Playing the long game
If you’ve been reading these newsletters regularly, then you are well aware that our first round of applications closed on Wednesday evening this past week. While there was definitely a lot of interest in and support for the school, for many families Heavenly King just couldn’t work for them this year. Those reasons were varied, and every one of them valid. The enrollment ended up being such that we couldn’t (even with our boundless optimism!) justify moving forward with full-time instruction this year. With the prospect of rent and teacher salaries, classroom supplies and furniture purchases, we simply couldn’t make the logistics work even with the fundraising events we have planned. We have had to say goodbye to what was to be our home, and trust fully that God will provide a new home in the fullness of His time.
As easy as it would seem to be to end our journey here, it simply isn’t an option. The fire that has been kindled is still burning brightly. The dream lives on. I have been humbled again and again by the dedication of this school team, and this past week has been no exception. The team that has been working behind the scenes, day in and day out for the past many months, barely batted an eyelash when they realized that it was not meant to be this year. I’ll be completely open with you – for my part, I was heartbroken, just a wee bit. But on the other side of that grief, I came to see what they could see. This work has been so necessary for so long. The fact that our opening has been delayed does not change that fact in any way. We are not privy to God’s plans, and all we can do is continue to move forward in love, with the trust of a child who knows they will be cared for.
We will continue to fundraise for the school, knowing that every dollar that we put in our bank account will help make the school’s opening smoother when the time is ripe. We will be hosting various events through the year, and based on the conversations that we’ve had so far with our community, it is a blessing to know that we will still have your support!
We also still plan to be very active this year. In what way still needs to be decided. We have so many ideas! Before we share our own ideas, we would love to hear from you as to what your needs are. We want our activities to align with our core values of Orthodox education, and pan-Orthodox fellowship, especially for our youth. Please reply to this letter if you have suggestions for us.
If there are young families out there who are now as heartbroken as I was, having hoped that Heavenly King would be an option for your little ones, I would like to take this moment to encourage you – this is not the end! It is just the beginning. I urge you to get in touch with us, and to be actively involved in the planning and priority-setting that will be taking place in the next couple of months. If there are enough young families with children in pre-school to early years, who can commit to helping determine the path of the school, then there is still a chance to open as early as the 2023/24 school year. These next couple of months will be crucial. Those families will need to determine an area of the city that works well for them, and we will already need to begin the work of securing a suitable location to apply as a funded school. If there is anything that this year taught us, it is that time is not on our side! The more time you give yourselves, the better the likelihood the school will open next year.
This newsletter will likely cease being a weekly newsletter, but I plan to share our progress at least monthly. As I said, we still have so many plans for HKOA, even though our doors will not be opening in September after all. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your support so far. We will be counting on all of you in the weeks, months, and years to come! We’re playing the long game, now.
Glory to God for all things!
With love in Christ,
Elissa and the HKOA Team
