Baymonte Blog

Baymonte Celebrates the Arts by Elizabeth Barrett, BCS music director

Black pants, white collars, black paper, metal steps, a handful of earth…have what in common? They are invisible; they bring something else to the surface while they disappear, holding their breath.

Mrs. McNeill and I chose quiet backgrounds, strong frameworks to carry the beauty we see God has given to our students. Color curved and curled on coal-black cardstock. Sound pigments of imagination sat in uniform, stood on metal stairs.

God chose to bless Mrs. McNeill and I with humble servants: strong-armed, selfless people who make themselves invisible to bless their students, their children. Thank you for all you did last Thursday and all you do daily to celebrate the art God has planted here in our soil.

May God continue to bless us with faith to see his selfless Son, the One who made Himself invisible to bring beauty from ashes, the One “…who for the JOY set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

Soli Deo Gloria!

This week Baymonte Christian School’s Middle School is on Adventure Week. Our eighth graders are serving in Houston, Texas for Hurricane Harvey relief. They’ve had groups of students and parents cleaning out and hauling debris from structures, and priming and painting new walls.

This week Baymonte Christian School’s Middle School is on Adventure Week. Our seventh graders are at Rancho de Sus Ninos in Tecate, Mexico. They are serving together to fix a drainage problem at Casa Libertad, one of the childrens’ homes at the orphanage. They’ve also enjoyed their time playing with the children at Rancho, doing a trash ministry in a nearby colonia and eating militas at Tacos El Guero Zacatecano.

This week Baymonte Christian School’s Middle School is on Adventure Week. Our sixth graders are having a great time at Mount Hermon Outdoor Science Camp.

Is your child entering BCS Middle School next year? Do you know a family who would like to check out Baymonte’s middle school? Please join us at our Incoming Middle School Parent Night next Thursday, May 16 at 7:00pm in the Culwell Den. At this meeting you will hear from Mr. Patterson and each of the middle school teachers. They will give a short presentation with information about their classes, electives, sports, schedules, Adventure Week, and more! They will also offer a designated time to answer questions. Come hear what makes BCS Middle School distinctive! RSVP to admissions@baymonte.org

Baymonte Christian School’s first ever Grandparents and VIP’s Day was a success! We were thrilled to host 133 grandparents and VIPs on Thursday, May 2 for the morning event.

Some highlights of the day included a chapel program led by Mr. Patterson, songs performed by first and third grades directed by BCS music director Elizabeth Barrett, followed by the middle school worship team. Middle school Bible teacher Jared Fujishin delivered a speech relating Moses’ ministry to our current grandparent’s gift of influence in their grandchildren’s lives. BCS Parent Teacher Fellowship hosted a reception followed by time in the classrooms and a lively outside activity time headed by elementary PE teacher Patrice Fernald.

We are so grateful for each parent volunteer and student ambassador who helped make the event run smoothly.

Baymonte Christian School students participated in the ACSI Math Olympics this year. One of our fourth grade students came in second place over all for math reasoning skills. Congratulations to all our participants!

Visit the Scholastic Book Fair in our library this week! Proceeds of the book fair will go to purchasing more books for Baymonte’s library. Book Fair hours:

Monday, 5/6: 12:00pm – 4:00pm

Tuesday, 5/7: 8:00am – 4:00pm

Wednesday, 5/8: 8:00am – 4:00pm

Thursday, 5/9: 8:00am – 4:00pm

Friday, 5/10: 8:00am – 12:00pm

Ephesians 2:10 states “For we are God’s handiwork, CREATED in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do”….

We had just moved here from our desert roots in Arizona/ Texas when I began my teaching journey here at Baymonte. Simultaneously, I was dealing with breast cancer during Mady’s first year as a new seventh grader at the school. God had led us to the healing waters of Santa Cruz. The Baymonte family embraced us with wonderful meals sent home, loads of hugs and teacher encouragement for Mady. We felt blessed.

