A New Name

For the past year, Neil has been asking me about coming up with a new school name for our home school.  At first I didn’t know what to think...what was wrong with Ferris Home School?  I kind of thought he was being his silly self and it would pass. I was wrong.  It didn’t.  He kept asking.  We’ve always taught our children that their identity isn’t found in earthly things or affiliations, but in who they are in Christ.  That’s what makes them significant.   After some thought and discussion, I realized he just wants to have some common ground or an identity on a common level to connect with his peers.  I revisited the reasons we home school and his motives for this requests and realized that by providing these simple things I was not compromising anything we were trying to teach or accomplish here at home.  In fact, it could be an opportunity to enhance those things.  So Brad and I began the process of working on a new name. 

Here is where I have to stop and make a confession to you all.  When we made the decision to homeschool April 2007, we did a lot of investigating and praying and interviewing people over the course of several months.  When it came time to withdraw Neil and Madeline from public school I had downloaded a form from HSLDA and on that form there was a place for the name of our home school.   A name?    Hmmmm.  Well, from some of the research we had done initially, I knew people just took their last name and added home school to it and that was it.  So, I wrote on the line Ferris Home School and with no other thought our school had a name and that was that.  I was really ready to just move onto the more fun part of curriculums and co-ops and lesson planning.

Now six years later, I realize while that was the easy thing to do at the time, it wasn’t necessarily the best thing.  Did their education suffer from that?  No.  They have continued to learn and grow and it’s all been so good.  However, our school name will appear on our children’s transcripts and I want more than anything to create a family bond and a school identity that they can be proud to be a part of.  Brad an I put our heads together and began to brainstorm ideas.  It was actually a very fun process for us and today I’m pleased to reveal to you our new school name.

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.  Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth.  Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.

 Psalm 127:3-5

 

The Ferris Home School has become Heritage Day School, home of the Warriors.  Our logo was created by a new friend who is a graphic artist in Illinois using the arrow from the verse.  Now we can print transcipts with our new logo and also print t-shirts and sweatshirts for the children.  Our school colors are red, white, and blue:  red for the blood of Jesus, white for purity, righteousness, and victory, and blue that is associated with God and His Word and service to Him.  I’m excited to have a name that reflects what we hope to accomplish here at home - to raise up godly men and women in service to their King leaving a legacy for generations to come.  Upon graduation we will pull each from the quiver and our prayer is each one will fly straight and true as they follow God’s plan for their lives.   

I am so very, very blessed to have Neil, Madeline, Sarah, and Samuel.  I am doubly blessed to have the opportunity to be their teacher as well.  I cherish them and the time I get to spend with them teaching them about the Lord as well as reading, writing, and arithmetic.  It’s an exciting time in our lives and the life of our school.  God is working and moving and we are so grateful.

Go Warriors!