wednesday mornings became one of my favorite parts of every week because Chapel was not only a refreshing break from a challenging week, it also served as a time where I was convicted and also encouraged in my faith.

Academics and extracurricular activities at Eastern Christian have engaged the mind and have nurtured the spirit in me these past two years. As I head off to college, I feel confident, comfortable, and excited to do my part in transforming the world.

James

Curry College

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
Eastern Christian has a great environment that really nurtures student learning. From my experience, every teacher is ready to go above and beyond for any student that may be struggling. I also enjoy the close knit community of Eastern Christian and how easy it is to see God’s work being done.

Describe one of your favorite teachers and tell why he/she is a favorite.
My favorite teacher would have to be Mr. Apol. He is not only very knowledgeable about the history that he teaches but he also challenges students to think differently about the world around them. He consistently models his Christian faith and is never afraid to “tell it like it is”.

In what ways have you grown in your faith as a result of your experience at Eastern Christian School?
Eastern Christian really started me on my walk with God. I feel that my faith has deepened greatly since attending this school and I know I will continue down God’s path for me in the future thanks to EC.

The Eastern Christian tagline is “Engaging. Nurturing. Transforming.” How did you experience an education that is engaging, nurturing and transforming at EC?
EC engaged me to think about the world through a Christ centered perspective, nurtured my faith and education, and transformed me to be able to go out into the world with faith and confidence.

How do you feel that EC prepared you for graduation, college and life?
EC teachers have always been honest about what colleges expect from students and have geared our education toward doing the best that we can. Additionally, the people in the college and career office have been extremely helpful in helping myself and other students navigate the process of applying to colleges.

What would you say to a high school student considering joining Eastern Christian School?
I would tell that student that they are fortunate to have found EC because of the great learning environment.

What opportunities did you experience at EC that you don’t think you would have gotten to experience anywhere else?
The close knit and spiritual driven environment I feel is really unique to EC. There isn’t as much of a disconnect between faculty in students that you may find in other schools.

Kathryn

Class of 2014

An excerpt shared at the 2016 Alumni Chapel.

Thankfulness has been tough for me these past few weeks. In the aftermath of the election (2016) I have witnessed expressions of extreme intolerance and hate from members of both political parties. I have wept alongside people who feel threatened not necessarily by President-Elect Trump, but by dangerous ideologies that have been exposed and are spreading. And I have been disheartened at the division that threatens to conquer my church community, my school, my friendships, and even my family. But friends, it is times when we are most hopeless, and have the most fear, that we must remember who our God is and be thankful.

So what can I be thankful for? The first thing I’m thankful for is that EC taught me how to think for myself. I was taught that I am not merely the product of the society I was raised in, but have been uniquely designed by God with the ability to decide what I believe. At EC, I was asked about my position on topics like the death penalty, immigration and abortion and why I believed those things. I was asked to articulate my faith and to defend it. And this challenge, to ask WHY and to discern, has been especially important in college. Questions about how to treat the LGBT + community, or about sexual purity, or about how to respond to undocumented migrants are no longer theoretical but real and relevant. And I can thank EC for teaching me to make my own, faith-informed decisions.

I am also thankful for EC’s emphasis on a Christian worldview. I know it sounds cheesy, but in all earnestness, the fact that everything from academics to athletics and music are rooted in a desire to honor God is HUGE. The fact that we began classes, track meets, or musical performances in prayer, that’s HUGE. The fact that we could sit in Physics and discuss God’s grandeur or learn about the Civil Rights Movement from a Christ-oriented perspective, that’s life-forming. At the time, I know I took it for granted. But that constant practice of glorifying God in every endeavor has been incredibly formative during my time in college.

Not that we’re less intentional about faith at my school, but it’s much more your own choice. If you want to discuss faith in Literature class, sometimes you have to be the one to bring it up. If you want to pray before you lead your worship team, that’s on you. I’m incredibly grateful to EC for constantly bringing my heart and mind back to why we do things, and for whom. After all, we serve a great God, don’t we? Think about where you are right now. Maybe the friends you’re sitting next to. The family you get to go home to. The school work you’re dreading but that shapes you and strengthens your mind. We have so much to be grateful for, and a great God to be grateful to. So that’s what I’d like to leave you with this Thanksgiving. Remember who your God is, remember unique mind and countless other gifts he’s given you, and thank Him, no matter the circumstance.

