R WDY MASCOT THE ROYAL
DEBUTS IN FIRST-EVER CHILDREN’S BOOK
Kids learn to grow God’s way in the new Rowdy and Friends children’s book series published by Woodcrest Christian.
One of the most beloved members of the Woodcrest Christian school community is the mascot lion, Rowdy the Royal. His fun-loving presence at school events adds a special touch of excitement as students swarm him with high-fives, hugs, and mega-watt smiles. When the idea for publishing a Woodcrest Christian children’s book surfaced, it was no surprise that Rowdy should be the main character.
Erin Calhoun (an alumna of Woodcrest Christian, 1992) is the author of this new series of books. Together with the talents of fellow alumni Jordan Ayotte (2007) for character design and illustration and Khara Dizmon (1996) for editing and producing, the first book in the series was published in January of 2025.
We recently sat down with each of them to find out how the book came about, what some of the creative challenges were, and why the book is such a heartfelt and special endeavor.
WHAT IS SPECIAL TO YOU ABOUT THE ROWDY AND FRIENDS SERIES?
Khara: It was a special project to begin with because it involves our mascot who personifies the pride, fun, and nostalgia of our school. Bringing him to life in these books gives us an endless opportunity to share the messages of Jesus through stories. Also, since Jordan, Erin, and I are all alumni, working on this project together was very personal as each of us knows how the school has impacted our lives. It is really exciting to be able to give back, through the talents God has given us, to the school that continues to share the love of God with students and whose staff continue to be faithful in teaching God’s Word— for more than 75 years.
WHAT IS YOUR HOPE FOR THE BOOK SERIES?
Erin: My hope is that the kids fall in love with Rowdy and his friends the way that I have. I hope through this series, there is a resurgence in the love of reading or being read to, and that the lessons found in each book are an encouragement as well as a fun reminder of the character traits we are all working on. I also hope that parents will have a resource in these books that ties the character traits from school and the lessons they are trying to reinforce in their parenting. I hope it is an enjoyment for all who read and interact with these stories for years to come.
LEARNING TO GROW GOD’S WAY
Each book in the Rowdyand Friends series is based on the character traits taught at Woodcrest Christian Day School. The first four character qualities taught are known as the Starter Qualities, which include attentiveness, obedience, responsibility, and kindness. Every month, students learn the definition and opposite trait of one of the attributes, along with a corresponding Bible verse. These character traits are foundational life principles that each student learns as part of Woodcrest Christian’s Christ-centered academic program.
Stay up-to-date with all things Rowdyand Friends by following @Rowdytheroyal on Instagram.
SHOP ROWDY'S BOOKS & SPIRIT WEAR
Purchase Rowdy's book, t-shirts, and more online at: wcss.org/rowdyandfriends
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: SHANE LUDWIG
A TRUE RENAISSANCE MAN
Woodcrest Christian has seen a lot of teachers come and go in its 77 year history. Some have stayed for a short time and others have spent decades ministering to students and staff alike. When you dedicate a large portion of your life and professional career to one institution, you become an integral part of that institution and all that it believes in and purposes to achieve. In a sense, you become more than just a teacher, you become an icon. One of those icons, Mr. Shane Ludwig, is in his 24th year of teaching at WCS.
Mr. Ludwig is considered one of the most capable people on campus, and the classes he teaches give credence to that moniker. His normal classes include Advanced Physics, AP Physics, AP Calculus AB and AP Calculus BC; all of them the most rigorous science and math courses the school offers. Throughout his career, he has taught each of the various math courses offered at WCHS. His is a storied career and one that exemplifies his love for Christ and his students.
We recently caught up with Mr. Ludwig and delved into his career and what motivates him to share his passions with students.
All through school, I loved math, and I specifically enjoy the creativity it takes to work out advanced mathematics.
Mr. Ludwig, you have taught every math course the high school has offered. For some people, math is a real challenge and something to avoid, but not for you. Why math in general and is there one particular course that you really enjoy?
