Legacy Christian Academy

The Inaugural Senior Mission Trip to Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic

For the first time in Legacy Christian Academy’s history, the senior class of 2024 had the opportunity to go to Jarabacoa in the Dominican Republic for a mission trip included within their tuition.

Legacy partnered with Student International, an organization dedicated to connecting short term mission trip teams with missionaries who are already working full-time in the international mission field. What this means is that during the week, all of our student were divided into small groups and mentored by a missionary in unique occupational areas including:

Dentistry | Physical Therapy | Health Care | Women’s Social Work | Education | Special Education | Media & Communications | Baseball | Volleyball | Microfinance

Culturally, the Dominican Republic is extremely relational, so much so that Todd Kardell, Legacy’s High School Student Life Coordinator, observed that every day when students came back to the Student International base at the end of a day of serving,

They didn’t share what they were doing every day; they shared who they were with.

This is because of the unique model that Student International offers. Legacy seniors walked alongside missionaries for one week, entering homes, meeting families, sharing testimonies and devotionals, caring for the community, and seeing how God is already moving in Jarabacoa.

Click on the video below to watch the recap of the week!

From the Health Care site, Ava Stel ‘24 shares,

The thing that has impacted me the most is seeing other peoples’ joy despite having major medical and physical problems. So many people still had a joy for simply being alive and knowing the Lord.

From the Women’s Social Work site at El Callejon, Paige Heppner ‘24 shares,

Making an impact on the women and kids that I met was actually more challenging than I thought it would be because of the language barrier, but throughout the week I learned to see beyond myself and remember this is for them and not for me.

The goal of the Senior Mission Trip is for our Legacy Seniors to put their Biblically-grounded faith into action as disciples of Christ in a very direct and tangible way. The week gave our Legacy Seniors the opportunity to live as God-glorifying, Spirit-led worshippers in all that they did. Ultimately, it was a week for our Legacy Seniors to be faithful and courageous by leading through Christ-centered service.

Still Want More? Read the daily updates that were sent home to parents below!

Sunday, Day 1

We’ve Arrived in Jarabacoa! We are Safe, Fed, and Happy!

Hello from Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic!

We have all landed safely and are thankful for a meal (spaghetti!) and an early bedtime! No surprise that the most common comment this morning at the Minneapolis Airport (at 3:30am) was “I’m tired, but I’m excited.”

Throughout the day, our students snoozed on the plane, on the floor, in chairs, but still managed to show their excitement despite the fatigue.

Smiles. Camaraderie at 3:30am. Anticipation of what’s to come.

As chaperones, we are thrilled to be journeying with your child this week. What a blessing and delight.

As always, we covet your prayers. Tomorrow is an early start – orientation, breakfast, and then each team heads off to their site for the day.

But for now, goodnight.

Monday, day 2

You wouldn’t believe the stories our students shared over a meal of la bandera for dinner (an authentic Dominican meal of chicken, rice, red beans, and salad). Here are a few highlights that I both heard and had the opportunity to watch today while traveling from site to site.

Our micro finance group spent the morning making bread alongside the women who are building out a bakery business. One of our women’s social work teams spent an afternoon on a woman’s porch eating ice cream and listening to her share the heart of their Haitian-influenced community. Our education sites made more crafts than you could count, many of which were Christmas decorations — poinsettias, ornaments, snowflakes — as they prepare their hearts for the season. And our health care team? They had the opportunity to be in the delivery room of a Haitian woman as she gave birth to a baby boy. All three of our students held the infant just minutes after he was born. And this was only day one.

We ended the day learning the Merengue and Bachata, line dancing, dancing with partners, and even competing in the original Hispanic styles.

The things our students shared they are thankful for today: leaders, teachers, birth and life, and family.

tuesday, day 3

We began and ended our day in worship. This morning we worshipped in personal devotions, student-led worship, and a chapel message from Pastor Benjamin (pronounced ben-ha-MEEN). Tonight we gathered for worship in song, painting, coloring, journaling, Bible reading, and foot washing. As an adult who has been a Christian for many years, your children, our students, brought me to tears many times today because of their heart of worship.