Barry Veenstra

Athletic Director & PE Teacher

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
The Christian community and common sense of purpose.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
After spending 7 years in the world of sales and marketing out of New York, in which the only goal and reward had to do with profit margin, becoming a teacher brought the sense of purpose and fulfillment that had been missing in my life.

How do you teach a Christian Worldview in your classes at EC?
I cannot imagine teaching topics like personal health and fitness, exercise science, human sexuality, stress management, nutrition, or character education from any other perspective. To omit God and faith in Christ from the discussion would be to teach only a partial truth.

What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
I am passionate about music and enjoy using/referencing it often in class.

What sets EC students apart from students in other schools?
Frankly, they are the type of kids I wanted my children to spend their formative years surrounded by, and are a big part of why my wife and I sacrificed to send four to EC from pre-K through high school.

The Eastern Christian tagline is “Engaging. Nurturing. Transforming.” How do you accomplish this in your role at EC?
As a coach I have the privilege of watching our players set the standard for sportsmanship as they remain competitive in league standings with mostly public schools. When they invite opponents to pray together after games, I believe I am witnessing the transformation of a sports crazed culture that puts too much emphasis on winning and self glory, and not enough on respect, humility, and using sport to bring glory to God.

Leah Genuario

Teacher

What do you teach at Eastern Christian School?
I teach journalism, yearbook and essay workshop. I’m also the Herald editor.

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
I have been impressed with this school system from all angles–as a student, a parent, and now most recently, as a teacher. The school embodies what I believe it means to be a Christian learning community. Not only is a biblical worldview infused through curriculum and activities, the school staff is a loving, caring group of people who truly work with excellence in mind.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
I enjoy investing in the lives of younger people and see it as a ministry. I have found much joy in my prior profession as a journalist, and it is exciting to cultivate those gifts in others. I would like to be a teacher who encourages students to recognize their God-given talent and spurs them on to strengthen those skills.

How do you teach a Christian Worldview in your classes at EC?
Our Christianity should inform everything we do. That means we work with excellence, examine if our topics educate and inspire, and seek to treat our interviewees with dignity and respect. As part of student journalism training, we look at business ethics models, as well as examine article topics in the light of Philippians 4:8. It is very important to me that our students understand that our Christian faith comes into play in everything we do–whether it’s double-checking the spelling of a name because we would want our name to be spelled correctly, all the way through putting in extra effort to build a case for the historicity of Jesus in our investigative reporting unit.

What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
I think I’m unique in that I worked in the field I now teach in.

The Eastern Christian tagline is “Engaging. Nurturing. Transforming.” How do you accomplish this in your role at EC?
Engaging the mind–Better writing, interpersonal and layout skills!

Nurturing the spirit–Recognizing and affirming the talents I see. Treating every student as a valued student and encouraging everyone to excel.

Transforming the World–Focusing on article topics that elevate conversation.

Dawn Heerema

High School Finance and English Teacher

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
I love that the adults’ role models are extensions of the home. Their personal attention and love goes beyond the classroom. Academics are still varied, and the schools offer a mixture of ability and options. It is small enough that no child is lost in the mix.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
I was a parent first, and I saw the care and nurturing offered by the staff to each child. I appreciated the strides to maintain academic rigor as well.

How do you teach a Christian Worldview in your classes at EC? 
With literature, there are many opportunities to present a Christian Worldview from character standpoints such as Atticus Finch, and analyzing him in a context of a Godly father or professional lawyer. In my finance class, we always take biblical perspectives in our studies. My essential question for the class is “What are you doing with the Father’s resources while He is away?”

What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
When studying literature, worldview is a key component in developing Christ-like compassion. I really enjoy teaching this and applying it to the class setting. I do not feel our job is done until the child is transformed even a little bit after being in my classroom.

What sets EC students apart from students in other schools?
Oh, the list is endless. They have hope. They are more content with who they are and what they have. They see the world as a limitless place that exists outside of their own world due to mission opportunities and life-learning. “It isn’t about them.” Of course, these are blanket statements, but I do promise that the climate of the halls compared with that of my previous teaching assignments in public schools is very different. Appearances are more streamlined and not glaringly inappropriate. The children have a warmness that comes from God and it transcends those awkward years of adolescence. At the younger schools, they are accepting of their faith and are so vocal about it, which is a joy to hear! Even the music that I hear on iPads or the little ones singing on the playground is not offensive, which is a telling sign of the success EC has with transforming this generation and not forcing them to conform to the ways of the world. Many of the parents have said, EC is worth every penny. I would agree.

