Kurtis Barnes
First off, I would like to thank God for my wonderful parents and for helping me get through school. I also would like to thank my mom, my dad, my brother, and my sister for being there when I needed them most and for putting up with me through the 11 years of school that we shared.
Being home schooled has been a good experience for me, I am glad God has given me the opportunity to learn at home. In the future I plan on taking a year off from any school related activities to save up enough money to take a vocational mechanics course at Frederick Community College. But above all my main goal for the future is to keep on serving God wholeheartedly and listening to what he wants me to do.
Christina Comfort
As I stand here today. I am truly in awe of the goodness of my Lord. How can I begin to thank Him for bringing me through these many years with more then just an education, but a chance to grow in His grace?
I am eternally grateful that He allowed my parents to home school me from the very beginning. I firmly believe that home schooling has been God’s instrument of mercy in bringing me to know Him in an intimate and beautiful way.
Psalm 25 says that the Lord will teach sinners in His way, and Isaiah 54 speaks of Him building our foundations and being the teacher of our children. Truly, the Lord has been teaching a poor, wretched sinner like me, and as I look back, I see that He has been building foundations through the workings of His sovereign hand. Therefore I look forwards with eager anticipation to the day when I can entrust the ultimate teaching of my children to Him.
Dad and Mom, thank you for fighting the good fight and finishing this part of the race. Susanna, Sarah, David, Joshua, Rebecca, and Josiah, Thanks for all the sacrifices you’ve made and the great experiences we’ve shared. Mr. Cox, and all the staff of WCFS, thank you for helping our family along this journey.
As much has been given me, so much will be required. I trust that the Lord will continue to direct my steps. Lord willing, I will continue to serve Him and begin furthering my education with Patrick Henry College in the fall.
Thank you Lord, for bringing me to this place and for being my Savior, Redeemer, Teacher and my very best friend. Help me to live a life worthy of the calling of Christ.
Abigail Connell
My name is Abigail Connell. This is a very exciting moment for me, and I am so glad to be sharing it with my twin sister, Cora, and my brother, Allan.
First, I would like to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ for how he has impacted me throughout my life. With out Him I would not be here. He has blessed me with an awesome family and excellent opportunities. Dad, thank you so much for how hard you work to support our family; you are the most unselfish person I know. Mom, thank you for encouraging me to do my very best in all that I do. Emily, thank you for being a sophisticated, influence. Sarah, thank you for showing me that life can be lived to its fullest. Thank you Allan, my only brother, for making life so much fun. Molly and Anna, thank you for being the cutest, sweetest, coolest, most lovable little sisters anyone could ever have. Cora, I could never have accomplished so much without our unique close and sometimes competitive relationship. You have always been there for me and you are truly the best twin anyone could ever have. I have been home schooled all my life, along with my brothers and sisters.
My favorite part about home schooling is all the many opportunities it has given me such as practicing piano and violin for long hours, attending Harford Community College as a full time student, doing and not doing school whenever I wanted, taking a week off to work in Philadelphia with Aunt Betsy for Revlon and especially becoming a very close knit family. Thanks to the Walkersville Staff; you guys are awesome.
Allan Connell
First off, I’d like to thank my Heavenly Father for all that He has blessed me with. I’ve been home schooled all my life and if I could go back, I would choose to be home schooled. Thank you mom for always urging me to keep going and do my best. Thank you dad for always being there, you are the best. I’d like to thank all my siblings, Emily, Sarah, Abigail, Cora, Molly, and Anna. My life would be dull and boring without you guys. My favorite verse is Colossians 3:23 “In everything you do, do it as though it is for the Lord and not men.” As for my future, I’ve been attending Harford Community College and plan to finish my degree in Landscape Management/Business Administration. After that I plan on working with my Dad’s tree service and hopefully take over that, but whatever God calls me to do I will be willing. Last I’d like to thank the whole staff here at WCFS, you guys have been great.
Cora Connell
My name is Cora and I have been home schooled in a Christian home all my life. What I appreciated about home schooling the most was how close I was with my siblings; I love them so much.
