Hillcrest Christian School INDEPTH: May 2014

IF YOU BUILD IT...

HCS BASEBALL

SUCCESS

PG 6-7

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HILLCREST

IN-DEPTH

HILLCREST CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

MAY 2014 ISSUE 4, VOLUME 4 PUBLISHED BY HILLCREST CHRISTIAN SCHOOL Kathy Horan, Principal EDITOR LuAnn Malcolm EDITORIAL STAFF Kathy Horan, Principal LuAnn Malcolm, Admissions Director Cathe Jackson, Preschool Director LAYOUT AND DESIGN Karen Kaiser, Sea Ranch Images INQUIRIES lmalcolm@hillcrestcs.org ON THE COVER Daniel Fanto Photographed by Kristin Gilchrist

DIG IN-DEPTH THE SAINTS ARE ON THE MOVE!

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FOURTH GRADE SACRAMENTO TRIP

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CAMPUS BY THE SEA

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LET’S HAVE SCHOOL AT THE BEACH!

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ECONOMICS IN ACTION

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HILLCREST 'MATHLETES' 2014

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HILLCREST EQUESTRIANS

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BASEBALL OMEGA LEAGUE CHAMPS

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HCS GOLF TEAMS

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HIGH SCHOOL PROM

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SPRING SPORTS

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PRESCHOOL CHAPEL: POWER IN PRAYER

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DADDY AND ME HOE DOWN

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M AY 2 0 1 4

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THE SAINTS ARE ON THE MOVE!

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n so many ways, the 2013-2014 year was a banner year for the Hillcrest Christian School community. The Hillcrest Varsity Saints brought home League championships in girls volleyball, football, baseball, and golf. Individually, the varsity Saints earned MVP honors in golf, baseball, football, cross country, girls volleyball, and girls basketball. The middle school and elementary teams also did well as evidenced by the middle school girls soccer team going undefeated this season.

Academically, 85% of the senior class were accepted into a four year college or university and collectively the scholarship offers set an all time record. More students qualified to take Advanced Placement exams this spring, and hopefully that number will increase again next year. Elementary math students excelled once again at the ACSI Math Olympics, and many of our students earned ribbons at the ACSI Science Fair, Spelling Bee. and Speech Meets. Spiritually, excitement at both the elementary and secondary levels continues to grow as bible buddies and small groups joined in learning about living in community with one another.

In March 2014, the accreditation team spent a day and a half speaking with staff and students about the changes that have occurred since the 2011 visit. What stood out the most to the team were our junior and senior students. The compliments were effusive as our students showed unrehearsed enthusiasm for the chapel programs, academics, and mission for the school. The team marveled at how well our students understood the mission of the school and how committed they were to fulfilling that goal. Although the committee asked to speak to juniors and seniors, I know that I could also have sent underclassmen, middle schoolers, and more than a few upper elementary students to deliver the same message.

Thank you to my wonderful faculty and staff who tirelessly and wholeheartedly commit every day to not only teach their students the academic subjects but who also love and care for their spiritual well being. After senior graduation, I heard many comments from guests and family friends who understood and were blessed to see the essence of a Hillcrest education from the valedictory speech as well as that delivered by our senior class president.

Thank you also to the parents; we could not do what we do without your support and commitment. Thank you for entrusting

us with your amazing children!

They make our school shine.

This year’s homegrown auction, Lake Sherwood gala, and Apex KATHY HORAN Fun Run not only raised funds PRINCIPAL for financial aid and unbudgeted school improvements, but they were all venues for the Hillcrest community to come together and have good fellowship. A special thank you to Cathey Stueber and her committee as well as to Stacey Massell, Shelby Ward, and the entire PFA. Looking forward, our admissions director Luann Malcolm is the busiest she has ever been. Our high school enrollment promises to be at an all time high. The athletic department will be adding three varsity sports: soccer, track, and boys volleyball as well as exploring the possibility of reviving a cheer squad. One of the more exciting plans is the total redesign of Bible classes K-12. At the elementary level, new curriculum designed to systematically teach a Biblical world view will be adopted. In a nutshell, the focus will be a study of twenty essential biblical truths which influence how we look at the world, others, and ourselves. At the secondary levels students will be able to choose their courses of study based on their interest level and depth of Biblical understanding. Students and teachers have suggested a number of courses such as history of the church, Daniel and Revelation, apologetics, evangelism, and how to be a woman/man of God. If any parent has suggestions for additional course offerings, please do not hesitate to share them with us. As one student enthusiastically shared, “ This is the best idea I have seen at Hillcrest in all my years as a student here."