What do you want your students to gain from having known you?
I want my students to see God more than anything. If they cannot learn compassion from their role models who they are with more than any other adult in their life right now, then I am not doing my job. Of course, I want them to stay out of debt and in literature of course! I want them to love challenges and learning.

Liesl Botbyl

Middle School Teacher

What do you teach at Eastern Christian School?
I teach 7th and 8th Grade Science.

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
Faculty that is devoted to their jobs, parents that sacrifice much so their children can get a Christian education, a community that cares for each other and is focused on one common goal.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
I have the bonus of being a teacher at Eastern Christian and a mother of two Eastern Christian students, and through these two perspectives I see God’s faithfulness to our school over the past 100+ years. To hear my daughters talk about their teachers, friends, and classes with a big smile on their faces is a blessing to me and my husband because we value the Christian perspective that is taught in every aspect of their school day; in the classroom, at school functions, and on the sports fields. I remember one of my first years teaching at the elementary school and having chills run down my spine when I heard the way those kids sang their little hearts out in chapel each week. And now as a middle school teacher, I get tears in my eyes each graduation when I realize just how much our students have grown physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually. No other job I would ever want would bring me that kind of joy! To be a part of the teaching staff where I grew up is a real blessing to me; an opportunity to give to my students what my teachers gave to me, a safe, loving, school community where we strive to be learners of this world God created for us.

How do you teach a Christian Worldview in your classes at EC?
There are many topics in the subject of Science that can be argued by Christian and non-Christian scientists, and it is so important that our students can use their faith to explain the work of an awesome and powerful Creator. Taking time to be in wonder and awe of every detail of science is an important part of my classroom perspective. From the microscopic cell that first formed us, to the expanse of the universe where we will never understand the importance of being stewards of God’s creation, are some of my favorite concepts to discuss with students.

What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
I struggled as a student in the sense that I had to work hard for my grades and I try very hard to make sure that every student in my classroom has the potential to do their very best and to feel successful throughout the year.

What sets EC students apart from students in other schools?
While they certainly aren’t perfect, and middle schoolers are certainly the typical teenagers, our kids truly are caring and loving. They welcome new students to their class, they enthusiastically serve in the community and they desire to spread God’s love to the world.

What do you want your students to gain from having known you?
While I certainly want my students to gain a better understanding of the science world, I think there are more important things that I can teach them while teaching them science. I pray that I can be a role model to all of my students in the way that I chose to live my life, exhibiting the fruits of the spirit from day to day. The grades they get in my class won’t really matter in the long run, but the “skills” they need to be Christ’s disciples are much more important as they grow up and interact with the world around them.

Sarah Vander Wall

Preschool Teacher

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
I love that at Eastern Christian the entire school day is centered around the Word of God, and that students are taught from the earliest age that God loves them, and has a plan for their lives.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
I love teaching at Eastern Christian because I can use my gifts as a teacher to fulfill Christ’s command in the Great Commission to “make disciples.” It is a great privilege to play a part in leading young students to Christ.

What sets EC students apart from students in other schools?
By the time students graduate from Eastern Christian school, they have been taught not just math, science, Bible, spelling and social studies, but how to be a follower of Christ in a broken world. EC students are prepared to take what they have learned and use it for the glory of God, and the advance of His kingdom.

What do you want your students to gain from having known you?
I want my students to see that I strive in every way to be an imitator of God. I want my kids to see Christ’s love through me.

Rob Flim

Middle & High School Band Director

What do you love about Eastern Christian School?
I really appreciate the environment I work in. The administration and staff are very supportive of the music department. I especially appreciate working with the students in all the grade levels.

Why do you like teaching at Eastern Christian? What motivated you to become a teacher at Eastern Christian?
We have an awesome responsibility to teach our students ‘in the way they should go’, revealing God’s wonderful world in all we teach. I want to be a part of that. Students and parents are generally supportive and encouraging towards the music department.

What is a unique experience, talent or interest that you bring to your classroom to help shape the learning experience of your students?
Enthusiasm, energy, and excitement, is contagious and I try to present myself that way to my students. I try to be encouraging to my students, pushing them to keep going and to give their best.

What sets EC students apart from students in other schools?
In general, EC students are aware that they are part of a caring community that desires to look at the interests and well-being of others. EC students are polite and respectful towards each other and to the faculty.

What do you want your students to gain from having known you?
I want my students to discover and appreciate God’s amazing gift of music. I want them to enjoy music and to appreciate its role in their lives and in the world they live in.

Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself?
I’m Canadian and love winter!