“The moment I got home I wanted to go back [to Guatemala].  My trip sparked an interest for me in the medical field, and there I saw the connection between medicine and what my calling might be as a Christian.”

Senior Stephanie Lockhart has been to Guatemala five times.  Each time she went not with a sponsored group, but by herself.  Each time she also did something different, from working in an orphanage, to teaching English, to helping build a house.   She shared the quote above about her very first trip when she was only 12, and this desire came into sharper focus when she worked as a dental assistant on her most recent trip.  From an early age, Stephanie has been no stranger to challenges, and in fact, has often sought them out.

Stephanie has pursued a variety of hobbies, and even sings and writes some of her own piano music.  But her volunteer work as an EMT for her local fire and rescue service really excites. “It has provided so many great opportunities for me.  It connects me to the local community, which I appreciate because I go to school 20 miles away from here.  I’ve learned how to remain calm in stressful situations, and have to apply a lot of problem-solving skills.”

The work “is always humbling, because there is always someone who knows more than you.”  At the same time, “There are instances when I feel confident right now.  The volunteers are mostly all type A personalities that want to be hands on and take initiative.  I’m no exception.  The details and procedures of what we encounter really excite me.”  While none of her calls have been critical so far, she admits that “I hope to get a chance to do some cool stuff on a patient,” and laughing added, “but the patient is still a person!”

Through a series of moves and other events, Stephanie will graduate high school having attended 11 different schools.  For her freshman and sophomore years she went to Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax.  “I loved my time at TJ.  It challenged me to think and really work hard for the first time.  I also learned to seek out my peers for help in classes.   Unfortunately, the commute from Purcellville meant I never saw friends or family.  I also had a hard time connecting with the teachers there.”

Her transfer to AFA as a junior “required some adjustments.  My class size went from 500 to 10.  Here too I had to adapt to learning history and literature at a high level, which were classes we did not have at TJ.”  Among these transitions, however, two things about AFA quickly stood out.  “Teachers were always available here and came alongside to help me succeed.  I couldn’t have transitioned in literature and writing without that.  I also quickly made great friends with my classmates.  They became a kind of second family.”

The University of Virginia will be Stephanie’s destination next fall, where she will pursue a pre-med major.  Like her other decisions, this one did not come without purpose.  Her older sister already attends UVA, and Stephanie mentions that she and her two sisters “have become quite close in the last few years.”  She continues, “I want to be a doctor, hopefully work with children, and maybe use that for missionary work.  It’s one of the best schools around for what I want to do.  They have a medical school right on campus, along with a hospital.  Also, they have a volunteer Fire and Rescue service nearby, which I hope to be involved in.”  All in all “it’s great community to be a part of if you want to enter the medical field.”

As Stephanie leaves AFA she will carry this sense of community with her.  “Twenty years from now my classmates and I will still be great friends.  We’ve shared so much spiritually, academically, and emotionally.  AFA has been more than just a generically ‘Christian’ school.  The classes have challenged us to think, and taught us how to be involved in God’s world.  I’m as prepared, I think, as I could possibly be.”