In addition to traditional offerings in CP and AP/ honors classes in all disciplines, we are attempting to schedule a drama and film class for students in grades 7-12 as well as assembling a pep band to play at the home football games. If there any interested parents or students who are interested in participating, pIease email me with your instrument and availability for summer practice.

To borrow the slogan of our athletic program this year, The Saints Are On the Move! Have a restful and blessed summer vacation. We hope to see you in August for another fantastic school year. n

Golden California

by Mrs. Hawkins, 4th grade teacher

FOURTH GRADE SACRAMENTO TRIP

Our fourth grade students spent three days experiencing so much of the California history we have studied all year. Our history book came to life!! We traveled to Sacramento where we toured Sutter’s Fort, saw Patty Reed’s Doll, explored the Railroad Museum, and ate too much candy in Candy Heaven.

Our second day was filled with tours of the capitol building…inside and out. Then, we traveled to Coloma where we got our toes wet in the cold American River as we panned for gold. While in Coloma we also saw the original location where gold was discovered in 1848.

The third day began early at the Jelly Belly Factory where we learned the difference between a jelly belly and a jelly bean. Then we were off to San Francisco where we walked across the Golden Gate Bridge, explored the rain forest at the Science Exploratorium, and ate lunch at Pier 39!

We were blessed again with a wonderful trip where we experienced our Golden California!

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by Mrs. Barkett, Science Teacher

CAMPUS BY THE SEA

On May 14th the 7th graders headed to Catalina Island for our annual science trip. We had a wonderful time. The students knew a great deal of the educational information that was presented to them by the Campus by the Sea staff, since it was all part of our life science curriculum this year, but they had so much fun seeing the animals that we had learned about up close! The weather was nice and warm which made our snorkeling, tide pool observation, and kayaking activities great! The children spent a good deal of time playing volleyball, basketball, and swimming. Other educational activities experienced by our students included a squid dissection and an ecological hike. It was a trip full of hands-on fun and many fond memories.

by Mrs. Jones, Kindergarten Teacher

LET’S HAVE SCHOOL AT THE BEACH!

 On May 7, as a wonderful wrap-up to our ocean unit, kindergarten drove up to Santa Barbara to visit the Ty Warner Sea Center. It was a gorgeous day as we sat in the sand listening to our docent teach us about the local sea creatures and then getting the chance to hunt for shark egg cases.

Inside the center, our kindergartners got to pet sharks, observe jellyfish, and hold sea slugs. Who knows? We may have even inspired some future marine biologists!

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IN-DEPTH

Academic Excellence A

by Miss Horan, secondary teacher

ECONOMICS IN ACTION

t some point or another, we have all probably heard the famous words, “Someone should start a business with that idea.” Yet, more often than not, the conversation ends there.

This semester, the senior class continued that conversation and joined the millions of other budding entrepreneurs as they developed business concepts of their own through a semester long-project. Each group came up with a concept that was innovative, yet representative of their personalities and interests. As we covered economic concepts in class, the students applied those principles to their own business models. Utilizing resources such as the Small Business Administration, pay scale data, and current consumer trends, the students were able to identify the necessary licensing and permits, average pay for workers, and pricing for the goods or services provided by their business. The culmination of the project required students to prepare a short pitch to be given to potential investors in a format similar to the popular television show, Shark Tank.

After the final portion of the project was introduced, senior Teddy Rettinger went home and shared about the assignment with his parents. Assessing their resources, the Rettingers graciously offered the expertise of their friends, Mr. Tony Tesoro and Mr. Sam Licursi. Both Tesoro and Licursi have enjoyed successful careers in finance and business investment. The gentlemen volunteered to sit in on the groups’ pitches to determine whether or not the concepts were truly viable. Of course the students thought they had created outstanding business models, but the true test would be how the investors responded. While some businesses seemed more viable than others, Mr. Tesoro and Mr. Licursi were noticeably impressed with the efforts of all the groups. The highest compliment, however, was delivered by Licursi who said that if he were still involved in business acquisitions, he would hire two of the students to work for him based on the tenacity and motivation he saw in their presentation. While this assignment might have seemed like just another school project, it ultimately presented students with an opportunity that most entrepreneurs would crave, the ability to hear expert feedback on their original ideas.

