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October–December 2013
A Hike in the Woods By Noah Marlin
Harvest Hike was on October 12, 2013. Harvest Hike took place in
the back woods of Spring Vale Academy. Starting at the quad, we walked
though the woods and ended at a camp fire. We stopped and ate some great
food. Different awards were handed out to four people: Anya, Marcos,
Tabitha, and Kyle. Then we played talk or get sprayed. Talk or get sprayed
is a game where someone out of the group is picked to talk for a minute
about a certain topic, or they get sprayed in the face with water.
After we played and really enjoyed talk or get sprayed, we cleaned
up the area and headed back to campus. After about fifteen minutes, we
arrive back at the quad and decided to watch a movie in the rec center. For
the movie, we watched Barnyard and ate snacks. After the movie, the guys
and girls went back to their dorm. That ended our Harvest Hike.
Awards:
King and Queen: Anya President and Marcos Roman
Most Comical Hiker: Tabitha Flood
Most Musical Hiker: Kyle Schmitz
Index
A Hike in the Pg. 1
Woods
A Call for Emails Pg. 1
Student of the Pg. 2
Month
Homecoming Pg. 2
A Revived Church Pg. 3
We’ve Got Spirit! Pg. 4
Defining Hope: Pg. 4
SOUND and ACTION
2013-14
In It To Win It Pg. 5
Take It To The Pg. 5
Hoop
His Love Endures Pg. 6
Forever
“No other gods” Pg. 6
Two Day Get Pg. 7
Away
Torch Staff Pg. 8
Upcoming Pg. 8
Birthdays
A Call for Emails By Leticia Moore (Torch Adviser)
For the past year or more, Spring Vale has been endeavoring to
create a database of emails so that the Torch may be sent out by
electronically instead of by mail. This will help Spring Vale cut down on
our expenditures. It currently costs the school about $4500 a year to print
and mail the Torch newsletter every year. By switching over to electronic
mailings, this money can be used for the school in other capacities. Some
people have already sent their emails to the school, but we need more in
order to make this successful.
Please email SVA at svapublicrelations@springvale.us to join our
emailing list. The current and recent Torch editions are also available
online at springvale.us under the Torch Newsletter tab.
The Torch
2
Spring Vale Academy Student of the Month
by Noah Marlin
Each month the staff pick a student that showed great
behavior that month for the award of Student of the
Month. Here are the first semester Students of the
Month:
August/September: Benjamin Arend Ben is a sophomore and is
participating in soccer and
basketball. Ben is smart, and tries his
hardest at everything. Mr. Ciavarella
says, “He has been constantly help-
ing even when he is not asked, and
we appreciate it a lot.”
October: Marcos Roman and Carrie Nienhuis Marcos is a sophomore, and he
participated in soccer and is in
SOUND. Marcos is a funny,
musical, and athletic student. Mrs.
Arend says, “Marcos is an all-around
good student and is a pleasure to
have on campus. Spring Vale is
blessed to have him.”
Carrie is a senior this year. Carrie is
participating in girl's volleyball,
basketball, SOUND, and cheerleading.
Carrie is a caring person, and is always
positive. Pam Noble says, “She is
awesome! [She is] a great student, a
great friend, very helpful, and a great
teacher’s assistant!”
November: Benjamin Noble Ben is a junior at Spring Vale
Academy. Ben is participating in
soccer and basketball. He is hard-
working, smart, and a leader. Mr.
Peterson says, “He has good
attributes as a student: he is hard-
working and is willing to help others
in the classroom.”
Homecoming
By Marcos Roman
This year on October 4th-6th was the 2nd
annual Homecoming for Spring Vale Academy.
The alumni came and enjoyed hanging out with
old friends and staff. They also came to played
soccer and volleyball against the Flames.
Bryan Baker from Colorado was the speak-
er on Saturday morning. He talked about his
missions in Africa and how they suffered hunger,
war and poverty. He also showed a video about the
people in Africa and how they survived great trials.
