Our Mission by Robbie Mason, Head of School Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but to Your name give glory. Psalm 115:1
We are thankful for the opportunity to celebrate Grace Christian Academy! From its humble beginning with 65 students in 2009, the Lord has grown our school to 776 students. Our school is recognized across the state for not only its academics, athletics, and Fine Arts, but most importantly, as being a school that strives to honor the Lord Jesus Christ in all that we do. Recently, our administration team met and focused our attention on ensuring that we are preserving the mission of GCA. The mission of Grace Christian Academy is to assist Christian families in the teaching of their children by providing them an experiential education that is distinctly Christian, biblically-saturated, Christ-glorifying, academically excellent, and service and mission oriented. We exist to help parents cultivate the legacy of Christ's hope in each student and to prepare them to spread that hope along every avenue God provides. This statement is one that we do not take lightly, rather this is a statement that we are boldly convinced we must fulfill. We realize that we are not a perfect school, but we are a school that is called to a higher purpose and partnering with our families is an essential component of this calling. As we move into the second quarter, let’s continue the strong partnership so we can guard against the worldly culture that is influencing our students. May we be a school that is salt and light to a world that desperately needs a Savior. Our prayer and conviction continue to be that we are equipping students to impact the world for Jesus Christ!
June 2018
Thank you to all our parents and grandparents who came out to enjoy our GCA Benefit Concert on the 26th of September. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. A BIG thank you again to Carrie Underwood and her team for their generosity in making it such a wonderful event. For those of you who were not able to make it, we want to give you a glimpse of what the evening looked like. We are excited and extremely encouraged by the amount of overall support that was both given and committed as a result of that evening. So far, we have received $3,260,615 in gifts and commitments since that Sunday. We have multiple families that are still prayerfully considering their gifts, and families giving securities that will be transferred over the next several weeks. As we said the night of the event, this will take all of us partnering together to reach our goal of $10 million to begin building the new high school building. For those of you who were not able to attend, we have a shortened version of a video we showed at our benefit concert as a personal view into why it is so important to invest in our children. We hope you will take a few minutes to watch THIS VIDEO. We would like to give everyone a chance to participate in this opportunity to invest in the future of our next generation of Christian leaders. If you would still like to give or commit to an amount over the next 3-5 years, please visit our website at www.gracefamilylegacy.com. There are several different options for giving located under the “Ways to Give” tab. We also have the ability to accept securities and real property. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or would like to schedule a private tour or meeting with our team.
Brad Myers • Director of Development • 615-578-3021
Elementary students in Kindergarten through 5th grade were issued a summer reading challenge in May. As students returned in August, we were delighted to see that there was an alltime high level of participation, as well as the amount of books read. A great big shout out to every parent who took their child to the library, read with them or to them, and encouraged them to read over the summer. The importance of this cannot be stressed enough and you rallied! Students celebrated with ice cream treats from Sweethaven and prizes were awarded to those who read the most books. A special congratulations and recognition goes out to these five students who went way above and beyond the summer challenge.
2nd grader Kelsey Johnson-124 books Kindergartner Marlo Carroll-123 books 2nd grader Wyatt Harris-115 books 1st grader Annie Kirk and 2nd grader Lorelei Waring (2nd) -100 books
One of the names of God which manifests itself daily is Jehovah Jireh. . .the Lord Who Provides. Nowhere is this more evident than in the men and women whom God sends our way each school year to fulfill His vision for the ministry of GCA. The 2021-22 school year is no exception! Two outstanding, godly men have joined our administrative ranks this past summer: both of these men have already made their presence known this school year! Please welcome them and get to know them. Soli Deo Gloria. To God Alone be the Glory for His provision. Richard B. Anderson, High School Principal Mr. Dan Spencer has been named Assistant Principal in the high school and Mr. Matt Murton has been brought on to serve GCA as the Coordinator of Family and Student Life. Dan Spencer—no stranger to GCA folk, Dan has worked in various capacities in this ministry for ten years. A Texas native, Dan graduated from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish and Secondary Education. Dan worked in the Music and Entertainment industry for 16 years, which afforded him the opportunity to travel the world. After getting back into Education at Grace Christian Academy, Dan earned a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from David Lipscomb University’s College of Education. Currently, Dan is enrolled in the Doctoral program at Lipscomb and is set to finish in the Fall of 2022. Dan also serves as Assistant Coach for the GCA Lions Soccer team. Dan and wife Leslie have been married for 20 years. They met in Nashville when a mutual friend “set them up.” The Spencers have four children, all of whom attend GCA: Maren (16), a Sophomore; Slade (15), a Freshman; Luke (14), a 7th grader; and Lila (11), a 5th grader. Dan loves serving at GCA where he says he “gets to be around amazing friends and watching the students grow spiritually, academically, artistically, and athletically.” Dan says he is “living the dream and loving Jesus along the way!”