The wonderful thing about this place and experience is that that heart of worship carries through the entire day. When our Physical Therapy group was tossing exercise balls with patients to strengthen their arms, they were worshipping. When our Appropriate Technology team was hand mixing and pouring concrete for a water filter, they were worshipping. When our education students were tackled again (and again) by little ones, they were worshipping. When members of our Microfinance Team were sharing their testimonies in Mama Lele’s home, they were worshipping. When our Volleyball Team was bump, setting, and spiking with a local school’s varsity volleyball team, they were worshipping.

That is the remarkable thing about serving. All is worship.

wednesday, day 4

Many of our students came into this trip with very little Spanish under their belt. Hola! Gracias! And maybe Denada! to get them through the day. But something has changed here in three days. It’s what I’ve come to call putting a face to a language. That is the beauty of being submerged in a culture. They are listening to Spanish all day. They are strategically learning phrases that they need to know to get through the day, and, even better, we are now ending our nights as English speakers with Buenos noches! Adios! Nos vemos manana!

Tonight, we had the privilege of being invited into community homes for dinner. Most of the homes were the Student International site leaders or friends/family of site leaders. Not only is there a face to this language we are learning, but there is a home too. Our students met families and children, they met mothers and fathers, and they met friends. My media group ended the evening on our site leader’s porch singing worship songs with his sister in both English and Spanish. I believe, somewhere between the crickets and the reverberation of the guitar and our voices, we experienced a true taste of eternity.

This is a language that I love. And I think are students are learning to love it too.

Tonight, we are immensely thankful for the faces.

P.S. Tonight was so good that I almost forgot to send an email. I was too invested in a wild game of spoons with 16 seniors at a table in the dining hall. For the record, Gavin won.

Buenos noches, padres!

thursday, day 5

We are all a little tired. We are four days in, we have found a rhythm, and we have hit the place where we are not being sustained by our own strength. You can only play baseball or volleyball for so long before deep fatigue sets in! However, it was almost immediately noticeable though that the pace of life here in the Dominican is far different than American culture. There is embedded rest in every single day. Long lunch breaks. Time to sit. And most of these opportunities are prompted by relationship building. So although we are tired, we are being consistently rejuvenated by Lord-ordained rest. His grace is sufficient for us. Even when weeding strawberries in a hot greenhouse. Even when running lap after lap around the school with children. Even when carrying a cement water filter down a long flight of stairs. Even when saying good-bye (one of our sites had their last day today, and it was very hard for them). Our strength is God’s grace alone.

We also had the opportunity to think about this gospel truth from a unique perspective in the Poverty Simulation tonight. Although students had a blast in the game-like simulation and there was immense joy and laughter (imagine a life size version of the board game LIFE combined with Monopoly and a group of highly competitive students and adults – Quote of the evening, “I’ve never seen that side of Mr. Mulvihill before”), the post-simulation debrief was telling: there are incredible challenges in impoverished communities that no amount of ‘stuff’ can fix. There are challenges, exhaustion, and hard choices for families that face poverty every single day in the Dominican and around the world.

But at the end of the debrief, Eric, the Student International Site Leader, offered the students a profound depiction of the gospel – the one truth that can intersect poverty at its core. And this gospel has everything to do with grace, rest, and strength.

Which is something we all need today, tomorrow, and the next.

Tomorrow is going to be good-byes to the rest of our sites. This will be emotional for many of our students because they have built deep relationships this week. Pray for their hearts as we face this next challenge.

friday, day 6

Although we said good-bye, tonight we celebrated. All of our students, site leaders and their families, and Student International staff gathered for a final banquet tonight after our last day of serving. Students shared their experiences and highlights from the week, our media team shared a recap video, students received a final commission, and then our students encircled every single site leader, family member, and staff member to pray over the workers and missionaries that will wake up on Monday to begin another work week of caring and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ to the community of Jarabacoa.