Emily and Sara you’re the best chaperones and so thoughtful and generous when it comes to gifts. Abigail my life would not be complete without you. You’re like my other half and my best friend. Allan, you are my favorite brother, even though your bond is not as close as Abigail and I, you feel almost like our triplet sometimes. Molly and Anna you two are indescribably cool. Your both beautiful, talented, athletic, and excellent musicians. And I’m so proud to call you both my little sisters.
Dad I love you so much. You’re so hard-working and unselfish. Mom, you do the craziest things for us and I always think you’re too nice to us.
I would like to thank all my friends for all of the encouragement and for all the good times we have had.
Thank you Walkersville Staff. You guys are awesome!
Danielle Fleharty
Being home schooled was a blessing because it allowed me the opportunity to do so many things that I would not have been able to do otherwise. High school has been the most amazing growing time in my spiritual walk with the Lord. My freshman year is when I truly made the commitment to give Christ my WHOLE life. Ever since then it has been a crazy ride full of trials and joys all of which have made me fall more and more in love with the Lord and made me realize living for anything but Him is not truly living. I thank God for how He used my youth leaders, Tony, Brian, Mr. Tom, Gary, Krissy, and Kat to stretch and help me grow in my relationship with Him along the way. There are many people that God puts in your life to help you and then move on, but some people enter your life and heart, make an impact and stay. People like the Blackstens, Brunsts, Willets, and the Hawkins Families. I’d like to thank my Grandparents for supporting me.
This brings me to my family. Dad, thank for understanding me, for the motorcycle trips, and for showing me what it means to lead by being a servant. Mom, thanks for never growing up, never giving up on us, and for showing me the meaning of courage. Bryce and Hanna, my life would have been so boring without you guys! Thanks for loving me when you wanted to hit me and for making me laugh when I wanted to cry. I love you guys. I also could never forget my best friends, Grace and Mary, who have always been there for me and have shown me what a close relationship with the Lord looks life.
As to future plants I have been accepted into a program called Mission Year and am going to a year long missions trip to the inner city come September which I am really excited about! After that, who knows! I’m trusting God to show me when the time is right. But I do know He has given me a heart for touching my generation for Him in whatever way I can.
Marc Garreau
I want to give glory to God, who has led me thus far and blessed me with all that I have. Above all I thank Him for the life which He gives. I also want to thank my parents for raising, training, and teaching me to the glory of God. This is one of the greatest blessings I have received. I would like to share a verse with you:.
Zephaniah 2:4 - “The Lord will be awesome to them, for He will reduce to nothing all the gods of the earth; people shall worship Him, each one from his place, indeed all the shores of the nations.”
In the immediate future I will be finishing my pilot’s license. I hope to do the commercial license after that and become a mission pilot if God wills. But whatever happens, I hope to serve God in any way wherever He places me. May the glory and the honor be unto His name forever and ever. Amen.
Anna Isaacs
First of all, I want to thank my family for everything they have done for me. Mom and dad, thank you for making my childhood so much fun. Thank you for being such an active part of my life: for playing with me, teaching me, and setting strict boundaries.
Thank you for caring enough to home school me, even though it would have been much easier to send me off to school. And most of all, thank you for teaching me about God.
Joy and Caleb, thanks for all the fun times. You guys are the best siblings anyone could have.
I also want to thank a few of my friends for their part in my life. Mr. Tim and Miss Christy, thank you for being my friends and role models. You guys are such a blessing to me. And to Kate my very best friend, thank you for showing me who God really is.
Most of all, thank you, God. My God has been so incredibly good to me. In spite of all my selfishness, pride, and trying to do things my way, He loves me and forgives me and blesses me beyond measure. To God be the glory forever.
Christina Kreig
First of all I thank God for saving me. I was saved at the age of nine on August 3, 1999. I would be nowhere without Him. I thank Him that I was raised in a Christian home. I know that not many people have that testimony, and I am thankful to have it. I would like to thank my parents for raising me on the King James Bible and not straying from it. I also want to thank them for taking care of me for my whole life. I thank God for my Pastor and his family. My pastor is an awesome man of God, and I am proud to call him my pastor.