Matt Murton—although new to the GCA staff, Matt was already a parent in our school community. A native of Florida, Matt attended both high school and college in Georgia. At Georgia Tech, he studied Business Management and played baseball for the Yellow Jackets, 20012003. Matt went on to play professional baseball for fifteen years, 2003-2017. Matt played Major League Baseball (Chicago Cubs) and also in Japan (for the Hanshin Tigers). After completing his playing career, Matt served as a Baseball Operations Assistant for the Chicago Cubs for three years, 2018-2020. In 2021, Matt joined the baseball staff of the GCA Lions as Assistant Coach. Matt and his wife Stefani have been married for fifteen years. They have five children: Micah (12), a 7th grader; Macie (11), a 6th grader; Andrew (9), a 4th grader; Daniel (7), a 2nd grader; and James (2), a future Lion. Matt’s passion is to “journey, challenge, and guide the next generation to become more integrated with who they are, what they do, and the world around them.” Matt has been involved in Bible studies and prayer times with GCA moms and dads this fall, as well as speaking in a couple of recent chapels.
Dan’s Favorite Verse
Matt’s Favorite Verse
“And I am confident that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Jesus Christ returns.” Philippians 1:6
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your hearts, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. . .It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23-24
It was so good to be back at Deer Run for our Lion Nation Retreat after missing the fall of 2020 due to Covid. The Lion Nation Retreat is a perfect way to start our year together as a high school with activities that promote community, along with worship and a guest speaker who introduces our chapel theme for the year. This year, alumna Charly Beathard from the Class of 2018 led us in worship while teacher and high school parent Heidi Wolf introduced our theme verse of 1 Kings 8:60. The verse says, “that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other.” From that, our theme is “...There is no other.” Mrs. Wolf spoke to us about how before we can share God, we must KNOW God. It was a wonderful introduction to a year of chapels focused on what keeps us from knowing God (idols), and then what we are to do when we know God (share the gospel). Before the rest of the high school arrived at Deer Run, our senior class was able to spend the night and participate in class team-building activities and hear guest speaker Nate Dickson. Pastor Nate gave them a charge concerning the legacy they should desire to leave as they begin their senior year. The Class of 2022 were led in worship by their classmates, and they got to open their 8th grade time capsule. Teachers, staff and students alike love the tradition of the Lion Nation Retreat and are grateful to all of those who make it possible each year.
CLICK HERE to watch a video of the students at Deer Run.
Our high school students were excited to begin school this year and had big plans for an epic year. The Leadership Teams met over the summer to plan some special events and activities. August came quickly and the students had a great start to the year with the return of our annual Deer Run retreat. Soon after that, football season began and our student section has been full of Neon, Patriotic, Tie Dye, Red and Camo. We cheered our team to it’s first ever 3-0 start and our football team is currently 6-3! Before each home football game, the students gather at a tailgate to paint up and walk to the helmet to cheer the team on as they come out of the helmet! Homecoming Week was big this year and full of dress up days, float building, a school-wide pep rally and ended with our traditional High School Hoedown dance. We started the week off on Saturday with House float building and a movie night on the football field. Sunday held more float building and our annual Powder Puff football game. Lewis House took home the win this year! The theme for the floats was Throwbacks and our Houses paraded their floats in front of the school at Friday’s pep rally. Tyndale House was the big float winner this year with their Sponge Bob float, but every House did an amazing job making their Throwback TV show come to life. Friday night’s Homecoming football game highlighted the eight seniors on the Homecoming Court. The Hoedown was Saturday night and was full of bar-b-que, line dancing, square dancing and a fun time was had by all! This is a favorite for many of our students and a fun conclusion to a great week. The fun doesn’t stop with football and our Student Leadership Team continues to work to bring unity, tradition, and fun to the student body. Last week, the Spiritual Life Team hosted a student-led Worship Night complete with bonfire, singing, and s’mores. The students were also treated to a Student Life Fun Day with Staff Hide N Seek Bingo, food trucks, and volleyball. Our Senior class shopped this week to fill Operation Christmas Child boxes and the entire student body will be serving in the Nashville area in November. Basketball season will begin soon and we are looking forward to having a student section back in the gym this season! On top of all that, there is also a Winter Dance in the planning stage. We want to continue to provide experiences for our GCA students that will build community, class relationships and enrich the high school experience.