To say we are thankful is an understatement.

Tomorrow we white water raft, hike, swim, and shop. But today we linger a little longer with our site leaders. We give hugs, we take a few more photos, we laugh over a few memories of the week, and then we say good-bye (for now — who knows what God has in store for each of our students!).

Nos vemos pronto!

Saturday, day 7

I am sitting outside of the dining hall on our last night, listening to the voices of our students praising the Lord in a semi-impromptu worship night up at the chapel, and one word is clear tonight: unity. But there are a lot of other words too: stretching, community, Christ, learning, engaging, serving, seeing, finding, walking, listening. But those are my words. Soon, you will be able to ask your own child what their words are (These words may come slow for some, in waves for others — be gentle and listen as best you can).

Today, our students had the opportunity to either hike to a waterfall or white water raft. We then spent a rainy (but fun and relaxing) afternoon at a Country Club. We ended our excursion day shopping in downtown Jarabacoa.

Our time is coming to a close and there will never be enough words to capture every moment, to share in what I saw, but, parents, I saw so much. I saw students falling in love with Jesus and falling in love with people. I saw them washing dishes. I saw them leading. I saw them praying and washing each others’ feet. I saw them worshipping. I saw them smiling. I saw them laughing. Let your prayers tonight be prayers of absolute thanksgiving to our good God.

FIRST Robotics stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principals was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Students are uniquely positioned to share evidence of how their mentors have led their team through their knowledge, dedication, and unwavering gracious support. In their own concisely written words, students nominate a team mentor by their inspiring Woodie Flowers essays. With this award, we celebrate excellence in communication in the art and science of engineering and design.

Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”. Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated this award.

At Regional and District Championship events, mentors will receive the Woodie Flowers FINALIST Award. Then at the Championships in Houston, ONE mentor will be selected from re-nominated past Finalists to receive the 2023 Championship Woodie Flowers Award.

You shared high praise for the accomplishments and dedication of your mentors and your teams. Based on your input, we now recognize the outstanding contributions of ONE mentor to the FIRST experience.

This mentor provides great inspiration, participation, and enthusiasm. He is helping his team and the teams around to constantly improve through discomfort and success. His team says he leads by example through dedication, patience, and professionalism, and provides an example that he encourages all students to pursue.

Please join us in congratulating the 2023 Lake Superior Regional Woodie Flowers FINALIST Award winner, Todd Kruse, from Team 8516!

In the midst of many Homecoming traditions…

Like the Pancake Breakfast, the Alumni Volleyball Tournament, dress-up days, an all-school pep rally, and a full schedule of basketball games, Homecoming 2023 also “welcomed home” a new organization partner.

For Homecoming 2023, Legacy partnered with Settled, a Christian non-profit that approaches local homelessness with a unique solution.

During Homecoming week, the entire school participated in a Sock Drive and the Pancake Breakfast included a free-will offering for the ministry. During the week, students also had the opportunity to hear from Rose Larson, a Missional Life Pastor through Church of the Open Door who lives in a Sacred Settlement in Maplewood.

By the time Friday’s Pep Rally came around, Legacy was bursting with socks! Those socks became a focal point of the Pep Rally games as kids attempted to throw socks into targets and buckets and scoop up as many as they could in a wild game of Hungry-Hungry Hippo!

By Saturday, the socks totaled 1,814 pairs, and our community raised $669.90 at the Pancake Breakfast.

But our story with Settled doesn’t end there.

A week later, a High School Leadership Affinity Group (groups that meet weekly to help direct students to lead Legacy in a particular area through serving, awareness, education and school-wide experiences), delivered those socks to the Sacred Settlement in Maplewood. Sharon Buffie, the High School Counselor, and Todd Kardell, the High School Student Life Coordinator, accompanied our students on this unique service-oriented field trip.