It is no secret that the educational experiences students have here at Hillcrest are extraordinary and unique. Small-class sizes and parental involvement are just a few distinct factors that allow teachers to make learning meaningful and memorable. Although the students do learn material from textbooks, they are also encouraged to develop critical thinking and decision making skills, utilize their creativity, and most importantly, use their talents for the kingdom’s cause. As these seniors leave our classrooms here at Hillcrest, we can be confident that they have been trained up both academically and spiritually and truly are equipped for every good work.

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by Mrs. Hume, 6th grade teacher

HILLCREST 'MATHLETES' 2014

On Friday, April 4, Hillcrest took 24 ‘mathletes’ to West Valley Christian School to compete in the 2014 ACSI Math Olympics. These students worked hard in preparation for the event, even spending time after school to practice math skills and strategies. Our students compete against other schools with up to 24 students in each category. Congratulations to the following students who placed in this annual ACSI completion.

Sally Mortensen- 4th place in Math Computation Anthony Matus- 4th place in Math Computation Ray Ji- 4th place in Math Computation Joseph Lee- 4th place in Math Computation Ryan Smith- 5th place in Math Computation Amanda Hausman- 2rd place in Math Reasoning Aliyah Person- 4th place in Math Reasoning Congratulations to all of our mathletes!

HILLCREST EQUESTRIANS PARTICIPATE IN IEL This year HCS became members of the Interscholastic Equestrian League. The goals of the IEL are to support and develop equestrian athletes for regional and national competition, encourage teamwork and friendly competition, and promote the sport in a positive learning environment. This year two athletes participated on the Hillcrest team, Hannah Bruni and Ciara Tetreault. There were four meets throughout the year where the girls competed against other riders from local schools.

We are very proud of these student athletes and the newest HCS team.

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HILLCREST

IN-DEPTH

SAINTS FIND BASEB

CONGRATULATIONS CIF OMEGA LEAGUE CHAMPS

The following is an article that was originally published in the Thousand Oaks Acorn on May 15, 2014 reprinted with permission of the Acorn. We are so proud of the team’s accomplishments this year, but even more significant is the awesome testimony of their character and faith in Christ witnessed by our community.

“IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL COME.”

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obert Fanto repeated the mantra to the Hillcrest Christian High athletic department four years ago. Fanto wasn’t rehearsing for a role in a “Field of Dreams” play – he was on a mission to bring back baseball to the Saints. Hillcrest rebuilt the team, and the players keep coming.

“It sounds cheesy,” Fanto said, “but if you build it, they will come. And they have come. We’re the small school on the hill with a field of dreams.” The Saints dream are starting to become reality.

Hillcrest Christian captured its first Omega League championship last week with an 11-8 raod victory against Albert Einstein Academy. The Saints finished the regular season 10-3 overall and 10-0 in league. The Saints also clinched their first postseason berth.

“We’ve come a long way since losing all our games the first year we returned the baseball team,” said Fanto, a fourth-year head coach.

“We only had one player with baseball experience at the time. Now we have guys who grew up playing baseball who want to join our program.”

Transfer players Harrison Wanamaker and Luke DeWitt have boosted the Saints.

DeWitt, a junior shortstop who previously played for Oaks Christian, entered this week with a .444 batting average and 15 RBI. Wanamaker, a sophomore transfer from Newbury Park, anchors the squad at catcher.

“Hillcrest was a better fit for me,” Wanamaker said. “I wanted a small-school environment. I was immediately welcomed to the team. I knew Coach Fanto and the team were on the way up, and I wanted to be a part of that.”

The Saints picked up a signature victory on March 18. They snapped Concordia’s

GO SA

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BALL MAGIC

AINTS!

28-game league winning streak in a resounding 13-1 win. “That was big for our program,” junior Bryce Pickard said. “Everyone doubted us, and we went into their house and beat them.”

