Faith group grows at Foundation Academy

A faith-filled group for girls continues to grow on the Tilden Campus at Foundation Academy.

In its first meeting of the school year, Daughters Growing in Grace attracted more than 40 students.

“Even though we do go to a Christian school, having this community where we can all gather at least once a week and talk about (faith) and really be there for each other, just helps grow your faith into a much stronger faith,” senior Ella Reuter said. “It’s a really strong sisterhood that helps you realize you are not alone in anything.” 

The group was founded during the middle of the spring semester by recent graduates Jenna Taylor and Anna Kate Sircy. 

“I got saved in the middle of my junior year, and I started going to this church called Vision Church in Groveland, … and I got to really feel the Lord’s presence and really know the Lord,” Taylor said. “My senior year (of high school), it was my first full year of being saved, and the Lord was like, ‘I put you through all this training. You are overflowing. You need to pour on other people, so I need you to do something.’ … So, He told me to start this group, and it was a Bible study group with females, so we could open up with each other and connect as a whole school and to grow with each other but focused on the Lord (and), … when the Lord tells you to do something, you have to obey.”

Teachers Sarah Gibson and Carol Canes were happy to sponsor the on-campus group.

“They just knocked it out of the park,” Gibson said. “They came up with the content, what we would be studying. They brought in guest speakers, and it just started to grow and grow last semester — with probably 25 to 35 consistent ladies (attending) the meetings every week until the last week of school. That’s a pretty big deal for a club in the spring with so many things going on. It was just kind of a really neat place (where) the girls felt safe to come in and just have a soft landing space, and really is just a testament to these two seniors who got it going.” 

The main focus of study for the group was the impact of the women of the Bible and an in-depth look on how to be a Godly woman in today’s society. However, topics varied significantly from meeting to meeting. 

“The Holy Spirit switched us,” Taylor said. “It was being really in-tune with the Holy Spirit seeing what He needed to be done. It caused a lot of breakthrough in our group, and that’s why it’s being so prosperous — because we’ve listened.” 

BASED ON THE BIBLE

After the two founders graduated in the spring, the group is now under the leadership of Avery Bangsund, Haley Lambert, Amelia Donaho, Erika Kine, Reuter and Sophia Smith. They volunteered to take the reins and continue providing a safe space to meet at 1:07 p.m. every Thursday for a half-hour during lunch. 

Photo by Andrea Mujica

“I’m really grateful that God is using us this way, because He could have chosen anyone to do this,” Kine said. “I’m grateful and thankful that we are in a school and a community where we can do that.”

During the summer months, the girls got together a number of times to determine the direction of the group for the 2023-24 academic year.

“We still want to focus on women of the Bible,” Kine said. “We want an approach that not only explains the powerful women in the Bible but also how (girls) can grow (into strong women). We want to start at the end, start at the beginning and study (the Bible) from all angles: look at relationships and identity and just get to the root of all troubles teenage girls go through in high school years, because it’s such a big moment in our lives. So, we want to tackle the struggles head on and really just be a safe space for all girls in our school so they don’t feel alone.”

The bond and love all these girls share for one another is strong and palpable, and it has grown — as well as the stronger faith they have come to welcome into their daily lives. 

“This legacy they (Taylor and Sircy) have left honestly has made me excited about my faith,” Donaho said. “It’s being able to watch God’s work in other people’s life, which is a really cool thing.” 

LIVES CHANGED

Spreading faith and learning how to appreciate all teachings of the Bible while applying them on a daily basis has become a non-negotiable for the group. 

“To me, this group means giving girls something to relate to,” Lambert said. “Sometimes it’s hard when you are going through things. So, we are here to give examples and to give ways (in which) we can help these girls to get through scenarios and get through hardships.” 

“To me, it’s knowing that other girls are willing to walk in there wanting to know more about God,” Bangsund said. “That touches me, because they are not alone. They look around and see other people … are walking in there with a heart open to learn more about Jesus and that makes me tear up.” 

For Smith, this group was a light in the dark, and it allowed her to realize she was meant to follow a new path. 

“I could have never seen myself where I am right now,” she said. “(This group) changed my life, and I’m so happy that it did. If it wasn’t for (Taylor and Sircy), I would probably be running with the wrong crowd and not having the morals that I do have today.” 

For Taylor and Sircy, the idea of having left a mark on their peers and a legacy for future generations of Lions to participate in is still fresh and mind-blowing. 

“Sticking to what God wants you to do and following the Holy Spirit will keep you safe,” Sircy said. “I’ve always been told to be a light, and that’s what I tell other people. So, even when you live in an environment that is uncomfortable, it doesn’t mean that God is not with you. You are going to be tested, you are going to go through things that are not comfortable, but religion is not supposed to be comfortable so you just have to pray a lot and stay close to the Lord.” 

“As a Christian, I wouldn’t necessarily view (faith) as a religion; I view it as a relationship,” Taylor said. “Those who are not believers — they don’t read the Bible. They read Christians, they read you. So … I don’t have to shove God down your throat, my actions will line up with God, my kindness, my joy, my love, my peace … my self-confidence, my speech will just line up to it. And when people go, ‘Oh why?’ Well, it’s just because I have the Lord in me. And even though (faith) seems like it’s fading, just stay true to the light.”