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BEACON Christian School in Nanoose Bay is gone – but it will not soon be forgotten.
Several hundred former parents and students trod the halls one last time in late
June, for a celebration of the school’s happy combination of biblical values and rural, small-school simplicity and
community. And the beacon has not been snuffed out yet, say many of them.
“It was good to see our students with their own children,” said principal Barb Judd, adding: “and it was good to go out not with our tail between our legs, but praising God.”
Demographics was the main culprit, Judd said – that, and changing values. Beacon had 120 students in its prime, but dropped to
under half that recently. Last year, when only 33 signed up, the upper grade
students were transferred to Nanaimo Christian School, leaving just 11 in K-3.
The population of the Oceanside communities of Parksville, Qualicum Beach and
Nanoose Bay is aging, and those of child-bearing age are having fewer children.
Those with children, and Christian, said Judd, are less willing to drive their
kids for half an hour to an hour twice a day than their predecessors.
As well, the $3,400 tuition was an obstacle that caused some to go to the public
schools and others to home school.
They were missing out on a good thing, said Judd. Beacon Christian was “like a family” that also provided a focus for the community, drawing support from local
businesses such as Bluenose Motors and Quality Foods.
She fondly recalled the whole student body from kindergarten to grade 9 playing
soccer together at recess, and the school’s annual Fete d’Hiver at Mount Washington.
Beverly Groenewold, mother of three Beacon grads, said the school provided “a good education that was Christ-centred.” She has fond memories of the yearly ‘Spring Fling,’ and of how parents and volunteers pulled together in recent years to keep the
school going.
“Students had close relationships with the teachers,” she said. “The teachers knew how your child was doing.”
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Her son Sean, the last of her three to attend, agreed. “The teachers were like friends. I learned a lot, not only schoolwork, but about
how to live our lives every day. The teachers were very kind; they would give
you second chances. The students grew up to be very good children, very good
young adults. It’s sad to see it go. But we still have a light – and hopefully we’ll light another school.”
Indeed, the society that owns the school and property has more than just
physical assets; it sees a way to relight Beacon Christian.
Unfortunately, said Beverly Groenewold, the society wasn’t able to pull it off this year – which is unfortunate from a financial perspective, since it is easier for a
school to hold onto its provincial education grant than it is for a new school
to get it.
The plan is to integrate Beacon administratively with Nanaimo Christian School,
to which it has always fed high school students. With secretarial and
bookkeeping costs eliminated, the society believes it would be feasible to
operate a satellite school in Parksville – which is more centralized than Nanoose Bay, and might draw more students.
So far, however, no suitable location has been found.
– Steve Weatherbe
September 2009
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