Page 12
Homecoming Week held a lot of activities for our Lower Campus students too! Each day of the week hosted a special dress up day where students dressed like pirates, their favorite cartoon character, sports teams, decked out in spirit wear, and in their pajamas. The students really enjoyed showing their spirit. In addition to the House float competition for high school and keeping with the theme Throwbacks, the elementary classrooms had a door decorating contest and intermediate and middle school had a flag decorating contest. All of the items were judged at the pep rally at the end of that week. The pep rally also had fun games and a traditional tug-of-war between high school Houses. The Dance Clubs had the opportunity to perform at the pep rally as well and did an outstanding job!
You may be asking, “What is STEM?” This year, GCA has implemented a new specials elective for Kindergarten through 6th grade. It is STEM, and we are so excited about it! STEM is using Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math in classroom challenges that help students to think outside the box and emphasizes collaboration, communication, research, problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity. These are skills that students need to be successful in today's world regardless of specific interests or career goals. Many days, students are given a "challenge" with a certain set of limited and pre-arranged supplies to solve that challenge with a group of peers or alone. We have made buckets that held weight, built towers out of straws and spaghetti noodles, created Rube Goldberg machines, made paper chains (the longest being 32 feet out of 2 pieces of construction paper and 12 inches of tape), mimicked spider webs and bird beaks, and investigated trees and their leaves. It has been amazing to watch our students rise to the challenge in their creativity and uniqueness. Not one outcome has been identical to another and their excitement for this hands-on exploration has been contagious.
Grace Christian Academy applauds senior Sammy Camacho for his achievement of being named a National Merit® Commended student by the National Merit® Scholarship Program! To receive this status, Camacho was among the top two-thirds of the highest scorers on the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit® Scholarship Qualifying Test, and has been recognized with this honor for his outstanding academic performance and success. Camacho has also been recognized as a National Hispanic Recognition Program winner by the College Board for his excellence in academic achievement. Congratulations Sammy!
Hi, my name is Harrison Kolts and I am currently working as a missionary in Tokyo, Japan! I get up to a few things here in the biggest city, but a few of those are as following; I lead a prayer ministry in my town that gathers once a week to pray over the city and its residents, I meet with friends for coffee/meals to talk about life and God, I am a sound technician at my church, and I also operate as an accountant's assistant of sorts within YWAM, the organization I am a missionary with. There are, of course, many things I can add or go into detail about that I haven't written, but maybe here isn't the place to write a 20 page summary. How has GCA impacted me? I was super impacted by the amount of partnership the teachers at GCA had. They really wanted to encourage me, help me grow and see me walk in the things God has for me. What have I loved about GCA? I did love that when I was attending GCA, I had options. I could learn different things, like if they were for a career path or a hobby, and in turn see if they were for me. Not to mention, with the answer to the question above, having encouraging teachers really helped that atmosphere.
How is God currently using me? Well, besides being a missionary, I do feel like God has placed a lot of opportunity in my path to encourage the church here in Japan. Whether it be through conversations, acts of service or by just being there.
