On Thursday, October 2nd, I was humbled and honored to be inducted into the Landmark Christian School Alumni Hall of Honors.

Note: This is a long post, so scroll to the bottom for a TL;DR version and the gallery of pictures if you would like.

The vision of LCS is “Every student prepared to impact the world for Jesus Christ.” These awards recognize alumni who have embraced this vision in different areas of focus such as ministry and community service, business or vocation, Fine Arts, and Athletics.

I find myself standing among giants in this group of alumni. You can visit all 3 classes of inductees below and see their stories of impact:
2025 Inductees
2024 Inductees
2023 Inductees

I received notice that I had been nominated in February of 2024. I was surprised to hear this, but went forward with the process. The next step in the process, after being nominated, is to complete a questionnaire. This required me to stop and think about all of the things I’ve done since leaving Landmark. At the end of this process, I noted to the committee, that I was grateful for the prompt to look back at what God has done. If nothing more ever came of this, the Lord allowed something beautiful in my heart by stopping to take stock of those previous 27 years.

A Year of Promises Fulfilled

2024 was a year of God doing some big things in my heart and the life of my family. In many ways, I had still been feeling like that 18 year old fresh into the world without any really knowledge of it. But, the truth was becoming clearer and clearer that God had done significant work in my life and in my heart. I had been walking in faith and pushing forward, but always feeling like I wasn’t quite enough or not doing it just right. But, in 2024, Nick and I reached some personal milestones in our life, I saw significant advancement in my career and business growth potential, and I found a new confidence in who the Lord had purposed me to be.

In October of last year, as we finalized a significant business deal, the Lord reminded me of a period of sorrow and seeking from 2005. I went to the basement and found an old journal and saw my prayers from that time and how the Lord had given me some specific verses to hold onto:

³ You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
    and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
⁴ You shall no more be termed Forsaken,^[a]
    and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,^[b]
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,^[c]
    and your land Married;^[d]
for the Lord delights in you,
    and your land shall be married.
⁵ For as a young man marries a young woman,
    so shall your sons marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
    so shall your God rejoice over you.

Isaiah 62:3-5 (English Standard Version)

²⁴ “The threshing floors shall be full of grain;
    the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
²⁵ I will restore^[a] to you the years
    that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
    my great army, which I sent among you.
²⁶ “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
    and praise the name of the Lord your God,
    who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.

Joel 2:24-26 English Standard Version

And this is what the Lord has done. He has given us back those years that were stolen and is rejoicing over us. My life is a miracle and I will never stop telling people the story of God’s goodness. My marriage shouldn’t be possible, but I wake up every morning to a man who loves God, loves and serves me and our daughter, and is the best partner I could imagine beside me on this journey. I was told at 17 that I’d never have a baby, and yet, I get to sing the most beautiful little girl to sleep every night and watch her love for Jesus grow more and more every day. Now, He is healing my heart and body in ways that I never knew could happen and didn’t really know that I needed. The Lord has been gracious to me and I will continue to rejoice in His goodness.

Expressions of Gratitude

Receiving this honor from my Prep Alma Mater was another confirmation of what God has done.

I am grateful for the sacrifices my parents made to make sure that my brothers and I had an excellent academic and Biblical education. From homeschooling to Landmark, their choices were not always easy or even popular. But, they sought God’s best for us. (And, for my in-laws making those same choices for Nick when it wasn’t the easiest path.) It should be noted that my brother, Daniel, also found the love of his life, Katie, at Landmark. While their paths were a little different than mine, I’m grateful for a family who loves God, stands on a similar foundation, and pours into my daughter in the most beautiful ways.

I am grateful for the teachers who poured into the lives of students as a ministry and outpouring of God’s purpose in their lives.

• Mrs. Hughes who taught me math, but also taught me so much about what it means to follow God. She saw behaviors in me that could have just been annoying, but looked past them, recognized the gifts the Lord had given me and found a way to harness them for good. It was in this context that she introduced me to Nick who would one day be my husband and the one who would forever stand beside me in this journey. She used her talents in every way possible and showed us what real love was as she walked faithfully alongside her husband (who was also a notable influence in my life as well)
• Mrs. Wozniak who taught me to write and interpret literature (and forced me to read more than just Jane Austen), but also spoke blessings over us. In her thoughtful glances and silences, she gave room for the Holy Spirit to work and move us forward in our faith. She showed us a different way to approach and access the things of God. And now, she has taught me the art of coaching and continues to help me ask the questions behind the questions and leave space for the Holy Spirit to do the work with the people I’m serving.
• Bible Teachers – Mr. Gay and Mr. Howard especially who helped us wrestle with our faith. I can remember so many lunch periods where we would gather as a group of friends from different faith traditions and go together to the scriptures to understand each other and what was from God. We were mentored in what it looked like to disagree agreeably and to turn to the source of Truth for the answers. Mr. Gay, I promise we were paying attention in that Proverbs year. It’s all in there even if Nick and I were a little too chatty in the back of the room!
• Music Teachers – Mr. Cranfill and Mr. Wells who were so much more than instructors. They taught us about holiness, reverence, and excellence when we thought we were just learning the notes. They opened their lives to us in ways that we didn’t understand was showing us who God is.
• Administrators – Mrs. Haney, Mrs. Beard, Mrs. Salvador, Mrs. Strickland, Mrs. David, and others, who showed us true hearts of service and loved us so well. What they did was so much more than just a job – it was a call to speak into the lives of students.
• Coaches – There were many, but for me, Coach Bozeman was an irreplaceable mentor for me. He took his softball team under his wings like a protective Dad and demanded excellence from us. I can remember him telling us that he’d never be upset if we lost, only if we didn’t try. He taught us to do all things with excellence and to the glory of God. Even still, I filter what I’m doing through this lens and remember that I answer to a higher authority than whoever writes my paycheck. This serves me and those around me well as I believe my highest calling is to work unto the Lord and use the gifts He has given me to serve who He puts in front of me. It was in those 5am workouts and rides to school each morning that Coach mentored me in the faith and pointed me ever more towards Jesus. I can’t wait to see him again in heaven some day and see the crowns he earned from blessing all of us knuckleheaded girls.