Rose Larson gave our Legacy students a tour of three of the tiny homes on the Sacred Settlement, tiny homes that are now home to five people that were once chronically homeless. They had the opportunity to meet two of the residents that live in the Sacred Settlement. And as our students listened, the two residents, Laura and Alan, shared their stories, shared their art, and shared their music.

In addition to hearing stories, our students gathered in the Settled community space to hear more about the purposeful work the residents partake in to earn part of their income. This same space is where Rose and another missional neighbor couple – an empty-nester married couple in another tiny home – share meals, watch movies together, and complete puzzles for fun with the residents who were once homeless but are now home.

Students next met Todd, the director of Walking with a Purpose, the organization that partners closely with Settled. Todd and his team spend most of their time in encampments around the Twin Cities to build relationships with those who are chronically homeless. Most of the socks donated from Legacy will be distributed through the work that Todd and his team complete alongside Settled.

The Leadership Affinity Group ended their day at the Union Gospel Mission in St. Paul, preparing and serving meals to the men who needed a meal that day. They smiled in their service, and as the line thinned, our Legacy students stepped out from behind the counter and sat down in pairs and groups to meet some of the men enjoying the last few bites of a meal.

At the very end of the day, Rose, Todd, and Sharon helped the students process what they had observed and learned throughout the day. Students were grateful for the opportunity to hear the stories of those that struggle with chronic homelessness. They loved touring the tiny homes that those once homeless now call home. And it was an incredible day of learning and seeing those who are often not seen.

And whether delivering socks, listening to a story, or serving a meal, our Legacy students were blessed with the opportunity to be the direct hands and feet of Jesus Christ.

An unedited literary work for UNW by Olivia Friesen

“The 2021-2022 school year brought new excitement to Legacy with the grand opening of the Legacy Christian Academy Café (LCA Café). From the sounds of cheerful, lighthearted baristas to the smell of hot coffee wafting from behind the counter, excited students eagerly cluster together at the LCA Café to visit throughout the day. Located directly within Legacy’s busy high school commons, the café is hard to miss. By being a warm and welcoming environment, there is no mistake that this place is buzzing with excitement. From a personal account of the LCA Café, the baristas have greatly benefited many students’ lives. Overall, the LCA Café is not only a place to stop and have a great cup of coffee, but also a place where encouraging community and long-lasting friendships can be built. The new LCA Café allows Legacy students to enjoy a welcoming and warm environment, encourages building community with other students, and builds relationships with trusted mentors and adults on the Legacy Faculty.

While the LCA Café may offer a wide variety of cold beverages, caffeinated drinks, and sugary pastries, it also provides a warm and welcoming environment for students of all ages. Early in the morning, a long line of talkative students forms outside of the café entrance. Along with an occasional laugh erupting from the baristas, the loud chatter of 20 high school students waiting in a crowded line can be heard. From the stuffed line came the soft shuffling of feet and a wave of the adolescent students’ various perfumes and body sprays. At the pickup station, students stood in crouched-over positions like young mothers with their hands full trying to stuff all of their loose change back into their billfolds. The barista placed a frozen drink on the glossy countertop, snapped on a translucent lid, and gave a warm smile. The crowds of excited high school students and the kindness of the baristas display the LCA Café as a comfortable and welcoming environment for any student to walk into. An interview with a high school student further proves how the students themselves feel welcomed and safe at the LCA Café. After being asked, “How does the café make you feel?” She promptly responded, “It is homey, and you feel welcomed and there are people who will not judge you” (R. Boone, personal communication, April 27, 2022). Rather than a loud and noisy convenience, the LCA Café is a space where students can feel welcomed.