After I graduate high school I plan to work a year to prepare for college. My plans are to go to a Christian college. I am going to college so that I can earn a degree to teach secondary education English. My pastor told me that if we start an academy, I may teach there. I am going to live my life in full time Christian service to God. A verse that I love is Proverbs 31:30 “Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.”
Mark Severson
Wow, I can’t believe I’m graduating. For those who don’t know me, I’m Mark Severson, son of Mark and Mariam Severson. I have been home schooled all my life. Is has been a long trek that has not been easy, but worth the result.
I personally have a difficulty with self-discipline, setting goals, and pride. These are major flaws in a home schooler. Gradually, these were creating problems in my school and I was quickly getting behind. But God’s word states that “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins, and will heal their land”. So I asked God for His strength to discipline me and with my parents, created goals for my schooling. Then, I began to have success but only after the total surrender of my pride in my own strength to God.
As far as future plans, I have been accepted and am going to Muskingum College where I will be pursuing a major in Computer Science and Engineering.
In closing, I would like to publicly state my appreciation for my mom and dad who stuck with me through everything, no matter what, as well as for their encouragement and exhortations in the way I should go. I would also like to thank my sisters for their support and allowing me to concentrate on my school. And last but not least, I would like to thank Brad Main for always being there to answer questions and enforce deadlines.
Patrick Shilts
High school has been quite a journey, and I wouldn’t have made it this far without the help of some special people.
First, I’d like to thank God for having mercy on me and blessing me with the gift of knowing Him. I would also like to thank my family. They’ve given so much support. Annah, Jonathan, Rebecca, and Grandma, you have been a real help when I’ve run into trouble. You’ve always put me before yourselves, and you’ve always been good friends whenever I was lonely.
I’d like to thank my mom and dad. Mom, you have always been there for me. I can’t tell you how thankful I am to have you as a mom. Thank you! Dad, you have always looked out for me, you’ve taught me about walking with God, and you’ve shown me many unique things about how to live a Christian life in a secular world. You’ve taught me what it means to love God. I am extremely fortunate to have you both as parents.
I would like to thank all my friends, you guys have always been fun to be around and I will always remember the good times we’ve had. Finally I would like to thank the Walkersville Christian Family Schools Staff for all they’ve done to help me graduate.
As for future plans, I plan on attending a community college to continue my education, and I will eventually be applying to the United States Coastguard Academy this fall. Thank you very much!
Matthew Simpson
I have been home schooled all my life. Although there were times when I thought that it would be cooler to go to a public school, looking back I can see now the benefit of being schooled this way. I am grateful to my parents for following God’s calling on their life to home school.
I was saved at the age of seven, but it was not until recently that I really began to realize what being a Christian was all about, when God revealed to me that I had not totally surrendered everything to him. I was holding on to what I believed to be right and wrong, and had my own little moral code to live by. When God showed me how imperfect my own morality was, I realized that I needed to be seeking after what He wanted for me to do. I saw that by trying to live by what I thought was right or wrong was really just rebellion against God and my parents. Since then, I have been trying to trust in God to help me do what He wants, and not try to abide by what I or others think I should do. It’s not easy, and I am far from perfect, but I believe that God is truly giving my life purpose, and that purpose is to follow His plan for my life.
I would first like to thank my parents for schooling me for these twelve years, and for always being there for me, and always being willing to impart God’s truth to me, whether I wanted it or not. Thank you to my brothers and sisters for always being there and putting up with all my craziness. Thanks also to my friends for putting up with me, and for all the good times we’ve had. But most thanks must go to my Lord Jesus Christ for saving me, and always being there to pick me up when I fall.
I would like to share a verse with you that has meant a lot to me. 1 John 4:10- “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
As for my future plans, I am really just trying to follow what God has for my life, and not get in the way of His plan. Right now I feel as if He is leading me to pursue employment at Cedar Ridge Adventures in Williamsport, MD. I will be working outside on the ropes course, in a godly environment, and be able to minister to young people, something I enjoy doing. I also plan to begin to try and CLEP out of some college courses, and I am just trusting God to show me what else He has for me.