Pickard, a right-handed pitcher, led the staff with a 7-1 record and 3.36 ERA at press time. A former Hillcrest Christian basketball player, Pickard owns a devastating fastball and filthy curveball. Freshman Ryan Hagge, who bats above .400, is the team’s lights-out closer.

“I love working with our pitching staff,” Wanamaker said.

“Bryce is a good frienc of mine. We have a good connection when he’s pitching. Bryce and Ryan keep improving.”

Daniel Fanto, the only player with baseball experience four yeas ago, had team-high figures in batting average (.625), hits (25), RBO (23), runs (19) and home runs (2) as of Monday. Fanto, the coach’s son, plans on attending The Master’s College and hopes to become a pastor.

John Jones, Jordan Owen, Blake Dundas and Fanto are seniors. Dundas the Omega MVP in football, had no baseball experience before high school. He’s flourished in a solid hitter and base runner. Christian Carignan, Kaitlyn Fanto, Chase Thurman, Jordan Soria, CJ Brown, Troy Shillington, Vanessa Acain, and Zach Hawkins contribute for the Saints.

“We’re starting to have college recruits at games,” Fanto said. “all that is great, but our priority is our faith. We want to be a place where athletes can practice their Christian faith and still compete.” n

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GOLF HILLCREST

IN-DEPTH

HCS HIGH SCHOOL GOLF TEAM OMEGA LEAGUE CHAMPIONS

Hillcrest Christian’s Boys Varsity Golf Team is the Omega League golf champions for 2014 and advanced to the CIF SS Team Divisional Playoffs at Soule Park on May 19th. They finished with a record of 8-3 overall, and were undefeated in league play (6-0). This is the third year in a row that Hillcrest Christian advanced to the CIF SS team divisional playoffs. The team was led by senior Teddy Rettinger who won the Omega League MVP and advanced to CIF SS Individuals Regionals on Monday, May 12 at River Ridge. Other starters for the Saints were juniors, Sammy Rettinger and Ty Metcalfe, both earning First Team All League Honors, freshman Seth Schultz, First Team All League, junior Jonny Yoon, Second Team All League and sophomore, Steve Zhu, Second Team All League Honors. Dillon Yoon helped the team out this year by playing in quite a few matches while Steve Zhu was on the Italy trip. The golf team has had a large practice team every year and the following students spent the season practicing on the range: Greyson Thurman, Ethan Cai, Adam Zhao, Chandler Stewart, Howard Hao, Steven Zheng.

MIDDLE SCHOOL GOLF TEAM CELEBRATES 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF PROGRAM! Coach Wendy Rettinger believes in the five years since she started the middle school golf program at HCS that this is the best middle school team she has ever had! All the golfers worked very hard to improve their scoring averages and they ended their season with a record of 4-2. Seventh grader Danny Rettinger earned MVP honors finishing the season with a scoring average of even par. His best round was recorded at three under in a nine hole match! Eighth grader Justin Armendariz’s highlight of the year was recording a hole-in-one during a practice round. Other seventh grade golfers are Gabby Gonzalez, who won Most Improved. She dropped her scoring average by almost eight strokes from last year; Ryder Bucaro recorded a hole-in-one during a match and was the first golfer in Coach Wendy’s five year coaching career to record an ace. Chase Hilliard won the Determination Award; Caden Barton won the Coach’s Award; Preston McQueen, the Eagerness Award, and Caden McQueen won the Positivity Award. Fifth grade golfer Hunter McCoy won the Rookie Award and has been on the team for two years now!

ELEMENTARY GOLF TEAM CONTINUES TO INTRODUCE YOUNGSTERS TO THE GAME Starting in second grade at Hillcrest Christian, boys and girls are able to sign up for the Elementary Golf Team run by Coach Wendy Rettinger and Coach Jerry Allen, who is also the head golf pro at Sherwood Lake Club. His help teaching beginner golfers on the range at Sinaloa has been instrumental to the golf program at HCS. Advanced elementary golfers graduate from the driving range and play a nine hole round of golf on the course with a high school buddy! This year, Logan Gonzalez was our ELEM MVP and spent every week on the course with varsity starters, Teddy Rettinger, Sammy Rettinger or Ty Metcalfe. Three other golfers who got a chance to spend at least one week on the course are Julian Borrero, Devin Ortiz and Ryan Ozonko. Other ELEM team members were Ray Russell, Carson Peterson, Tyler Kim, Lyndie Knispel, and Maggie Evans.