On Sunday the alumni soccer game was
rainy and cold, but despite the weather the game
was fun. There were a lot of messing around and
funny moments in the game. It was a high-scoring
game. The players weren’t really focused on
winning but just hanging out and having a good
time with the old guys. The alumni volleyball
game was intense. The Lady Flames played hard
and did their best, but the alumni came up with the
win.
After the games, we loaded the bus and left
for Lansing. We went to watch a Christian movie
called “Grace Unplugged.” The movie was
meaningful, and it really touched a lot of people.
Overall, Homecoming was a success and everyone
had fun.
The current and alumni soccer players after
the game
3
The Torch A Revived Church
By Noah Marlin
From October 31st through November 2nd, Lyle Kendrick gave a series of sermons for fall revivals. He
talked about the church's need for revival and what revival is. Lyle talked about how worship is about God not
us. He said that we can't have revival without hope, hunger, humility and honesty. Part of what he said was
how we need to be hungry for God. If we are not humble we can't have revival because we will not give
everything to God. Lyle also talked about how we need God over our own dignity. He used the passages of
Matthew 19, Matthew 22, and Philippians 3 during his services. It was a great and moving fall revival.
Lately Spring Vale has been going through some great spiritual changes. One thing that comes to
mind is the “Thirty Days of Praise” that started just before revivals. Every day for two hours people meet in
the sanctuary and have a time of worship and prayer. This has been a huge blessing for many of the local
church members. The “Thirty Days of Praise” was so good that they turned it to “Sixty Days of Praise.” Ever
since the revival, the Friday and Saturday services have gotten more spiritual and personal. The services have
a whole new feel to them.
On December 1st, the men got together for their monthly men's breakfast. Reports of the breakfast say
that it went very well and that the men didn't just talk about politics. It went more in depth, with the men
confessing things, asking for forgiveness, and praying for each other. The breakfast went on for several hours
after it normally would have.
On December 6th we had a Freedom Worship service where many were moved. We made sure
everyone had room to worship God however they wanted, like raising hands or kneeling down. To do this, we
took out the first four or five rows in the middle of the church. The service was mostly singing, but we had
four young adult speakers: James Edwards, Brendon Noble, Edmund Peterson, and Jessica Caswell.
To wrap it all up, we've had some great services lately, and we wish you could enjoy them too.
Left: Lyle Kendrick
speaking during the
revival service.
Right: Spring Vale at the
Freedom Worship service
4
Spring Vale Academy We’ve Got Spirit!
By Hadassah Albert
“We’ve got spirit, yes we do! We’ve got spirit,
how about you?” This year, we’ve got quite a few
girls on the cheerleading squad. Led by their
wonderful coaches, Hope Kendrick and Leticia
Moore, the cheerleading squad is progressing well.
Making up the squad this year are Amanda Miller,
Carrie Nienhuis, Norma Perez, Alexandria Albert,
Jennifer Rodriguez, Tabitha Flood, Olivia Arend,
Liberty Kendrick, Sequoia Greer, and Madeline
Hinds.
Of course, having more cheerleaders means
having more uniforms. The girls got together and
brainstormed ideas to raise money to buy their new
uniforms. One of the fundraisers they came up with
was gathering pop cans around a nearby
neighborhood. Even though it rained, the girls pulled
through and managed to raise almost two hundred
dollars!
At the first game, the cheerleaders came
looking great in their cheer warm-ups! They were very
motivating throughout the game, and during half-time,
there were even some fancy flips! The cheerleaders
kept the crowd loud and entertained while we cheered
on our boys. On top of having a larger squad, the girls
have also branched out and added some new cheers to
our already lengthy list of cheers.
The girls are looking forward to cheering the
boys on for the rest of the basketball season!
Above: The cheerleaders show spirit at half time.
Below: Some cheerleaders hard at work depositing
cans to raise money.