Amongst the hubbub of the café, snippets of relationship-building conversations can be heard. While observing the space, two girls can be seen standing awkwardly with their heads down at the pick-up station waiting for their drinks. All that could be heard was the loud clamoring rustle of ice cubes being poured into a clear plastic cup. As they quickly glanced at each other the forceful, yet subtle slam of the rubber-lined cooler door interrupted their gaze. Soon after, the screeching of the blender roared as it violently crushed up the ice cubes. As the barista cracked open the blender, a whiff of chocolate can be smelled. Next to her, the petite girl giggled as she glanced first at the blender and then at the senior standing to the left of her. Their quick conversation was drowned out by upbeat Christian music playing from the overhead speakers. What may have appeared as small talk, was the first step to a blooming friendship. A seemingly overlooked fact is that the café forced these two girls to talk and thus created a new friendship. While the café was supplying their beverages, it was also supplying these two girls the opportunity to create bonds with each other. A little while later, one of the baristas, cheery-cheeked Mrs. Barker, was asked a couple of questions. Mrs. Barker gladly smiled and pointed out how she has gotten to know and learn more about the students each day. She also claimed, “The LCA Café is a gathering place where students can chat and build friendships while waiting for their drinks. Not only does it offer a caffeine boost but also encourages building community” (J. Barker, personal communication, April 27, 2022). The joyful laughter flowing from the LCA Café suggests that the Café has allowed more opportunities for community and friendships to be built.

LCA Café allows students to build relationships with trusted mentors and adults on the Legacy Faculty, specifically the baristas, as well. On a busy afternoon, a popular high school Legacy student, Eva Larson, stated how she, along with other students, has been able to create strong, healthy mentor relationships with adults at LCA. After shifting her gaze towards the café again, she shared, “Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Barker have helped me and supported me in life during the school year. They are caring and supportive. They seem like safe mother figures that I can talk to in school.” Near the end of the conversation, Eva also reported how she has, “gained more opportunities or business skills to widen her experiences and qualifications” (E. Larson, personal communication, April 27, 2022). Along with claims by other students, this is clear proof that the LCA Café has impacted and created relationships between students and faculty members.

While places like the café are assumed to simply be a spot for convenience items, the LCA café holds a crucial job of being the new focal point for building community among the classmates and bringing together both faculty and students. Without sitting down and simply observing the things taking place around the café, one may never know the depth one place or person has on another. The café is influencing safe friendships to be made between students. The LCA Café brought new excitement to Legacy Christian Academy by being a safe environment where students can get to know each other along with creating relationships between students and faculty. In the end, the LCA Café has surpassed all hopes and goals and has become exactly what it was created to become.”

This year’s prom theme, “TOP SECRET,” was a tribute to the spy genre and the 60th anniversary of the famous movie character, James Bond. Legacy students participated in the traditional Grand March and then headed to the Sports Center, which had been transformed into the French Riviera and Hotel Splendide, for the dinner and dance.

More photos coming soon!

We are honored to have our own Mr. Manske recognized for his awesome work with students on senior trip by North Shore Adventure Park in Duluth, MN. North Shore is just one of the stops on the annual trip that aims to create lasting memories for the senior class, strengthen bonds as they head into their final high school chapter and encourage growth in confidence and courageous acts.

Read more about what North Shore had to say:

https://www.northshoreadventurepark.com/post/teacher-appreciation

With all the February reading excitement, the Legacy Math Department decided it was a great time to start a March Math Madness tradition! Posters were hung to drive rich math discussion and math jokes could be found around the school. K-8 students were given daily March Math Madness tickets to complete and enter into a drawing. An estimation station allowed students to estimate various items within a container. Lastly, each K-8 classroom participated in a “Classroom March Math Madness Bracket” where students competed as they practiced their math facts. In total, 1,914 daily March Math Madness tickets were compiled! We are so proud of the way students embraced this new idea and challenged themselves. Way to go, Lions!

Class of 2022 Decisions

It’s that time of year when we get to share the plans Legacy seniors are making for their lives after graduation. Each week we hope to feature a senior in eNews and then archive their story here as we work our way towards commencement.

