Two Thornton homeschoolers graduate

Six graduating senior homeschoolers received their diplomas Sunday in a ceremony held at First Baptist Church, Fairfield.

The graduates are members of Tri-County Homeschool Co-op, which operates in Limestone, Freestone and Leon counties.

Serving as master of ceremonies was Daniel Burkeen, Mexia attorney and former Limestone County judge, who along with wife Penny is a longtime homeschool supporter, with Penny Burkeen homeschooling their two daughters. Burkeen gave the welcome and invocation, and directed other parts of the ceremony.

The keynote speaker was Dr. Todd Kent, founder of Worldview Academy, who gave advice to the new graduates to carry with them the rest of their lives. He suggested they do four things:

• Surround yourself with wise people who will help you make good decisions;

• Lay down your own selfish desires and walk through life with humility.

• Develop a skill that someone is willing to pay you for so you can take care of yourself, your family, those around you and your church; and

• Align your life with God’s work on this earth and earnestly follow Christ, and you will be happy.

Providing special music were sister graduates Hayliegh and Samantha Foulis. As they sang “Sanctuary,” the other four graduates joined them, then former homeschool grads joined the group, all singing in unison.

For the presentation of the diplomas, PowerPoint presentations showing photos from the time each student grew up were projected onto a large screen; then that student’s parents presented their diploma, with moments of joy and tears, as they expressed their thoughts and emotions on the occasion.

The graduates included:

• Hayliegh Foulis, of Mexia, whose diploma was presented by her father, Brian Foulis;

• Samantha Foulis, of Mexia, Hayliegh’s sister, whose diploma also was presented by their father;

• Brayden Huff, of Wortham, whose diploma was presented by his parents, Kevin and Jessica Huff;

• David Huff, of Mexia, whose diploma was presented by his parents, Keath and Cheryl Huff;

• Isaac Lewis, of Thornton, whose diploma was presented by his parents, Alan and Tamara Lewis; and

• Jared Ottinger, of Thornton, whose diploma was presented by his parents, Jacky and Jennifer Ottinger.

To conclude the ceremony, Burkeen called the graduates and their families to come to the front of the altar area, and he said a prayer of blessing over them all.

After that, the grads youthful enthusiasm burst out with one throwing his mortarboard into the crowd, several others dancing and all smiling and laughing.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held in the fellowship hall, with two tables filled with refreshments. Each student also had a table decorated with their interests, and attendees dropped off gifts or cards.

Each graduate shared their plans:

Hayliegh Foulis said she will spend two years at a community college, probably Navarro College South in Mexia, and get a business degree.

“That way, whatever I plan on doing, I’d have that,” she said. “It’s close to home and that way I can stay with my father.”

As for being homeschooled, she believes she learned a lot of business economics from her parents since they owned businesses. Also, she said, through the Homeschool Coop, she had the opportunity to take part in extracurricular activities she never would have experienced without the Co-op.

Samantha Foulis said she is going to attend Navarro College to get her basic courses.

“After that, I’m going straight to Mary Hardin-Baylor to get my nursing degree and start working in hospitals and working up to my NP (nurse practitioner). From there I’ll be able to travel around, doing the Lord’s work through this career choice. I love helping people, and I love serving the Lord, so it blends in together and it’s perfect.”

Samantha said she found homeschooling fun but the last two years were difficult, she said, with the death of her mother, which caused her to get behind in her work. Consequently, she had to work extra hard to catch up.

Brayden Huff is already working two jobs, construction with an individual, and working at Dollar General. He said he would love to go to college but is happy where he is for now.

Looking back on his homeschooling experience, he said, “I was able to learn faster and more useful information; and I’m a lot stronger than public-schoolers because of it.”

David Huff plans to continue working at BWS, an oilfield company, where he has worked for almost a year with a clean-up crew. He plans to save money to possibly try a different job, like becoming a baker or joining the Army; and also someday support a wife and family. He liked being homeschooled, he said, because he could work at his own pace.

Isaac Lewis said he plans to study criminal justice in college, first at Jacksonville University, in Texas, then Howard Payne University, in Brownsville. He, too, enjoyed setting his own pace through homeschooling.

Jared Ottinger plans to go into the Army and possible become an Army Ranger and train in para-rescuing. As for homeschooling, he said, “It was great. I could really take my time with it and really focus on what I was being taught. I just loved it.”