By: Megan Saul

Culture Editor

Clubs are a large part of the culture at Los Gatos High School, and with over 100 of them, there are many from which students may choose. One of the more recent choices in clubs is the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). Although the worldwide nonprofit organization started in 1954, it is only this chapter’s second year at LGHS. The mission and goal of FCA is to lead every coach and athlete into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His church.

A large board of students leads FCA, including co-presidents junior Evie Howard and sophomore Darcy Armstrong, vice presidents and juniors Lydia Chun and Alyssa Ackalloor, social media manager and sophomore Jackson Cresta, and senior team players Zane Frey and Kayla Layton. The presidents delegate the tasks to the other group members. They also coordinate the meetings and recruit guest speakers. 

Some recent speakers include professional soccer player Shea Salinas, college golfer Nicola Kaminski, and professional runner Bree Sanders. Chun explained that her favorite speaker was Sanders because of her inspiring story of finishing a 100-mile race despite suffering an injury at mile 40. As for her favorite speaker, Howard named Dale Gustafson, a football coach. She elaborated, “That huddle [a small group Bible study] was last semester and had a really good turnout. There were a lot of football players, which is good because we try to attract different sports with the different speakers.” On Mar. 19, FCA hosted professional soccer player Arnold Matshazi. Reflecting on Matshazi’s talk, Armstrong said, “He is a super nice and well-spoken guy who shared his experiences in life as he was a professional soccer player in the UK and at San Jose State University. He shared that no matter what, God is with you.”

FCA meets every other Thursday during lunchtime. Typically, their meetings begin with a small huddle of around 20 students. During the Valentine’s Day meeting, they wrote about what they are grateful for and the importance of being grateful for what you have. The other type of meeting is a large huddle with more students than just club members. Oftentimes, the larger huddles are with a guest speaker who shares their personal experiences with faith playing a role in their athletic careers. Although there are two types of meetings, they always include free pizza, community-building exercises, lessons, testimonies, and messages

In the future, the FCA board hopes to host a Field of Faith, a large event on the football field with food trucks, and a well-known keynote speaker. Howard shared, “I pitched the idea for Brock Purdy. It would be a big event for anyone to come to. That’s my goal before I graduate high school.”

In terms of what Howard appreciates most about the club, she replied, “The community. Everybody comes together every other Thursday and just chats. We are so consistent with our meetings that the community is easy to build.”

(Sources: Fellowship of Christian Athletes)