SL: Well, it is what I was best at. All through school, I loved math, and I specifically enjoy the creativity it takes to work out advanced mathematics. Most math courses rely on rote steps but in the more advanced math classes—there is a subtlety in the problems that makes it fun. My favorite is easily Honors Trigonometry. The first part of the course is pretty straightforward, but the latter part is a hodgepodge of mathematical concepts that kind of careen all over the place. There is no time to get bored!
Ok. So you love math and you’re obviously good at it. How did that translate into a career in teaching?
SL: By my sophomore year in high school I knew I wanted to be a math teacher and making it a career had everything to do with one of my teachers. But it wasn’t a math teacher. I was having a conversation with my Speech and Debate teacher in high school when she said two things that really stuck with me. She asked me what gifts and talents that I had and then how could I take those and turn them into a career? The more I thought about it, I knew teaching was the path for me. Now I get to take high level concepts and work on communicating them in a much more understandable way.
You taught your first year in public school but the last 24 here at Woodcrest Christian. What’s the most rewarding aspect of teaching here at WCHS?
SL: Knowing that even when I have students who haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, there is always the hope and possibility that each student would embrace Christ.
Let me follow up on that a bit. There is a lot of conversation and even disagreement, both within the church and without, about being able to reconcile a love for Jesus and science—that faith and science are incompatible. How do you reconcile the issues of faith and science for your students?
SL: Math and science are rooted in faith. All systems of math are rooted in axioms (selfevident truths), axioms that cannot be proven but are accepted as true. Basically, we have faith that they are true because we are unable to actually test them. But to try and better understand the world, we accept them as true so we can continue our study. Math and science then use these fundamental axioms to prove a host of other ideas; however, at the core, we have to accept them on faith.
Make decisions based on who you are and not what the world tells you is best. That is especially true for college choices, which comes up a lot in my classes.
As a kid, you were pretty smart—so smart, in fact, that you got yourself in trouble a lot. If you had the opportunity to talk with parents of really smart kids, what advice would you give them?
SL: Have patience and never stop challenging them to push themselves. Even more importantly, help them move from external to internal motivation. I have a lot of math awards, but at some point they become meaningless. If it's always external, eventually the motivation runs out, and it can be an easy road to depression. Pushing themselves to learn more for their own sake is key.
I think about all of the courses you’ve taught and all of the students. Most of them are some of the top students the school ever produced as they found themselves in our toughest math and science courses which you teach. What’s the one piece of advice you are always trying to give your students about life?
SL: Make decisions based on who you are and not what the world tells you is best. That is especially true for college choices, which comes up a lot in my classes.
In addition to his teaching and club sponsorship, Mr. Ludwig serves as the school’s systems information expert overseeing the student information system (Veracross) that we now use, as well as all others we have used going back to 2007. His computer coding understanding and logic are instrumental as the school grows and expands those services to our teachers and families.
Every teacher on campus has a unique personality and gifts that God uses to connect them to specific students. That is true of you, and I have seen that as you open your classroom regularly as the Chess Club advisor and provide space for students to explore the higher-level thinking around strategy-based board games. Students know you like math, science, and those intellectual type games—what do they not know about you? Could you share something about yourself that might surprise us?
SL: When I was in school, including college, I was heavily involved in drama. I was on stage in several plays and also worked backstage on others. In fact, I did receive a lot of math awards, but I also received just as many awards for creativity—in poetry!
There you have it: a true Renaissance man. Woodcrest Christian is blessed to have a man with Mr. Ludwig's gifts and his passion for helping students bring math and science together with faith.
ATHLETIC HIGHLIGHTS
CIF Hall of Fame Inductee: Glenn Prater
Congratulations to Coach Glenn Prater for being inducted into the CIF Southern Section Hall of Fame! This recognition is well deserved after his 30+ years of commitment to the Woodcrest Christian baseball program.
