Horizon Christian Stories

This fall our Hawks Rising fund raising goal was $100,000. Not only did we reach our goal on Dec 6th, but we are nearing $150,000 as specific material donations and money continues to come in! We are so grateful for our awesome school community and the many ways that your love and appreciation for Horizon Christian School is expressed. This is the first update for our school community on what donations, purchases and enhancements have been made so far with your donations.                                                 

On our elementary and middle school campus we have had several specific parent donations of new carpet for the stairs in the middle school building and a new “9-Square in the Air” play structure. The kids love the 9-square game and it has greatly enhanced the fun and activity level for the middle school students at break and lunch. Special thank you to the parents who donated the supplies and equipment for these two areas.

Other enhancements include office and computer equipment, security cameras within the “D” building, and an additional part-time office/health assistant in the main office. Additionally, we have received a promised donation of 180 surplus Chromebooks from the Lake Oswego School District that will help to reduce the number of Chromebooks we had planned to purchase.

On our high school campus, we have purchased a new upgraded chapel computer to help with the tech side of our student-led chapels, new camera and photography equipment, and several upgraded computers for personnel. In our fine arts department, black accordion walls have been purchased to enhance the experience for the audience at drama performances and art shows. Also added is new curriculum and equipment to instruct art students in the creative skill of woodburning. The students are already enjoying learning this new craft and the fun that these tools have brought.

Additionally, at the high school, new boys varsity basketball uniforms were purchased and a new baseball clubhouse has been built. Coach Sumner has made some major upgrades to our baseball facilities, and we are really excited our team will finally have a clubhouse to call home.

These are just a few of the projects and enhancements that are putting your generous donations to work by, “Investing in our Students for Today and our School in the Future.”

On behalf of Horizon Christian School, we thank you for your generous support which is making such a difference in the lives or our students and staff.  

Through the love and kindness of friends and strangers, our own drama teacher, Ms. Shaner was the recipient of a Christmas Miracle! Keep reading the news release below to hear how 96.3 WayFM & Horizon Christian School surprised her with a new car! 

Tualatin, OR— December 17th, 2021 — 96.3 WayFM and Horizon Christian School surprised Middle School Drama Teacher, Ms. Sandy Shaner, with a car, over $3,000 in listener-raised donations, and other gifts! 

After a scheduled fire-drill, Elementary & Middle-School Principal, Judi Smith, announced that a special surprise was about to happen and that the school had partnered with 96.3 WayFM to gift a teacher with a car and donations. 96.3 WayFM Promotions Director, Dustin Donnor, then asked Ms. Shaner to please come forward to accept a 2006 Toyota Camry and a check. At this point, all in attendance were in tears and cheering for Ms. Shaner. 

“When we became aware of Ms. Shaner’s need for a reliable vehicle to get to her multiple jobs, provide for her son as a single-mom, and visit her sister dying of cancer who is not expected to make it to Christmas,” said Mr. Donnor, “we were inspired to partner with Horizon and get her story out to our listeners. We knew our listeners would be eager to join us in creating this surprise for her. The response from our audience was humbling as listeners from 20 states donated to the project.” 

Ms. Shaner was not aware of the surprise and was greatly moved at the generosity and love our of the donors. In-between tears of joy, Ms. Shaner praised God, thanked everyone for their love and support and said this was the second-happiest moment of her life, following closely behind the late-in-life miracle birth of her son. 

What a beautiful Christmas miracle this is for our beloved teacher, Ms. Shaner. Thank you to 96.3 WayFM, all your wonderful listeners, and the Horizon Christian School Community for blessing one of our own! 

Coach of the Year - Jay Lazaro

“Forgetting who you are and making everyone else great” is the coaching philosophy of Jay Lazaro, our amazing head volleyball coach at Horizon Christian School. “Leaving no one behind and taking the whole team with you” is what defines him as a coach and inspires his players. Over the last three years as our head coach, Jay’s players have loved his heart, style, and unmatched experience as a strong leader in the sport.

Jay’s love of volleyball goes back to his early days in the Philippines and on through to California when, as a junior in high school, he was asked to “teach” the volleyball class while the “teacher” listened to baseball games in his car. This got him hooked! In 2008, Jay moved to Oregon where he was invited to coach club sports and he has never looked back. In 2012, he started his own club in Sherwood, called Empower, and he is currently traveling as a National Team Coach for college recruitment teams, where he helps develop players to get them recognized by college recruiters. 

All three years as coach, Jay has led his teams to 1st or 2nd place in League and they have won the League Playoffs the last two years. Each year they have made it to State: 6th the first year, 7th the second year,  and then this year, with their best team yet and having won the League Playoffs again, they were set to do extremely well had COVID not prohibited the State Championship tournament. Winning League and League Playoffs, let alone going to State, is not an easy task in high school sports and we are extremely proud of Jay’s leadership and the hard work of our players. 