As we celebrate these decisions with each student, would you please join us in praying that they have open hearts and minds to the call of God on their lives?

When it came to looking for colleges, Wyatt knew he preferred the MN climate and desired to stay close to his parents while at the same time gaining the freedom of living on campus. He’s been performing in his church’s worship band since 7th grade so being at a college that has a strong music program was instrumental. Just in case he felt God calling him to pursue that path. Last summer he toured a couple of colleges and liked them both. His family has also used Legacy’s Naviance program in their college search process. He started thinking about the University of Northwestern at the beginning of his senior year. He’s had friends and family that have attended there and he likes the community. It also fits well with his desire to stay local and be at a college with a strong music program. While he’s ultimately undecided on a career path, he wants to be able to use his strengths of decision-making, strategic thinking, and problem-solving in his career. He feels that Legacy has set him up well for college. He knows what he’s capable of and he’s ready to take the next step.

Tezra started the college planning process really late, but she knew that playing volleyball was a must for her. She was at one of her volleyball games earlier this year when she met a girl that she had played against in the past who now attends the University of St. Thomas. She encouraged Tezra to consider St. Thomas, but Tezra didn’t think she was good enough to play at an NCAA DI school. On her way home from that game, she talked with her dad about it. Then at her last home game for this year, the St. Thomas coach came. He talked with Tezra’s sister and told her that he wanted Tezra to play for St. Thomas, but only if that is what she really wanted. She took the next step and attended a St. Thomas practice. Tezra noticed how nice the coach was and how he made her feel that she had something special to offer the team. The girls on the team were also super friendly and welcoming. She decided to tour the campus and sit in on a class. She was very impressed with the professor and really enjoyed the campus. Considering all of those things and the scholarship money that has been offered to her, Tezra has found her fit. She will be attending the University of St. Thomas and playing Division I volleyball, a dream come true for her.

Lauren has always been interested in helping others and knew that she needed a job in which she would be active and work with people. She has some family members who are nurses so she talked with them and started considering a variety of careers in healthcare. She’s always been drawn to her grandparents and even in her childhood, she seemed to have a deep connection with the elderly. When it came to thinking about college, Lauren wasn’t sure if she wanted to stay in-state or go out of state, but she knew she wanted a Christian college. As she loves warm winters and the state of Florida, she started looking up Christian colleges in Florida and came across Southeastern University. She ended up touring the college and fell in love with it. She immediately noticed the community and loves that the college students are encouraged to get involved with the local community. She was also down there while the college held its annual conference and it was an incredible experience. Ultimately, after much prayer, she just got the feeling that she was supposed to go there. So next school year Lauren will be enjoying sunny Florida as a student at SEU while pursuing a career in nursing with the hopes of working in the geriatrics area.

Gabbie’s college search really started with her grandma who went to the University of Northwestern and has been a long-time supporter of the college. Her grandma started mentioning it when Gabbie was in middle school, but Gabbie didn’t start to consider it seriously until her junior year of high school. That’s the time she started thinking about careers and researching the options that UNW had. When she visited in person, she thought the campus was really beautiful. But she wasn’t ready to commit because she was also seriously considering another college in a warmer climate. She spent a lot of time weighing various factors such as the transferability of her PSEO credits, the quality of education, climate, culture, and financial aid. What ultimately pushed her in the direction of UNW was when Gabbie and her grandma prayer together asking the Lord to make the decision clear. After that prayer, she realized that UNW was going to be the right fit. She’s so grateful to have involved prayer in the decision. Her current plans are to major in Psychology and minor in Criminal Justice. After that, she hopes to attend law school or pursue a master’s in Psychology.

