As the holidays approach, it is a great time to reflect on God’s blessings … especially for Upper Columbia Academy (UCA). UCA is blessed with more than 200 young people choosing to further their education and grow closer to Jesus by attending this academy in Spangle, Wash. “It is an awesome privilege to teach and share the love of Jesus with these students,” says John Winslow, UCA principal. “The faculty and staff are praying on a regular basis for these students and for guidance to direct them in the path He has for them.”
At the beginning of the school year, students and staff met every day on the Water Tower Plaza to pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirt on our campus. The time began with the students and faculty singing together and sharing Scripture. Afterward, the students and staff divided into groups of four or five and earnestly prayed for the Holy Spirit.
The results of this time have been amazing. When the seniors returned from senior survival, they decided this should happen every day. They are taking the lead to have a student-led prayer time right before lunch. It is incredible to see students singing and praying together.
The Prayer PATCH program is alive and well on the UCA campus. An adopt-a-student prayer program that began more than 20 years ago continues to thrive. Prayer is powerful. If you would like to pray for a UCA student or staff, please email for their prayer requests.
Another blessing UCA received this school year happened in the guys’ dorm. Thanks to individuals who donated more than $13,000 so 90 very old mattresses were able to be replaced with new ones. “It is exciting to see the mattresses get upgraded,” says Joe Hess, men’s dean. “Our students deserve this. It is things like this that seem little, but can make a big difference in the morale of the students in the dorm.”
After seeing the impact of the new mattresses in the guys’ dorm, UCA decided to replace them in the girls’ dorm as well. Once $6,000 more is raised, UCA will be able to replace all of the mattresses in the girls’ dorm. It would be a great Christmas present to have them replaced before Christmas break. Thank you to everyone who has donated to help make these new mattresses in both the guys’ and girls’ dorm a reality.
As the expression goes, “God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good.” We may not always understand why things happen, but we know who sees the bigger picture. The Lord has blessed UCA for 70 years and Yakima Valley Academy for more than 20 years before that. Thank you for your prayers for UCA that the Lord will continue to bless His school until He comes.
For more information about UCA or to view our school programs, visit www.ucaa.org.
Tamara Michalenko Terry, UCA communication coordinator, with Eric Johnson, UCA vice principal for development and alumni relations
Tamara Michalenko Terry
Upper Columbia Academy communication coordinator
Tamara Terry has also written for the Gleaner as a freelance writer in Spokane, Wash.
An adopt-a-student prayer program, called Prayer PATCH, began more than 20 years ago and continues to thrive as people all over the world are praying for UCA students. Credit: Tamara Terry
Thanks to individuals who together donated more than $13,000, dozens of old mattresses in the guys’ dorm have been replaced. Credit: Joe Hess
Students and staff meet every day on the Water Tower Plaza for Prayer on the Plaza. They pray for the outpouring of the Hold Spirt on their campus. Credit: Tamara Terry