Recently, Jay was voted “Coach of the Year” for the second time by his coaching peers in the 3A Lewis and Clark League. He also coached senior Alyssa Smith to “Player of the Year” for the league, which again speaks to his incredible skills as a coach and the respect of his players. Even with all his success, Jay says his greatest achievement so far has been twice being voted as “Coach of the Year” by Horizon Christian’s ASB.

In the three years that Jay has been coaching at Horizon, the interest and passion for volleyball has skyrocketed among our Horizon Christian girls and allowed for both varsity and junior varsity teams. He is outstanding at taking players from basic to advanced play, and bringing out the very best in each team member. 

We are so thankful for Jay’s heart, passion and love for our school and his team. 

Volleyball is a fall sport, and we invite you to come check out the teams in September. 

It’s not every day that you hear about student led philanthropy projects at the elementary level; however, at Horizon Christian School we are proud of our student’s creativity with service projects. Generosity is one of our core values and is demonstrated in the lives of our staff and students. This was displayed firsthand when four of our first-graders took initiative last month to help raise money for the Portland Rescue Mission by selling chocolate chip cookies.

“The second graders inspired me with their service project. It sounded cool to help others out who needed it,” shared first-grader, Jenzen Osbourne. Typically, students meet with Principal Mrs. Smith, to go over their ideas, and then students implement their project within the school community to raise money for the organization they are partnering with.

“I felt very excited because it was a lot of money to raise for a first-grader,” beamed 1st grader, Tate Sparks. “Also, it was neat that people donated even without buying cookies because they wanted to help others.” The impact of their efforts went to help support mothers with babies at the Portland Rescue Mission. They were able to contribute $600! 

We are so proud of the ways our students show generosity, and how they demonstrate God’s love to those outside our community.

At Horizon Christian School the core values of our HAWKS7 are essential to how we educate, inspire, and challenge our students.  These include Jesus, People, Authenticity, Balance, Generosity, Serving, and Home. Continue reading to see how one of our new teachers, Mrs. Tressa Foster, used a Valentine’s Day card experience to both teach and demonstrate to her 2nd graders the joy of serving, caring for, being generous, and loving on people. We so appreciate her heart in leading this project and the response of these young Hawks in her class.

HCS: Mrs. Foster, you are new to Horizon Christian this year so please tell us a little about yourself.
Mrs. Foster: My husband and I moved to Oregon a few years ago from Illinois. We have two daughters. Our youngest is in 5th grade at Horizon Christian and our oldest is in 9th grade at Sherwood High School. Some of my hobbies include spending time in nature, painting, and reading. After spending many years in early childhood education with toddlers and preschoolers, I decided to return to school to earn my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from George Fox University. This is my first year teaching at HCS, and I chose to become part of this school because I wanted to teach the whole child--emotionally, academically, and spiritually--in an environment that is led by Christian beliefs and values.

HCS: Describe the challenge that Principal Judi Smith created around Valentine's Day.
Mrs. Foster: The service project challenge was to show goodness and serve others by crafting sweet homemade Valentines for seniors in assisted living and healthcare workers. The class that created the most Valentines would receive a class party. The Valentines created by the 2nd grade classes would be distributed to the seniors at the Marquis in Wilsonville.

HCS: Tell us how you discussed the challenge with your class and inspired them to participate.
Mrs. Foster: I introduced the service project to the students with the book Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch, which tells the story of an older gentleman who lives a joyless, uninteresting life all alone. He is surprised by an anonymous Valentine that arrives at his door that reads, “Somebody loves you.” Just the thought of someone taking an interest in him and showing kindness and love completely changes the way he lives his life and treats others. I used this story to inspire the students to think about how the person who receives their Valentine will feel when they open it. Will they feel cared about and loved? That would be our intention when crafting these homemade Valentines for the seniors living at Marquis.

HCS: How did you use this opportunity to help your students embrace the values of our HAWKS7?
Mrs. Foster: Following our Fruit of the Spirit theme for January, which was Kindness, I wanted to demonstrate that kindness is meant to be shown to others throughout the entire year. By setting this example, students would be able to understand the ripple effect of showing love and kindness to people they do not even know and the lasting impact you can have. Through storytelling and sharing my own experiences, I helped my students visualize the reward they would receive in their hearts when sharing love with others.

HCS: Mrs. Smith said that for your class, it did not matter to them if they won the prize as much as it stirred up lots of emotion and passion within the class and students. Could you describe this a little more?
Mrs. Foster: I was intentional about replacing the competitive part of the project with a focus on the service part. We are doing this for others, not ourselves. I wanted to teach my students that celebrating a win would be fun, but the feeling of making someone else happy stays with you much longer than that. I had them imagine someone like Mr. Hatch opening a Valentine they made with their own artistic talents and kind words and knowing that they made a positive difference in that person’s day. As students brought in their bags of homemade Valentines, we took time to show them to the class to value their time and efforts. I noticed many of them wrote the words “Somebody Loves You” on their cards instead of simply “Happy Valentine’s Day.” It was clear these kind-hearted children wanted to send a message of compassion to others, which filled my heart!