For quite a long time Sophie planned to attend a college in a nearby state. But once she decided on a major, she found out that that college didn’t offer it. So she had to start considering other colleges. Since she’s been at Legacy her whole life, she feels ready to try a public university. She liked the idea of being a little far away, but close enough to drive home when she wanted. She had 3 college tours lined up, but there was a snowstorm for one of them so she canceled it, then a sporting event for another one so she canceled that one too, and that left Minnesota State University – Mankato. Her grandparents live close to Mankato, her brother will be a senior at the University next year and they have her intended major of Sports Management so attending Mankato makes a lot of sense for her. She was originally thinking about being an Athletic Trainer, but after taking Anatomy and Physiology, she realized that she didn’t want to be in the medical field in any way. She still wants to work with athletes and hopes to become an Athletic Director one day. Sophie’s ready for the next step in life and looking forward to trying something new.

When Emily was a freshman, she was in the hospital for a while. The nurses were so nice to her that it inspired her to consider nursing as a career. However, between the pandemic of COVID during her Junior year and taking the Bethel University Healthcare class here at Legacy during her senior year she learned in the healthcare class and the issues with covid, she’s realized that healthcare isn’t for her. During all of this, she knew she wanted to go to a college in which she could live at home and come out being debt-free. She’s also been working at a job she loves and knows that a degree will further her opportunities at her current employment. As Emily considered all of these things in her life, she realized that attending Anoka-Ramsey Community College would be the right fit for her. Right now she’s planning to pursue something in the accounting field, but hasn’t made any final decisions yet. She’s open to what God will do in her life in the coming years and knows that He will be guiding her on the journey.

Grant has always been interested in business so that was a major factor for him as he started the college planning process. Since college is expensive, he wants to make sure he will get the most out of this experience. These factors were in mind as he started touring colleges. He toured a total of six and also talked a lot with his older brother who had toured a number of colleges as well. This gave Grant a good foundation for making a choice. When he toured Baylor University, he noticed it had everything he was hoping for in a college experience: the best business program out of all of the colleges he toured, a great location, lots to do on campus, and an active community outside of the college campus. It also helped a lot that his older brother attends Baylor and has had a great experience so far. Grant’s parents were very supportive of him on this journey and encouraged him to get things done early. This helped bring his stress level down as he received college acceptance letters early in his senior year. He is ready for the next step and will be attending Baylor’s freshman orientation week in July. Grant knows that his college years will require more study and discipline. He appreciates how Legacy has prepared him and taught him to grow in his faith, and is eager to begin his Baylor University experience next fall.

Evan spent much of his high school career not really knowing what he might want to do, but he did know that college was his goal. Once he started thinking more seriously about it, he considered both private and public options. He ruled out being in the city but also didn’t feel a small college would be the best fit. Throughout this process, he was able to narrow his choices down to two colleges. He toured them both and thought they each had a great campus, a great location, nice dorms, and good programs. He finally decided on the University of Minnesota – Duluth because he really likes the city of Duluth and he’ll have access to good snowboarding. He’s still not sure what career area he will pursue and it’s a little stressful not knowing his roommate or really anyone at the college. However, he’s excited to live on his own and have lots of snowboarding opportunities.

Ross has always liked the idea of working in a business or finance-related field. He likes math and talking to people. His dad is in real estate so he’s learned a lot from him and is also interested in that area. As a freshman, he started thinking more about his future and taking his academics seriously. His family started thinking about Grand Canyon University after they connected with another Legacy family whose children have attended GCU. When Ross toured the campus he thought it was really nice and liked the business hall where he would be taking many of his classes. The tour guide was good and thorough and it helped Ross see that the professors really invest in the students. One of the things he loves about Legacy is how being in “good company provides a good future” and his peers here push him to be better. He’s learned that your surroundings matter and Legacy has been the best place for that. He sees this same environment at GCU and the students there seem like they’ll be similar to what he’s experienced at Legacy. Plus, as Ross said, “Who doesn’t like Arizona?”