Mady, is now a Sophomore at Cal Poly/SLO thriving in the graphic art/design program, and my older daughter Briana, a wedding coordinator and a new mommy to baby June (and that makes me a NEW and very proud G-mama!!) My family is my life and my JOY.

From my earlier years working as a junior high youth leader in my church, I have always loved the junior high age group…they are a crazy, challenging, inquisitive and an ever changing group, navigating out who they are and their belief systems.

Even though I knew God prepared me in advance as a teacher and architect, I wasn’t sure that He prepared me to “wrangle” in 18 energetic eighth graders during my remission! But HE knows all, and after that first year, I was healing and hooked. This has always been a ministry of love for me!

The first verse of scripture actually describes God’s first creative act, “God CREATED the heavens and the earth” and we are made to be creators as well, just as God created us in His own image. Creating art brings one into focus and presence. At Baymonte we create art in all different forms, building on design skills and also relationships as team players.

Many students come into art feeling discouraged or intimidated, so I encourage focusing on the exploration of different techniques, tools and varied art mediums. This allows some to shine in pencil and charcoal, while others find their love of watercolor, sculpting with clay, or behind the lens of a camera. It is all an expression of ART and the creative spirit is favored by God!

This year I initiated a sketchbook idea, so the students could find their way into journaling and practicing their skills outside of class. We initiate a weekly drawing prompt that encourages them to draw (sometimes using unconventional mediums) but also to think creatively about how to transform those ideas into visual stories.

The results have been ART-RAGEOUS!!  I smile when I see them sharing their sketches with each other before and during class. They can track their own growth from the beginning of the year and become more confident in sharing their work with their peers. WE cannot wait to share them with all of you at the Baymonte Celebrates the Arts show on Thursday, May 2!

As a practicing architect with my own studio, architecture is my passion. My smaller architecture elective class is very hands-on and I get to know the students much more personally and how they think. They become familiar with understanding three dimensional space through drawing, modeling and building. We venture out into the field to give them a sense of what architecture firms do on a daily basis and how they make a difference in our built environment.

I truly fall in love with this class each semester as they are a special group of students who challenge themselves to learn a new skill, are curious, find beauty in the random, play, and laugh. Recently, one of my past architecture students, a female Baymonte alumni, visited me and was beaming about her accepted entry into Cal Poly’s architecture program and how this elective inspired her to select that career. When you plant a seed and the Lord allows you to see it bloom, well…. It doesn’t get any better than that!

He-artfully yours,

Lauri McNeill

Baymonte’s Round-Up at Roaring Camp Railroads Friday was a beautiful event which not only brought hundreds of teachers, parents, and community members together but also was a successful fundraiser! We look forward to announcing the proceeds soon.

A special thank you goes to our sponsors, Central Coast Welding & Fabrication, Florence Kuo Home Care, Hudson Construction, Johnson Family, Lighthouse Bank, Lloyd’s Tire and Auto Care, Nordic Naturals, Ocean Honda, RW Garcia, Seaside Company, Stockwell Cellars, The Pied Piper Exterminators and Whiting’s Foods, in addition to the many businesses and individuals who generously supported the event. Rod Caborn, our lively auctioneer kept guests engaged while they enjoyed a delicious dinner provided by Mickey’s Catering accompanied by wine from Stockwell Cellars and beer from 805 (Firestone Walker Brewing Company). A photo booth by Show of Life Photo and live music by Heaven’s Hicks provided a memorable night for all.

We are appreciative of our many volunteers and generous donors who contributed their time and money to this spectacular event.

This event was made possible by the Round-Up committee comprised of Rod Caborn, Jeremy Geels, Pam Hanson, Stephanie Johnson, Teresa Olsen, Steve Patterson, Leslie Rapolla and Mandy Sackett.

A big thank you to Patrice Fernald for taking such beautiful photos of the Round-Up fun!

You may view the photo booth photos here: https://showoflifephotobooth.smugmug.com/Baymonte-Roundup