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7 Fine Arts has started off this school year with a bang! We have more opportunities for students to experience the Arts than we ever have before. We have added additional Art & Drama Clubs for elementary/ IS/MS students and have a Dance Club/Team for 1st - 12th grades. All in all, we have over 310 students participating in after school Fine Arts activities. That is so much to celebrate for the Arts here at GCA. In elementary school, we just casted our Christmas program and over 56 students auditioned for solo and/or speaking parts. All elementary students will participate with their class for this program, making it such a special tradition here at GCA. Intermediate/middle school is going under the sea to bring us The Little Mermaid Jr. These performances will be October 28th - 30th, with a total of four chances for you to enjoy all the talent and hard work of these students. The show will include 72 students participating on and off stage. You can purchase tickets by CLICKING HERE! We are excited to be venturing into new territory as well this year with the addition of our Drumline and a HS Straight Play. Our Drumline has been working hard and debuted at the football game on October 22. We can’t wait for them to bring their energy and rhythm to every GCA Lion football experience. November 12th-13th will be GCA’s first ever straight play. This ensemble cast will be performing Peter & The Starcatcher and you will not want to miss this funny and entertaining show! It brings us great joy that the Arts are continuing to grow and flourish here at GCA. Please continue to pray alongside us as we continue to grow and speak Truth into these students through the Arts. The Arts change lives! Audience For One!
FINE ARTS FACTS! Fine Arts Numbers 1st & 2nd grade DANCE - 15 ART - 24 DRAMA - 15 3rd & 4th grade DANCE - 18 ART - 16 DRAMA - 16 IS/MS DANCE - 20 ART - 4 DRAMA - 9 Total DANCE - 53 Total ART - 44 Total DRAMA - 40 Total Elementary - 104 Total IS/MS - 33 HS DRUMLINE - 6 THESPIAN SOCIETY - 28 NAHS - 23 HS DANCE TEAM - 10 Peter & the Starcatcher Cast - 24 on and off stage The Little Mermaid Jr. Cast - 72 on and off stage
..
Former GCA Teacher Charles Cranford and his wife Nancy moved to Malawi, Southeast Africa in August where they are serving with African Bible College. Since arriving, Charles has been teaching two college Bible courses (Joshua/ Judges and Acts), two high school courses (US Government/Economics and World Literature), and coaching the college soccer team (Go Lions!). Nancy is kept quite busy teaching middle school science - Earth (6th grade), Life (7th grade), and Physical (8th grade). In January, she will be adding a nutrition course for 9th-12th graders.
Though African Bible College and ABC Christian Academy are both part of ABC, the ministry opportunities are very different! The Academy is a Christian school, but it sees itself as a mission field. Families from all over the world send their kids to the Academy for the American curriculum, so the student body consists of Hindu, Muslim, and other nonbelieving students alongside their Christian peers. This dynamic yields daily opportunities to share the gospel with students who truly don't know Jesus as well as the chance to encourage Christian students to minister to those around them. The College, however, only admits students who have a strong Christian testimony, so Charles is working with students who truly hunger to know scripture and spread its truth to their communities and beyond! One of the best ways Charles has built relationships with these amazing students (aside from class time) is through the ABC Lions soccer team. The team is a true brotherhood, and the guys regularly get together for Bible studies and devotions in addition to their time together on the field. They have been a lot of fun to be around, and the season spans the entire school year, so it's a great opportunity to continue to build relationships with the players throughout the year! One thing Charles and Nancy immediately noticed is that the college students are eager to serve the communities around them. Malawi is consistently ranked as one of the least developed countries in Africa, so there is much need right next door. The college students see these needs and jump right in, and the Cranfords have already been invited to participate in several amazing ministries started by current ABC students. Perhaps the most incredible example of this is a ministry known as 'Sowers,' which was established by ABC senior John Mulepa. John was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to parents who came from separate tribes. Unfortunately, tribal conflict broke out over local land, and John's parents were attacked and killed when he was still a young child. Terrified, he and his siblings fled the region to find family in another part of the country, but the violence eventually caught up to them there and his uncle who had taken them in suffered the same fate. After crossing through Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania, John finally found a place of refuge in Malawi at Dzaleka Refugee camp. Over the next few years, John learned English and eventually met a missionary who encouraged him to apply to ABC. John was accepted to ABC and given special permission to leave the refugee camp to complete his studies. (Refugees are not permitted to enter into Malawian society and must stay at the camp. Currently, there is no path to citizenship.) Though John said he wanted to forget his past, he truly gave his life to Christ and felt that he was being called to serve the children of Dzaleka. He started walking back to the camp (over 40 kilometers) on the weekends in order to minister to and serve the families of his former home and, before he knew it, God started to work! Fast forward three years, and John is now the head of a 250 student primary school (they plan to add upper school next year), a thriving farming ministry (he desires for the ministry to be self sustaining), and a vibrant outreach ministry within the camp. John plans to use his education to go back and serve in Dzaleka full-time before one day returning to the very tribes responsible for killing his parents. This amazing testimony is simply one example of what ABC students are doing in Malawi, and Charles and Nancy are looking forward to continuing to partner with John to provide teacher education as his ministry continues to grow and thrive! Please continue to pray for the Cranfords as they serve the people of Malawi!