Jessica Stanker
I’ve been home schooled for the past two years. Many people have helped me get to this point in my life, but most importantly God has played the biggest role. I have been very fortunate to grow up in a Christian family with conservative values. I became a Christian at the age of six after my brother told me about God an how I needed him in my life.
My parents have also helped me greatly to come this far. They have stuck by my side through all the good times and bad. They have pushed me to do my best in everything I do. And most importantly they have provided me with the tools I need to succeed in life. So I would like to thank them for everything they have done and for sticking by my side through all the rough times.
Another important person in my life has been one of my best friends and mentors Gema. She has done so much for me over the years and I can’t thank her enough. I am very fortunate to have someone in my life I can turn to for anything and know she will be there when ever I may need her.
In the next couple of years I plan to attend college, get my bachelors degree in nursing then join the army.
During one of the toughest times in my life someone very important to me shared a verse that has stuck with me. This verse is from 1 John 4:4 “You dear children are from God and have overcome them. For he who is in you is greater then he who is in the world.”
Scott Stumphy
I have found through the years how lucky I am to have grown up in a conservative Christian home and to be taught at home as well. I feel blessed to have such loving parents, siblings and friends. My mother has taught me how to act as a gentleman and shown me the way to God. My father has taught me how to be a man and how to let God guide me through my life. My parents have always been there for me when I have needed them the most. I am overwhelmed with joy to finally get my high school diploma and to get on with life and my adventures.
Rachel Wachter
Graduation is a day I have looked forward to since day two of kindergarten. Unfortunately, I am one of those people who looks at school as a necessary evil, and even the “necessary” is only a recent addition. There was one day I made my mom dance by saying, “I think I’m beginning to actually like school”. But then I turned to the next page in my math book and that feeling promptly disappeared. My mom has had a good bit to put up with over the last thirteen years. From me arguing with her over which marker was light blue and which was dark blue, to poking me to write this very testimony. Her sigh of relief as I graduate is just as big as mine. Hopefully, she believes as I do: that home schooling me was a good decision, and all the blood, sweat, and tears leading up to this day has been worth it. Of course, I doubt mom could have done it without dad. He’s been there to support her in her decisions and encourage her after I had given her a particularly stressful day. They have done something many parents would run from, and I am very thankful to them.
My plans after graduation are pretty simple. Over the summer I will continue with my job at Petsmart, and hopefully earn a promotion. In the fall I will be begin taking some basic and special interest classes at FCC. At this point in time I have no degree I am interested in obtaining, and am waiting for God’s direction as to what course this next part of my like is to take.
A Charge to the Graduates
by Gary Cox
I would like to share with you Jesus Christ's Principle and Patterns of Success and leave you with His Charge to Preserve Success in your life.
Principle of Success
What will you forsake to serve Jesus Christ with you life?
While the world measures success by what you have, Jesus Christ measures success by what you let go.
Patterns for Success
1. Serve God Today with Eternity's Reward in Mind.
2. You forsake all to serve Jesus Christ with you life.
Earthly rewards are too temporary to live for. Labor for that which lasts forever. Jesus Christ promises eternal blessings for the life lived for Him.
Congratulations to the class of 2006! You have completed an important milestone, completing your high school studies.
The WCFS Staff, your parents, families and friends desire every godly success in the years that God will grant you on this earth.
A Commendation to Parents
First, to the parents and grandparents of the graduates, Congratulations to you all for a charge well kept by the grace of our Lord Jesus.
As you have pursued God's success you have labored in your marriages and homes to honor Him and raise up for Him godly children to serve the Lord.
Children truly are a heritage from the Lord, but that heritage requires hard work to complete the purpose for which God gave you those children. … He is seeking a godly seed from your marriages.
Let us all give honor and respect to these parents for the labors they have faithfully employed in teaching and training these graduates over the years.