STARTING AGAIN

I’ll admit, I’m one of those people who loves the start of the school year. That hasn’t always been the case, but ever since I became a school leader, I’ve enjoyed the fresh start that every September offers. I love the eager anticipation of teachers and staff as they return refreshed from an extended summer break, and I especially love to see the smiles on (most of) the students as they come back to the familiar environment of school. 

Hard Goodbyes, New Hellos

We all benefit from a chance to start again, and sometimes the new start is a big change.

For my family and me, starting again looked like us packing up our lives (into 20 suitcases, boxes, and crates, see photo above) and leaving tropical Jakarta, Indonesia, where we spent the past seven years, and relocating to beautiful Abbotsford, British Columbia. While we are proud Canadians, BC is nowhere near where we’re from in the Niagara Region of Ontario.

Starting again also looked like us saying goodbye to so many friends who had become like family over the years we spent in Indonesia. These goodbyes were harder than we thought they would be, and I don’t think a day passes that I don’t think about someone I may never see again face to face.

However, saying goodbye inevitably leads to saying hello to new experiences, new locations, and yes, even new friends who will become like family. At least this is my hope for our family as we settle into life in Abbotsford. 

Fresh Starts

As we begin the 2025-2026 school year at ACS, I wonder what fresh starts you are looking forward to? 

For students, it might be the fresh start of a new grade level, with new challenges, new friends, and new teachers. 

For parents, maybe it’s the fresh start of new school day family routines or seeking new ways to find a healthy balance between the busyness of life and quality time with your kids. 

Regardless of what you may be looking forward to this school year, I want to remind you that you’re not alone in the new things!

We Are All ACS

I love that ACS educates through relationships with students—we want to get to know each of our students, what makes them unique, and how to best support their flourishing—and as partners with parents—we believe that parents are called by God to be the primary educators of their children, and we walk alongside so that together we raise Christ-like learners. In fact, these two things, relationship and partnership, were huge factors in our family’s decision to pack up our lives and join this school community.

We are all ACS, and we are in this together, even if you just moved here from the other side of the world! 

And, of course, we are never truly alone in our lives as we rest under the sovereign hand of a God “who never slumbers or sleeps” (Psalm 121) and “whose mercies are new every morning” (Lamentations 3). 

I’m so excited to be starting a new chapter of my life with the ACS community this year and am looking ahead to what, I’m sure, will be a fantastic school year!