Glenn started his career at Woodcrest Christian in the fall of 1991 as a high school English teacher and baseball coach. After teaching English for several years, he transitioned to teaching P.E. classes and became the Middle School Athletic Director for 25 years. During his career at Woodcrest Christian, Glenn also coached JV Basketball for five years, and both Girls and Boys Volleyball for several years. His Hall of Fame coaching began and ended with baseball. He was the Varsity Baseball head coach from 1992 through the 2023 season.
Glenn helped lead over 40 high school athletes to play college or professional baseball during his legendary career. Most of these athletes were pitchers because of his tremendous experience and expert knowledge in that field. During his 31 years of coaching baseball, Glenn won league titles 17 times. He guided his team to the CIF finals seven times and won CIF four times. His team won a total of 560 games during his 31 year career. Voted by the league as "Coach of the Year" five times, he also received "Coach of the Year" honors by CIF in 2010. Multiple times his team won the "sportsmanship award" as voted on by the league. His induction into the CIF Southern Section Hall of Fame is a first in history in Woodcrest Christian sports.
Inland Empire Coach of the Year
Loretta Hall Eyan Turk
Woodcrest Christian tennis coach and math teacher Loretta Hall was named the 2024 Inland Empire Coach of the Year. She guided the Royals to an historic season capturing the CIF Southern Section Division 6 team championship, which is the first section title in Woodcrest Christian tennis history. It was an exciting win for the team and a testament to the hard work they put into the season. Congratulations, Coach Hall!
Remarkable Athlete
Senior Eyan Turk won his second straight CIF Division V State Cross Country Title in 2024. In Fresno, at the CIF State Cross Country Championships, Eyan’s time of 14 minutes and 33 seconds was the best time among all divisions and was a Division V state record. The fastest recorded previous time was 14:52, which Eyan beat by 19 seconds. He now holds the seventh fastest time on the CIF State course in any high school division. Eyan has already signed with the University of Kentucky and is headed there after high school to continue to pursue Cross Country and Track. Looking back on the race, Eyan shared, "I have to give the Lord thanks for this one. It was by His will to give me the power to run faster than I could even have imagined. This is one of my best races hands down."
02 // WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND IN BASEBALL?
I played basketball and baseball in high school and collegiate basketball at CBU. My dad was invited to play in the minor leagues, so I was around baseball from the time I was very young. He is good friends with Alvin Davis, who played for the Mariners and was the 1984 American League Rookie of the Year. Through the years, Alvin has become my biggest mentor, which kind of explains why I’m a die-hard, handsdown Seattle Mariners fan.
03 // WHAT IS ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS AS A COACH?
I think my strength is in my attitude and approach to coaching. I think my players catch my excitement and my passion for them and the game. When I was growing up, I played for a lot of hard-nosed coaches. I would get yelled at a lot. Then I had one coach that had this infectious energy. He was encouraging, and I could see he was well-respected. He could challenge the team, and the players would do anything for him. My style of coaching didn’t start out that way, but I think it’s evolved over the years. I think the Lord continues to show me ways to improve.
04 // WHAT IS SOMETHING ABOUT YOU THAT PEOPLE WOULD FIND INTERESTING?
Overall, I think people would be surprised that I’m an introvert, but one of my spiritual gifts is that I love hosting people. I also love being in the kitchen. Sometimes I wish I would have become a chef. I love cooking, especially homemade pasta and homemade alfredo sauce.
Woodcrest Christian Baseball Coaching Staff
Varsity Head Coach
TK Scott
Varsity Assistant Coach
Ken Scott
Varsity Assistant Coach
Tyler Topp
J.V. Head Coach
Dalton Thompson
J.V. Assistant Coach
Shaun Hernandez
J.V. Assistant Coach
DJ Edmunds
05 // WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE WOODCREST CHRISTIAN BASEBALL PROGRAM?