I am most grateful for the crucible that time of my life was when it came to really understanding and solidifying the foundation of my faith. I was well-prepared for higher education academically and even socially. But, the most important thing I learned was how to dig into the Word of God when faced with questions and doubts. I learned to stand on that foundation and wrestle with it until I could make a move. The friends I made in those years are still the ones to whom I go to when I need clear, honest, Biblical responses. I have added others to my team, but it is those who knew me when my faith was untested and went to the Word of God with me that I go to most often. We took on all of the big questions and learned how to study, how to pray, and how to discuss with each other. The beauty of Christian education, when it is also academically excellent, is that the student leaves fully prepared for what is next on the journey. Even though we won’t know it all, we know how to stand up under the pressures and hear the voice of the Lord.

• Every day, I get to see Nick walk out his faith in excellence in his work and how he cares for our family. As an engineer, he is surrounded by scientific minds who demand another level of evidence. For years, I have watched him work with a drive and ethic that is uncommon and coupled with a quick mind and an output that earns tremendous respect from his peers and bosses. He is holy and set apart in a way that makes others ask why he’s different and where they can find more of him. He embodies the verse that talks about being ready in and out of season when people ask about the hope that is in you. He has opportunities to share the story of God’s goodness in rooms I’ll never be in and to people who would only listen to someone like him. And, when he has chosen to allow God to “make [his] misery [his] ministry”, I’ve stood in awe of his transparency and vulnerability in sharing the pain that brought him closer to Jesus and restored his hope.
• From Jamie, I learned the value of a best friend who will tell you the truth because of her love for you and without any ulterior motive. On more than one occasion her willingness to be vulnerable and transparent has saved me heart ache down the road. Her willingness to tell me the truth in love, from a place of no judgment and with only my best in mind, has allowed me to hear correction and change course when it was needed. And, her ability to continue to wrestle with her faith and truth and not let go is astounding.
• The day I met Joanna, I wanted to know where she got all of that joy! And, she showed me how she worshipped and trusted the Lord by walking through the hard things. She pointed me to the Word when I was believing lies. She’s called me on the carpet with righteous passion when she saw me leaning towards a poor choice. And, I watched her continue in faith on a mission trip when she thought the unthinkable was happening, but she trusted God and He held her close. We’ve witnessed miracles together and it’s beautiful.
• Jodi continues to challenge and teach me as she mentors me in coaching. When she joined us in the last half of high school, she brought a fresh level and depth of friendship. While I’m certain that Coach Titus did not appreciate my chatting with her in Pre-Calc, I gained a life long friend who points me to Jesus in beautiful ways. Her dedication to the call and voice of the Lord in her life inspires me. Even before formally studying coaching, she had a God-given ability to get to the heart of the matter and ask the question that prompted true reflection. And, she has always done this while giving the gift of honor to her friends.
• Karlee was my friend of music and drama with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. And now, as we write together and encourage each other’s work, and walk through the challenges of life, I have a friend who truly knows me and is willing to continue to wrestle Truth to the ground with me. She’s a truly safe place for me to be honest and vulnerable. This is no small gift. I love our chats about faith, and any number of other topics, and how she has challenged me as an artist in so many ways.
• There are so many others who blessed my life in that season and since but if I continue to name them all this post will never end. People with whom I still engage with for wisdom and consulting in life and business. And so many that I enjoy cheering on as I see them accomplish big things for themselves, their families, and for the kingdom.

Legacy and Impact

It turns out that this award, while humbling and honoring, has very little to do with me, but so much because of what the Lord has done. He planted a tiny school in Fairburn, Georgia with a vision to prepare every student to impact the world for Christ. He brought us all together in that place for a season to sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron. I hope that there is a legacy of impact that follows behind me when the Lord calls me home. I pray that my daughter will stand on my shoulders and magnify that impact even more. And, I’m grateful to be part of a community of servant leaders who recognize that there’s so much more than this life, and that eternity awaits.

Thank you to the committee members who chose me for this honor and for giving me the opportunity to revisit the impact my time at Landmark has had on me and those I’ve encountered since. I loved my time at Landmark and believe it was a gift from the Lord. I pray that the impact continues and we seen class after class of Alumni Hall of Honors Inductees who have impacted the world for Christ.

Gallery of Pictures – Alumni Hall of Honors

TL;DR:
Being inducted into the Landmark Christian School Alumni Hall of Honors serves as a profound reminder of God’s faithfulness and the significance of a Christ-centered education. This honor transcends my personal achievements—it highlights the tremendous work the Lord has accomplished in my life, marriage, family, and career. Landmark has been instrumental in shaping my faith, friendships, and purpose, and I hold deep gratitude for my parents, teachers, and mentors who invested in me. God has authentically restored what was once lost, and my aspiration is to live a life that continually reflects His goodness and extends this legacy for future generations.