The last 20 years....
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Since facebook has put me back in touch with so many of the students I taught 20 years ago, I thought I'd blog a little on what the last 20 years has been like for me. This should answer any questions that the Lutheran East Eagles class of 1988 has for me.
In the fall of 1989 I was transferred to Lutheran Northwest to teach Biology and PE and coach socccer, as that school's enrollment was going up, and East's was dropping as fast at the Detroit Lion's playoff hopes. I was training for the Detroit marathon when the LHE class of 1989 graduated, and ran my first marathon in the fall of 1989. My wife and I had our first child in 1990, a son named Derek. I also got my Master's degree in Phys. Ed in 1992, with thoughts of becoming an athletic director or college phys. ed. prof. I continued teaching in LHNW, and an opportunity or two came up to move on to college teaching, but it just wasn't God's plan for me. We were blessed with a daughter in 1996, Leah, and another in 1999, Amy. I really loved teaching and enjoyed a great deal of success coaching both the boys and girls soccer teams. We only had one losing season in all of the 11 years I coached.
In the mid 90's, I got involved in the youth ministry at the church I belonged to, St. John's in Rochester. The youth director left our church, and so I filled in for a while, continuing with my full-time teaching at the same time. I really felt God was calling me to move into full-time youth ministry, so I put my name on the LCMS call list and listed myself available for a youth ministry call. I received a few calls, but it wasn't until late 2000 that God called me to serve at Messiah Lutheran in Lincoln, Nebraska. I had never lived anywhere but Michigan so it was truly a leap of faith when I accepted this call and my family and I moved to Lincoln. I've loved my ministry here in Nebraska and been blessed with a very supportive congregation. I made some running friends out here and have gotten back into the marathon circle, running Chicago in 2003, Minneapolis in 2005 and Disneyworld in 2007. I'm now in charge of all youth ministries for the high school students at my church (we have about 165 high school students) and last year we hired a full-time middle school youth director.
My son is a senior this year, and I'm feeling older by the minute. My girls are in the 7th and 4th grades. My wife and I celebrated our 23rd wedding anniversary, as I got married straight out of college in 1985, just before starting at LHE. We love to travel and my youth ministry job has taken us to California about 1/2 a dozen times, Colorado, Orlando, New Orleans, Nashville and more. The local Lutheran High in Lincoln had an opening for a boys soccer coach this year, so I started coaching again for the first time since leaving teaching in 2000. I love it.
I'd love to hear what each of you has been up to over the last 20 years. Send me a nice long facebook message and tell me all about your lives.
posted by thespiderman @ 7:54 AM
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