by Mrs. West, senior advisor

HIGH SCHOOL PROM

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PROM M AY 2 0 1 4

Prom 2014 took place aboard the Scarlette Belle in Oxnard. The students enjoyed dinner, dessert, and dancing while the beautiful paddle-wheel riverboat cruised through the Channel Islands Harbor. The theme of the night was masquerade and the students came with masks in hand! Blake Dundas and Shiny Shen were crowned as the Prom King and Queen.

by Coach Ward

ELEMENTARY & MIDDLE SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS

ELEMENTARY GIRLS SOCCER 2014

Our elementary girls' soccer team, coached by Ben Latchford and our very own Suzanne Hume, had a fantastic year! They were extremely committed to practices two to three times a week and showed great improvement over the last half of the season. Their final record was 3-5, and they lost in the semi-finals against Ascension. Our girls were exemplary in their sportsmanship and represented the heart of Hillcrest Christian on and off the field throughout the season.

MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS SOCCER 2014 Our middle school girls’ soccer team had the best year in the history of Hillcrest Christian! Jim Poorboy, our high school/middle school bible teacher and coach of the team, was very pleased with

the girls’ attitudes as well as their fantastic ability to play soccer at such a high level. During the season, the girls went undefeated and only had three goals scored against them. What an amazing year they had! Go Saints!!

MIDDLE SCHOOL BOYS SOCCER 2014 Our middle school boys team, also coached by Coach Poorboy, had some great results this season. Coach spent a lot of time drilling the boys and getting them into the swing of playing 5 v 5 soccer, which is so different from regulation 11 v 11. The boys learned how to play quicker and be more direct. Towards the end of the season, the boys racked up some nice wins, getting them to the semi-finals, where they unfortunately were defeated by Conejo Adventist. We are looking forward to seeing the boys come back next year!

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HILLCREST

IN-DEPTH

by Cathe Jackson, Preschool Director

PRESCHOOL CHAPEL: POWER IN PRAYER

Each year, one of my goals is to make our preschool chapel more intriguing and exciting than the year before so that the children can retain what they learn in devotions and tell others. It can be quite a challenge coming up with new ideas when you tell the same Bible stories every year. Since the children are so young, we usually stick to teaching about creation and go through the “usual Bible stories” so that they can comprehend and recall the story. Because the preschool teachers have a Bible lesson everyday in their classrooms which allows them to discuss these Bible stories more in depth in an intimate setting, I decided to rely on the Holy Spirit to lead Chapel, not the lesson book.

God brought a whole different perspective to teaching the Word to His little children. Through Him, I taught the children what it means to plant a seed, (the word), stomp the enemy out when we are tempted to make bad decisions, understand how God made us all different and yet perfect in His image, and how much He loves His children. These may seem like normal everyday Bible lessons, but we put these lessons into action.

Two of our lessons focused on unwavering faith and power in

our prayers. I explained to the preschoolers that we have great faith in God and His miracles, but when we have problems, sometimes we can waiver in our faith, even then God is there to pull us through. I compared each of us to a tree with its roots firmly planted in the ground.

When we are firmly grounded in our faith in God, no weapon formed against us will prosper. When God talks about storms in His Word, it represents storms or troubles in our lives. When the wind starts to blow, and one of our feet might come up from the ground, we can pray for God’s help to plant that foot back in the ground to stand firm.

Prayer is power and believing in Him to work out all things is faith.

Right after this lesson, we were going to pray when a preschooler was having a “hard time.” He came up to speak to me about it but was crying so hard he couldn’t find the words. Another preschooler, Charlotte Arguello, came up and put her hand on her crying friend’s back and closed her eyes. We then began to pray for him. I wiped my own tears and praised God for the remarkable act that had just taken place.

Thank you God for this ministry and my little blessings! n

DADDY AND ME HOE DOWN At the end of every year the preschool classes put on a western style hoedown for the dads! This year we had a great turn out of preschool dads eating breakfast and getting their face or head shaved by their sons or daughters. What a great time to honor the dads, uncles, or grandpas and thank them for all they do!