Friday Oct. 11, The Fellowship of Christian Athletes held their first meeting of the year. This year, the club plans to meet every Friday for meetings based in faith.
The Friday meetings will alternate between learning from a single student’s message and having club members discuss their faith in groups. FCA co-sponsor Lauren Stringer is excited for the opportunities this change will bring.
“On one Friday, we’ll hear a message from a student talking about how God has worked in their life,” Stringer said. “The other Friday will be about community. We’ll get to know others in the club and grow together as individuals and as followers of God.”
The change to weekly meetings is something junior Kinley Ruder, a member of the club’s leadership, looks forward to. For Ruder, the meetings are a refreshing end to her week.
“I love that we have it in the morning on Fridays, because on Friday you’re tense from your week,” Ruder said. “You get to come and see Jesus in the morning before school and that encourages your day to be positive.”
This year, FCA’s student leadership has grown to eighteen students. Stringer is proud of how the leadership has grown the club’s community.
“I think the students themselves are really passionate about what they do in FCA, and it’s a great way to create a really awesome community around the really positive things that are happening there,” Stringer said.
For many students, including leadership member and senior Seville Skinner, this community extends outside of school.
“You get really close with people and get to hang out outside of school. You’re building connections that last outside of school hours,” Skinner said. “Some of us go to youth groups together, to church together, hang out and do Bible studies, which are super fun.”
Being a sponsor for FCA lets Stringer connect with her students about their shared beliefs.
“To me it’s a very special club because I get to see my passions outside of school and beliefs that I have be instilled in my students, which is really cool,” Stringer said. “I’m able to see them get to know the things that I also enjoy.”
Skinner and the rest of FCA’s leadership have begun to host events to grow the club.
“We’ve started doing more outside activities and events off campus, and we’re trying to do weekly meetings so we can reach a wider audience and be more available for everyone to come,” Skinner said.
In the spring, the club plans to host Fields of Faith. Hosted on the football field, Fields of Faith is an event done by FCA across the country that focuses on bringing people together in faith and worship. Ruder is excited for the event and the community it will bring together.
“This will be an event at Mill Valley where a whole bunch of schools can come together and have a night with worship music, a message and food,” Ruder said. “It’s such a good community of faith and fellowship, and it will be super fun.”
Stringer hopes that these changes will help the club be a space for all students to learn about and engage in fellowship.
“FCA stands for Fellowship of Christian Athletes. However, you don’t have to be an athlete to be in the club,” Stringer said. “It is a way for students to get to know more about God, for students that believe in God or for those who are interested in believing in God.”