Defining Hope: SOUND and ACTION
2013-14
By Olivia Arend
Every year students in the SVA community
look forward to finding out who will be in the
SOUND and ACTION group. This year’s lovely
members are seniors, Carrie Nienhuis and Norma
Perez; juniors, Josiah Carbajal and Matt Nienhuis;
sophomores, Anya President, Olivia Arend, and
Marcos Roman; and freshman, Danielle Endecott.
This year’s theme for SOUND is “hope.” I
think Mr. Noble picked hope as the theme because
it’s easy to say we have hope, but what exactly is
hope? It’s something we should really be thinking
about.
In addition to their annual summer tour,
which is headed to the West Coast, the SOUND has
performed at Oliver Woods Retirement Village in
Owosso. SOUND will also be singing at the annual
SVA Winter Concert on Friday, December 13.
(L to R): Josiah Carbajal, Danielle Endecott, Anya
President, Carrie Nienhuis, Olivia Arend, Marcos
Roman, and Matthew Nienhuis
5
The Torch In It To Win It
By Hadassah Albert
On November 21st, 2013, the junior varsity and the varsity Flames suited up to play against Midland
Homeschool.
The junior varsity team – Benjamin Arend, Abel Molinar, Jacob Schmitz, Zion Albert, and Nicklaus
Kendrick – played hard. They hustled and demonstrated wonderful teamwork, and they pulled ahead to finish
with 48 to Midland’s 18 points.
Shortly after the junior varsity’s victory, Christopher Acosta, Josiah Carbajal, Colby Hinds, Matthew
Nienhuis, Benjamin Noble, Kyle Schmitz, and Adam Slawson took over the court. The adrenaline was
pumping, and the cheerleaders and the crowd were cheering them on as they played. Although they played
hard, the varsity lost with a score of 54 to 65 points.
That was just the first game of the season. Coach Kelen Caswell has been working with the boys and
there has been much improvement. The boys work hard in practice and give it their all to win. They are
excited to see how much they’ve improved in their skills and in their
teamwork.
With the junior varsity having ten games left of the season, I asked
one of their players, Adam Slawson, a junior, who plays for both teams,
how he felt about the upcoming season. “I think that things will start going
a lot smoother once we mature in the sport. When we start growing and
getting more confident in our game, things will get a lot better.” The
varsity has thirteen games left in the season. I pulled aside one of their
starting players, Kyle Schmitz, also a junior, to ask how he felt about the
season. “It’s going to go very well if we work as hard as we can,” he says.
It seems as if the boys are in for an incredible season!
Taking it to the Hoop!
By Olivia Arend
The Lady Flames are having a great season!
This year’s girls’ varsity basketball team is Carrie
Nienhuis, Norma Perez, Alex Albert, Anya President,
Olivia Arend, Mariah O’Neal, Abby Molinar,
Madeline Hinds, and Micayla Kendrick.
After three weeks of hard practice, the Lady
Flames started off their season with a game against
Owosso Homeschool. The game was close, but the
Flames ended up winning, 31-24! Alex Albert
remarks about the game, “We did well for our first
game. [We had] lots of team effort. Go Flames!”
The Flames have two more games before
break and are ready to play hard, despite a knee injury
to a vital starter. Anya President says, “We’re doing
really well, and we’re playing as a team. I’m proud
that we’re not quitting even when the odds are against
us.” The girls’ basketball team is anticipating a
winning season!
6
Spring Vale Academy
By Anya President
Harvest of Thanks is an annual banquet where the
students, staff, and church members all come together as
one and fellowship with each other. This year’s theme
was “His Love Endures Forever.” Throughout the night
we heard some powerful testimonies, had some wonderful
laughs, and played an intense game of bingo.
We started off the evening with the song “His
Love Endures Forever.” It was led by Jessica Caswell,
and following that, she gave a short testimony of how the
Lord has shown Himself in her life. We also heard
testimonies from Azael Garcia, Stefanie Kendrick, Evan
Schmitz, and Bethany Coulson. The school band also
performed. Next, it was time to eat! We all had full plates
of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, corn, cranberry
sauce, carrots, potato salad, and lots of pie!