I want the program to always be growing, always improving. As a staff, I want to be sure we’re looking out for our players and leading them towards real relationships with Christ. We work hard to get to know the kids both on the field and off of it. Our team slogan “ch-imua” is a challenge to them. The first part of the word references the choices and habits they control. And the last part of the word, “imua,” is a Polynesian word imploring them to push forward with courage. We talk as a team all the time and ask ourselves, Arewemakinggood choices? Then that leads to, Arethere betterchoicesweshouldbemaking? My hope is that they learn from our program and interactions with us as coaches, that following after Christ is not about following a set of rules, but pursuing after God's heart and allowing that transformation to lead the way we conduct ourselves, engage with others, and eventually serve others above our own interests.
06 // WHAT THINGS HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO IMPLEMENT SO FAR?
We’ve really put a lot of effort towards our baseball facility. We built a clubhouse behind third base for resources and storage. We added new backstop padding and a new sound system. We hope to add additional speakers, and we’re working on adding more padding and a windscreen to the dugouts. We’ve also done a lot of work on our field, working with our field crew to make improvements that will really make the entire area more inviting and appealing. Like I said, I think we can always be getting better, and that gets me excited about the future.
The
Joyof the Lord
Is My Strength
As stated in our Expected Schoolwide Outcomes, we desire that every student increasingly grow in Christ-centered Wisdom, Character, Stewardship, and Service. It’s a tall order and one that we strive to achieve every day. These outcomes don’t just happen. They require focused thought and purpose on the part of staff and an open heart in our students. The truly wonderful part of this journey is seeing how Christ makes Himself known to our students in so many different ways.
Each year, every level of our school purposefully prepares Biblical messages for our students that are shared during chapel services. These messages are often presented by our own staff and are designed to speak directly about the issues and challenges that our students are experiencing. Each week, our students are encouraged to open their hearts via this directed message and see how Christ might be speaking to them individually.
It can be extremely powerful. In fact, last spring over a dozen middle school students committed their lives to Jesus Christ after one of these chapels. These students were literally new creations in Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit and exuding a heavenly joy in their very countenance. If only you could have seen the joy in our middle school principal’s face when she shared the news. Talk about overjoyed!
That spirit was moving at the high school as well on several of this year’s mission trips. In fact, in both Belize and Alaska several of our students were so moved by the Holy Spirit that they wanted to be baptized and publicly proclaim their faith right there on the spot! Each of these students had been challenged about truly living out their faith, and the setting, coupled with some Godly mentors, set the stage for a desire to let the world know that they were living for Christ.
That joy of the Lord carried over to this fall’s See You at the Pole event, an annual gathering organized by the Student Council. Several high school students led worship, and the Spirit
The truly wonderful part of this journey is seeing how Christ makes Himself known to our students in so many different ways.
Deep and needed conversations took place between students, staff and students, and parents and students that would otherwise not have occurred.
was moving! It was by far the largest crowd assembled for the event in years, and you could definitely feel the presence of the Lord moving among those that gathered.
As the first semester came to a close right before Christmas, our campus was tragically struck by the death of one of our high school students which forever changed the lives of his two sisters, parents, family, and friends.
Our students were devastated. Very quickly, their faith was challenged with a stark reality that shook many of them to their core. And yet, in the days immediately following this horrible event, the Spirit of the Lord was moving.
Students organized a prayer gathering and vigil. Deep and needed conversations took place between students, staff and students, and parents and students that would otherwise not have occurred.
In such terrible situations, we cry out to God in anguish over our grief while simultaneously acknowledging that God is still in control. We may not understand, but our ways are not God’s ways, and in the days and weeks following, hearts were being shaped and futures written in ways we do not yet understand. But He does. We know of at least one student who, as a result of this tragedy, gave her life to Christ. How we rejoice, in the midst of great sadness, over this new life.
God is at work in a mighty way amongst our students. We can’t even begin to imagine all the ways in which He is working, but we know that He is, and He is doing so in ways His kingdom is being blessed and enlarged and the world is seeing Christ at work in the hearts of students.
When we, as believers, choose joy in the midst of difficult circumstances, others notice. We can share of the reason for our hope and joy—Christ alone. And our students are going to fulfill the Great Commission to “…go therefore and make disciples of the nations…” by living out their faith with joy and in so doing, truly impact the world for Christ.