HCS: You must be very proud of your students as it sounds like they really embraced the project and learned so much! So, the big question is, did your class win???
Mrs. Foster: Yes, we won 1st place! Our plans are to celebrate by having a movie party with popcorn and hot chocolate.

HCS: Is there anything else you would like to share?
Mrs. Foster: I feel so blessed to be the teacher of this amazing group of children. They are kind, thoughtful, and filled with so much joy to share. God guides us in the direction where we are meant to be, and I love being a part of the Horizon Christian School community.

Congratulations Mrs. Foster and your wonderful 2nd grade class!! Thank you for the heart behind how you teach and inspire your students and the warm message you imprinted on their hearts through a simple card project. We can all relate to the story of “Mr. Hatch” and how serving, loving, and helping others can be so mutually impactful for all parties.

Helping students discover their gifts, talents, and passions supports our calling Where Everybody is Somebody and Jesus is All!  Our newly formed High School Worship Team is one such area where students are discovering and learning their innate talent and aptitude. Whether it is one the stage or behind-the-scenes, they are stretching themselves in leading worship for our school and at events. Continue reading to learn more about the director of this program, Timelle Rosen, and the students that are involved in this important ministry.

HCS: Please tell us a little about you, your history and what has prepared you to take on this role?
Mrs. Rosen: The Lord gifted me with the heart for worship at a very young age. I would sit and listen to my mom lead worship as a young child. Throughout my teen years I was on youth worship teams. During the ten years my husband and I were full time youth pastors, I led many youth worship teams, helping students find and grow their gifts. Worshiping God through music is like oxygen to my soul!

HCS: What was your purpose and vision for this group?
Mrs. Rosen: It is really God's purpose, and I am so amazed to be able to help students find the "wonder of worship" this year. I love seeing the students grow in their relationships with God and in the talents he has given them. The vision God has given me is to see the students begin to find that sense of wonder and awe for Jesus through our time together.

HCS: Tell us how the worship team came together and what opportunities you provide for students?
Mrs. Rosen: The worship team is part of the Chapel Class. This year with most classes online, the Chapel Class as moved into creating worship nights, and times for families and students to find that "wonder of worship". Within Chapel Class, students can learn to play and sing, as well as learn how to run the behind-the-scenes jobs of tech, lighting, and lyrics.

HCS: Who are all the students on your team and what roles do they have?
Mrs. Rosen: The students that our part of the worship team are Sara Ma- Lighting/Lyrics; Marcus Carpenter- Tech/Lighting/Lyrics; Derek Smith-Tech/Lighting/Lyrics; Carter Cochran- Tech/Lighting/Lyrics; Hannah Eldridge- Piano; Jade Campean- Piano/Vocals; Nathan Dillree- Guitar/Tech; Bailee Olson-Guitar/Piano; Carter Eldridge- Bass/Drums; Kaleb Campean- Bass/Drums/Guitar/Vocals; Alyssa Smith- Vocals; Julia Cloud- Vocals; Hayes Johnson- Vocals; Debbie Cotoc- Vocals; Ali Seger- Vocals; Tayte Nelson- Vocals.

HCS: What are some of the challenges you have faced and how have you come together to overcome them?
Mrs. Rosen: With classes online, there is very little in person practice time. We have implemented a new program online that allows each student to hear other parts and play and sing along while practicing at home. We also have separate band and vocal practices to help each group learn their parts before coming together to practice.

HCS: In what ways have you seen your students grow and mature in the Lord through the worship team experience?
Mrs. Rosen: I am pushing students this year to step out of their comfort areas. Students are playing new instruments and vocally leading songs. The students are really stepping up and learning new things with great attitudes! I love seeing students realize God has given them the talents they possess and the faith that arises in students as we complete these worship sets and programs. They are starting to understand the "wonder of worship".

HCS: You have had a few special events, please tell us about them?
Mrs. Rosen: We had our Fall Worship Night as well as our Fine Arts Christmas Show. Both allowed our worship team a time to really use the talents God has bestowed upon them. The Fall Worship Night allowed our students to run a full night of worship and testimony on their own. The Fine Arts Christmas Show was a compellation of the Drama Team, Photography Class, Art Classes, and the Worship Team. It was a fun night full of laughter and the Christmas Spirit. Both events were amazing and the worship team did such a great job!

HCS: What have been some of your most memorable experiences so far?
Mrs. Rosen: I believe my favorite memory was watching a student step out and give her testimony. She was extremely nervous but did such an amazing job! It was so touching to see how God built her faith as she was obedient to what he had asked of her.

HCS: If a student was interested in joining the worship team, what background or experience do you need?

Mrs. Rosen: None! We would love to have any student who is interested join the worship team. We are a class to train up students and believe if a student has the heart to serve, they are welcome to join. We are planning on several more worship nights in the winter and spring, and we would love to have you join us. We have a ton of fun while playing and singing together!