Silence covered the room as the group sat in silence, some bowing their heads towards their hands or some looking around. The song “Overcame” by Jeremy Camp played throughout the varsity gym. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes club connected all of the students in the room, athlete or not. Coach Jimmie Green, one of many teachers in the club, participates in the club by praising along the students and teaching them about the power and love of Christ.
“It was made a long time ago to bring athletes together and for them to know it is ok to be a Christian while being an athlete,” Green said. “A big thing in FCA is integrity. It holds us accountable.”
FCA stands for Fellowship of Christian Athletes and represents coaches and athletes in the mission for Christ. Students and athletes that are in FCA can participate in activities while being in a relaxing environment. The FCA values integrity, serving, teamwork, and intelligence. Many students, adults and teachers come to the club because they feel that they can relax and grow in their faith. Junior Lauren Wilke helps with FCA by participating and teaching in the club.
“It’s definitely brought me out of my comfort zone and has pushed me to expand beyond the clique-ness of school and meet people,” Wilke said. “It has pushed me away from being hypocritical with my faith.”
The club has at least one individual from that sport to be the team captain for FCA. The teachers and coaches participating are Terry Short, Jimmie Green, Tracy Burke and a couple more. For the club this year of 2014-2015, the only differences were the advertising of the posters and the increase of bible studies. Coach Terry Short supports the students at the school in FCA and believes that everyone can help and support each other.
“I feel that as a Christian, students need to see that there are Christian teachers around the school and that if they need to talk to anyone, there are people here,” Short said. “It’s important for students to meet other students from around the school with the same problems they have and to know that there are others around them to support each other.”
The leaders in FCA want to see the students and teachers relaxed in the environment and community. Building up relationships in the sports and around the community is a goal that the FCA looks forward to fulfilling. Sometimes in the club, the individuals, whether teacher or student, will share their testimony. The members then grow in the testimonies and can help each other out like a family.
“We tell others that you don’t have to be an athlete to be in FCA.” Green said. “We are a growing union of Christians. We don’t want some, we want all.”