Jessa has always known about Bethel University because it is her parent’s collegiate alma mater. She’s also had other family members go there and has attended Bethel football games. However, for a long time, she was less focused on where she would go to college and concentrated more on what career path she was interested in. She started thinking about both nursing and business and used that to launch her official college search. She’s toured other colleges but likes how Bethel feels and she’s gotten the sense that she’s just supposed to go there. She really enjoyed Legacy’s business investment class and her dad is in the field so she knows a lot about it. But she also likes the social aspect that nursing would give her and enjoys working with kids and babies. So she plans to take classes in both fields to see which one she likes better. Jessa’s excited about her next step and feels ready to attend Bethel this fall.

Melvin always knew that he wanted to go to college, but didn’t get serious about it until last November. He created a college list based on the college’s location and diversity. He came up with a robust list of 19 colleges mainly located in the Southeast. Out of that 19, he ended up getting accepted at 17. He didn’t start whittling down his list until about 6 weeks ago. He did this by comparing college costs and then made a pros and cons list. The University of North Carolina in Charlotte ended up being the most affordable out of the group. He loves that UNC has lots of clubs and organizations and he plans to join a lot of them. He likes chapel and worship so he also plans to join one of their Christian groups on campus. He’s also very excited about their large and diverse business program that has lots of opportunities for internships. He’s planning to major in business finance with a minor in international business. UNC is a different environment and he just really likes the college. This was a difficult decision for Melvin because college is expensive and UNC is far away, but it also seems like things have fallen into place for him. He’s weighed his options carefully and feels really good about his next step at UNC.

Kaylyn considered a couple of other Christian colleges, but there were so many reasons for her to attend UNW. Kaylyn’s mom attended UNW for college and she’s gone to a lot of events at UNW. She’s taken a number of PSEO classes at Legacy and that has given her valuable insight into the type of education that she will be receiving. It’s very high quality and she feels like she’ll be getting a good value for her money. It’s also helpful to not have to worry about transferring credits because her goal is to graduate college in 3 years. With her PSEO credits and some focus in college, she should be able to attain this. UNW is small, affordable and close to home. These are all super important qualities for Kaylyn because she doesn’t want to be just another number at college. Relationships are critical to her and she knew she wanted to be at a strong Christian college with opportunities to connect with quality people. She plans to join some of the business clubs because she is thinking about majoring in marketing with a concentration in communications. And she’s excited about earning a minor in biblical studies. Overall, it’s been an easy process from the application to the housing to the meeting of roommates. And now, Kaylyn’s ready to start college this fall.

Articles & photos courtesy of Mrs. Rebecca Lunderby, Legacy Guidance Counselor

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Slime sale! It was a huge success! We sold 500 packets of slime in 45 minutes, thanks to your participation!

You are helping our 5th grade students learn many valuable lessons. Many of you thanked the students as they served you and a few even gave a little extra change knowing it would go to charity. Thank you so much for your generosity! Hopefully, you had a good customer service experience today. The students were so excited and did their best to serve you.

Here are the stats:

$464.37 spent on packing and ingredients

$1015.00 in sales & donations

$550.63 Total Net Profit being donated locally

Legacy’s 2020-21 yearbook was selected by the Balfour yearbook company as a ‘National Sample’ book – to be showcased as an example in schools across the nation! A featured layout in that book was also included in the annual ‘Yearbook Yearbook’ (a sort of ‘greatest hits’ of yearbook design for the year), AND last year’s cover was highlighted on Balfour’s annual ‘Yearbook Covers’ poster. In the yearbook production world – these are pretty cool honors! All points back to giving our best, blessing others, and pointing back to our Creator!
Bravo to our solid yearbook staff past and present!

We have another fantastic book in the works this year and we can’t wait to share it with you.

DO YOU HAVE YOUR COPY ORDERED??
Click on this link https://www.balfour.com/student-info?smi=38605 to find pricing, check your order status, and place your order!

Final Yearbook Orders Due Sunday, January 30!

Thank you LCA community! The LCA Yearbook Staff appreciates your support.