“Yesterday in chapel, I shared with our students a glimpse of what I call the Heritage Experience. Since the chapel was not live streamed, I wanted to share a little of it with you as well. Earlier this week I told the students the story of Leland and Alice Straw and the beginnings of Little Creek Academy. What we do at Heritage today is a continuation of that same educational philosophy. Little Creek believed that education should extend far beyond the classroom—that young people should learn by working, serving, sharing their faith, and discovering through experience what God can do through a life surrendered to Him.

Over the years, that philosophy has taken Heritage students around the world. Heritage students have engaged in literature evangelism in New York City. They have assisted in disaster-response efforts throughout the southern U.S. and gone as far as Nepal. Our young people have done evangelism in Cuba, Honduras, Mexico, Ukraine, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Last year our seniors built five churches in Mexico. Our students have helped build schools in Honduras and Guyana. They have participated in health evangelism in Jamaica and Alaska. We have partnered in evangelism with Doug Batchelor and Amazing Facts and with John Bradshaw and It Is Written. Our students have also engaged in medical missionary work and many other forms of practical service. These experiences have given them opportunities not simply to observe ministry, but to become personally involved in it.

These experiences are not extracurricular to the education we provide; they are part of the education. That was true at Little Creek, where students learned in the classroom but also worked, built, served, and ministered. It remains true at Heritage. We want our young people to understand that Christianity is not merely something to be studied or believed. It is something to be lived. Some of the most important lessons a young person can learn come when knowledge, faith, practical work, and service meet in real life.

Yesterday I could show the students only a sampling of what Heritage students have experienced through the years. In doing so, I wanted to give them a foretaste of what they can expect during their own time here. They will have their own adventures, face their own challenges, learn new skills, serve people in need, and have opportunities to share Christ with others. We want them to leave Heritage not simply knowing more but having discovered through experience that God can use them.

That is why our tagline so well expresses what we are seeking to accomplish: “Encouraging young people to Learn, Experience, Live and Share Christ.” Little Creek gave us more than a history; it gave us an educational heritage. At Heritage Academy, we are seeking to carry that experience forward into another generation.”

Doug Baker

Heritage Academy Principal