Love God, Love Others We are living in a time when our nation is hurting. In Nashville’s backyard, the community of Waverly experienced devastating floods. And Louisiana, a state that has endured way too many hurricanes, was once again hit by a hurricane that resulted in destruction and flooding of several communities. During these difficult times, we are always proud of our GCA community and how they love others well. Thank you for the outpouring of supplies that you brought in for Waverly and Houma, Louisiana. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus to those who are in need. Proverbs 3:27 says, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.” Thank you GCA, for doing good, and for pouring into the communities of Waverly, TN and Houma, LA!
Humility / Passion / Unity / Servanthood / Gratitude Celebrating Grace in Athletics By Len McKnatt
It has been a very busy and exciting fall season for our middle school and high school athletic teams. We want to take this opportunity to recognize some special team and individual performances. We know more accolades and awards are on the horizon for some of our teams that are still competing.
Our HS Girls Volleyball team completed its regular season by finishing 3rd in the North Division of their district. One of our young ladies received recognition for her outstanding play during the regular season. Junior libero Dylan Tolliver was named 1st Team AllDistrict. Congratulations to Dylan! Our MS Girls Volleyball team completed an outstanding season by winning the HVAC A Division Championship. Great job Coach Luzzo, Coach Miller, Coach Allen, and team!
27 short Our HS Boys Golf team had another outstanding season. The team fell a fewPage shots from qualifying for the region tournament, but we had one individual, Luke Ring, who advanced with a solid performance. Ring finished 11th in the region tournament with a solid round of 77. Congratulations Luke!
Our HS Football team is off to an outstanding 6-3 start. They have already guaranteed themselves a playoff spot and are fighting for third place at Columbia Academy on October 29. The winner of this game will finish 3rd in the Middle Region and host a playoff game on November 5. The loser will finish 4th and travel East for a playoff game. We look forward to supporting these young men as they continue their playoff push. Our MS and 5th/6th Football teams had outstanding seasons. We appreciate all of their work and are excited about what the future holds for GCA Football. Our HS Cross Country teams are still in their regular season races. Cross Country is continuing to work hard as they gear up for their region meet at Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville on October 25. Congrats to Braden Walters on several outstanding runs. We look forward to continuing to follow Coach Klinger’s team. Our intermediate and middle school cross country teams performed well under the leadership of Randianne Sears. Congratulations to Bennett Stevens for placing first in the Junior HVAC Championship race. Great job Bennett! Girls Soccer finished in 2nd place in a tough district. The Lady Lions then finished 3rd in the region tournament. They continued their strong play in the State Round of 12 by traveling to CAK and winning 4-0. Our season came to an end in the state quarterfinals at the hands of a very good USJ team. These ladies and coaches represented us well and advanced to the Final 8 in the state. We had three young ladies named to the regular season All-District team. Congratulations to these three seniors, Caroline Briley, Mary Bradley Myers, and Adyson Wolf. Please congratulate all of these teams and individuals on their accomplishments. We are most proud of the way all of them compete to honor our Lord and Savior. Thanks for your continued support of GCA Athletics. Go Lions and Lady Lions!
Mission Statement
3279 Southall Road Franklin, TN 37064 615-591-3017 www.gcalions.com
The mission of Grace Christian Academy is to assist Christian families in the teaching of their children by providing them an experiential education that is distinctly Christian, biblically saturated, Christ glorifying, academically excellent, and service and mission oriented. We exist to help parents cultivate the legacy of Christ's hope in each student and to prepare them to spread that hope along every avenue God provides.