One of the most confusing parts of telling my story is how I ended up going on a mission trip with King’s after my freshman year of college. The answer touches on some of the most important ways that King’s impacted my life.

To start, King’s Schools shares a campus with 6 other ministries, one of which is Christian Veterinary Mission (CVM). Fred and Vicki VanGorkom, who work with CVM, had a huge impact on my decision to participate in ministry on an international scale. I was on the track team at King’s with their children and got to know their family, who had spent many years serving in Ethiopia. Fred always had an intriguing story to tell and a theological point to make. Their love for Jesus and zest for ministry rubbed off on me and I began to dream of serving overseas, particularly in East Africa.

While these dreams were being planted in my heart, they were receiving plenty of water from the dearly beloved 11^th grade King’s Bible teacher, Deri Kispert. She became a sounding board and mentor for me during my last two years of high school. From boys, to school, to friendships and sports, Mrs. K was an awesome person to have in my corner to listen well and speak truth. Through her mentorship, I learned how important it is to love people well and to be there for them. This, of course, comes as an overflow of the love that we have received from God.

Dreams and mentorship in place, all I needed was an opportunity to put these things into action. And here is where the King’s connection comes in clutch for the first, but certainly not the last time. After graduating from King’s, I traveled south to Santa Barbara, California to attend Westmont College, a small liberal arts school located in the hills of Montecito with renowned neighbors such as Oprah. I had an excitable first semester of classes, new friends and college basketball, but then headed home to Lynnwood for a short break before returning for the second semester. One of the things that I was sure to do on my short week home was to grab coffee with Mrs. K. I told her about all of my new and fun experiences and she had an important question for me. She wondered if I was still wanting to be involved in international ministry. And of course, I still was. What she said next changed my life forever. “Karlie, do you want to come to Africa with us this upcoming summer?” And without hesitation, I responded in the affirmative.

So, in case you were still wondering, that is how I was able to go to East Africa with my high school after my freshman year of college. It is noteworthy to mention that both Mrs. Kispert and Mr. VanGorkom were on that trip with me. But that is not the end of the story. After that trip, I was then able to inspire some of my college teammates to want to go on a similar type of missions trip. This time, what was different is that we were able to go for sports ministry and run basketball camps in both the north and south of Uganda.

And this was when I realized that my missions passion and countless years of sports training could meld together to make the best use of my gifts and talents. That realization then gave way for me to seize another opportunity that the King’s community would provide. Dan Taylor, my high school basketball coach, asked me this past October during my senior year at Westmont to come back and be the junior varsity basketball coach for him this upcoming year. As much as I would have loved to go abroad, this opportunity seemed to be the right fit. Coaching is going to be an incredible opportunity for me to pour into young girls in the ways that I was poured into and inspired during my time at King’s.

King’s provided me with an incredible, loving community to grow as a person and develop my dreams and passions through the incredible staff and programs that it provides. I hope to take what I learned and continue to inspire people to follow Jesus, to love well and to use their gifts and talents to the best of their abilities. 

Karlie Storkson is an alumna of King’s High School and Westmont College. She served as Team Captain at both schools, earned National Champion at Westmont and has received several All-American rewards for track, basketball and service. This year, we are happy to announce that she will be the new King’s Junior Varsity Basketball Coach. Storkson also serves as the Director of Basketball Operations at the Shoreline Sports Foundation.

The post From basketball court to mission field: How King’s impacted one alumna’s life… appeared first on King's Schools.

If someone asked me to solve an algebra problem or what the atomic number for hydrogen is I would have no clue. It has been too many years since I sat in math class or studied the periodic table. So many things in life you just don’t retain, skills you once had fade into what seems like another life.

Then there are those things that are like riding a bike. Things your mind and body just remember as if you learned it yesterday. A few weeks ago, we had our first Lady Knight 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament and I was happy to say for most of us it was like riding a bike. I was beyond impressed with what these ladies could still do, and in fact for many of these women, they had just gotten better over time. Jump shots were still pretty, crossovers lightning fast and free throws spot on.

The competition was awesome, but that is not why we came to play. We showed up because we wanted to reconnect with friends we had not seen in years. We came to give a high five to our coach who invested so much in our lives, and we came to have an excuse just to be back in Mike Martin Gym. I have to say, we had the best time and cannot wait for next year.

King’s Alumni Coordinator Deborah Siers

Deborah Siers is the Alumni Coordinator for King’s Schools. Siers is a King’s Alumnus, herself, (class of ’95) and she loves to see alumni connect back to King’s in a meaningful way. One way she is doing that is by connecting people in affinity groups. “We want to give alumni the chance to come back to King’s and do something they once loved, so we have alumni basketball tournaments, volleyball drop-in’s, opportunities to sing with Living Faith… My favorite was the cheer reunion in which we invited 50 years of cheerleaders to come back and perform a routine at half time of the homecoming game.”

Siers was hired on a little over a year ago and loves being back on campus. She, herself, played basketball and volleyball at King’s in the 90’s and then went on to play four years of basketball and one year of volleyball at Northwest University. She has four kids, all of which are currently enrolled at King’s for next year. Alumni can connect with her anytime on the new and pages or she invites you to stop by her office in the Privott House anytime to chat or pick up some cool King’s alumni gear!

The post King’s Alumni Reconnect in Fun, Meaningful Ways appeared first on King's Schools.