M NSTER MANIA
“DRAW YOUR BEST MONSTER,” Woodcrest Christian Day School kindergarten teacher Mrs. McCoy told her class. “What would it look like? What color would it be? Would it have horns?” she asked.
As the kindergarteners practiced their drawing skills and learned to think creatively about their task, Mrs. McCoy knew this assignment would turn out to be more than they expected.
“Our high school art teacher Mrs. Sonke approached me with a fun idea for having her ceramics class interpret and create the kindergarteners’ monster drawings into small ceramic figurines,” says Mrs. McCoy. “I loved the idea and thought it would be a blast.”
“I was inspired through social media to do this collaborative project,” says Mrs. Sonke, who has been teaching drawing, painting, and ceramics for Woodcrest Christian High School for two years now. “My class was made
A fun collaboration between kindergarteners and high school seniors brings monster drawings to life.
up entirely of senior students, so it struck me as a wonderful connection between the beginning of their journey in education and the end of their journey here at Woodcrest Christian. With all the critical thinking, practical knowledge, and maturing that happens in that 13-year journey, I was excited to see the vibrancy of their amazing God-given imaginations,” she says.
The objective was for the kindergarteners to use their imaginations to draw fun and colorful monsters “like the ones they’ve seen in movies, such as
There were 24 drawings, and we created each of those 24 monsters to bring those amazing drawings to life.
CELEBRATING THE IMPACT OF GIVING
At Woodcrest Christian, the goal to glorify God by providing excellence in academics, the arts, and athletics never changes. For 77 years, we have focused on keeping Christ at the center of it all. In those seven decades, we have repeatedly witnessed the Lord’s blessings, provision, and protection through both prosperous and challenging years. You may not know it, but our school receives no government funding. Everything we do is supported solely by tuition. In our efforts to provide an excellent educational experience, while still keeping tuition as reasonable as possible, we started the Impact Fund in 2022.
We ask and invite supporters of our school to give above and beyond to the Impact Fund so that we can accomplish facility upgrades and other improvements that go beyond our annual budget.
WHERE DO THE FUNDS GO?
Since the Impact Fund was established in 2022, more than $700,000 has been received through generous donations. These funds have directly supported projects including improved campus security, renovation of the Day School cafeteria, new playground ball wall, two lighted wooden crosses, renovated office spaces, painted lockers, a new reader board, renovated band and choir rooms, upgraded student restrooms, three athletic vans to support transportation, new classroom projectors with televisions for classroom instruction, and upgraded thermostats to increase energy efficiency and reduce operation costs.
WHAT OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE FOR GIVING?
Giving to Woodcrest Christian can be done easily and securely online or by check or cash. Donating through our online platform (wcss.org/donate) provides options for making a onetime gift or setting up a recurring gift. For those looking for the most taxefficient way to give, we are also able to accept donations given through appreciated stock and Qualified Charitable Distribution. Woodcrest Christian School is a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization, making donations tax-deductible.
WHAT ARE UPCOMING GOALS FOR THE FUND?
Our current playground equipment at our elementary campus has served us well for over 24 years. It is time to upgrade the playground facilities for both our TK-kindergarten students and our 1st-6th grade students. One of the goals for the coming year is to raise $500,000 for these two new playgrounds.
In addition, our tuition assistance fund plays a crucial role in our commitment to providing a high-quality education by enabling us to attract and retain families who may otherwise face financial barriers to accessing a Christcentered education. By supporting this fund, we ensure that deserving students, regardless of their economic background, have the opportunity to thrive in an enriching, educational environment. In the past, we have raised $150,000 each year for this fund, but we aim to increase that amount to $250,000 to expand the number of students and families we can support with financial assistance.
EVENT CALENDAR 2025
Easter Choir Concert Spring Band Concert
WCMS MiddleFest Choir Pops Concert
Spring Musical: Fiddler on the Roof
WCDS Band Concert
WCDS Open House
WCHS Awards Night
WCDS Sports Day