After eating, we did an activity where we had five
minutes to write the best thanksgiving poem or jingle. It
was judged by Carrie Nienhuis, Arlene Caswell, Bruce
Noble, and Devin Caswell. This was followed by a game
of Thanksgiving Bingo for prizes.
Everyone had a fun filled night of fellowship and
enjoyed each other’s company. The event was planned,
set up and hosted by the young adults. We are very
thankful for their leadership and for stepping up to be in-
volved. It was a night to remember!
“No other gods” By Marcos Roman
After a long first quarter full of school
and homework, the boys couldn’t wait for
retreat. This year’s boys’ retreat was held at
Little Pine Island Lake on October 12-15th. The
retreat was hosted by Pastor Tim Hinds and Kurt
Lang. Lisa Hinds was the cook. The food was
amazing, especially the roasted venison that she
prepared. All of the guys thanked her and Pastor
Tim for all of their hard work in preparing the
meals for them.
This year’s theme for boy’s retreat was,
“No other gods.” Kurt Lang was the speaker,
and he spoke to us about the things in our lives
that become idols. Some things we don’t even
realize have become idols in our lives. We
mentioned some of the big idols and discussed
them. We also received a book called Gods at
War by Kyle Idleman, which talked about
defeating the idols that battle for our hearts.
Some of the idols that he talked about were
food, entertainment, success, money and
romance. The messages that Kurt gave were
eye-opening. Everyone thanked Kurt for coming
and sharing his message.
We were not bored at retreat because
there were always things to do. We went on
walks, played football, soccer. We did other
activities, too. There was a sling shot contest in
the woods, where we put up targets and had a
competition on who could get the most shots on
target. We also played extreme rock, paper,
scissors. Everyone had an amazing time at
retreats. It was relaxing and full of fun.
7
The Torch Two Day Get Away!
By Anya President
A couple of days to get away and just relax is what all of
us girls were looking forward to!
Girls’ retreat took place this year at Sleeping Bear Resort.
We arrived at around 4:30 p.m. and everyone immediately rushed
to the rooms that we would be staying in for the next two days.
Some unpacked, some toured the resort, and some went down to
the lake and enjoyed a boat ride.
Our hostesses were our cook, Barbie Coulson, our
supervisor, Tracy Schmitz, and our devotion leader, Sandra
Sexton.
We had devotion every morning and afternoon about
various different things, but the thing that stood out most to me was when we discussed how girls are
sometimes a stumbling block to guys, and we don’t even realize it. We need to watch the way we act, talk,
dress, and carry ourselves around guys.
Over the course of the two days, we played Ping-Pong, card games, catch phrase, went out on the lake,
made bracelets, ate a bunch of snacks, and slept a lot!
Hadassah Albert says, “My favorite part of girls’ retreat was beating everybody in Ping-Pong and just
getting to spend time and bond with the other girls that I don’t see that often.”
Mariah O’Neal says, “I loved going out on the lake with Norma and just hanging out because it was so
peaceful, and the trees were so beautiful.”
Girls’ retreat was amazing and it gave us girls a chance to grow closer to each other and have fun.
Left: The girls are ready to devour some eggrolls that Mrs.
Coulson made.
Below (L to R): Mrs. Coulson, Mrs. Schmitz, and Mrs.
Sexton
8
Upcoming Birthdays
January:
2 Jon Arend
12 Marcos Roman
February:
4 Manny Molinar
12 Barbie Coulson
19 Anya President
22 Pam Noble
25 Angel Rodriguez
March:
9 Scott Fischer
10 Leticia Moore
24 Lauren Caswell
24 James Patchen
29 Liz Fischer
Torch Staff
Hadassah Albert-Editor
Olivia Arend-Editor
Noah Marlin
Anya President
Marcos Roman
Torch Advisor
Leticia Moore
Spring Vale is
proud to announce
we are now
accepting
International
applications!
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