BCA Press Release

Press Release April 14, 2005

Bradford Christian Academy Event Supported by Thirty-five Area Businesses

Thirty-five area businesses joined together sponsoring Bradford Christian Academy’s Founding the Future Banquet and Silent Auction held at DiBurro’s Function Hall in Bradford Massachusetts on Thursday, April 7 th, 2005. The event raised over $32,000 to support Bradford Christian Academy, a faith-based middle and high school serving Merrimack Valley and North Shore families. Funds raised will be used for scholarships, program expansion, and facilities improvements to the school’s 90-year old academic building.

The 220 attendees were entertained by musical numbers and short comedy skits performed by BCA middle school students. Master of Ceremonies, the Rev. Dr. James Gustafson, Professor Emeritus, Northern Essex Community College, kept the lively evening rolling along with his entertaining introductions and well-timed jokes. The evening began with a Silent Auction featuring twenty-five items provided by area businesses.

Dr. Steven Vryhof, Adjunct Professor of Education at Calvin College, and author of Between Memory and Vision: The Case for Faith-Based Schooling provided the keynote address. He spoke of the need for faith-based education at all levels of instruction. He stated, “Children grow into responsible adults through their engagement with communities of meaning. Schools have a role in preserving and passing on two things: the memory of a community and its vision for the future.” He also emphasized that “Faith-based schools provide, beyond just solid values and social support, the resources for meeting the deepest of human needs: connectedness to something bigger and more meaningful to the whole.”

Those honored included Cedardale Health and Fitness, for its partnership with Bradford Christian Academy in providing a state-of-the-art Physical Education program for the students, an after school program, and facilities for the girls’ and boys’ basketball teams. The event also honored the first families to enroll at Bradford Christian Academy. These families were recognized for their pioneering spirit that helped establish Bradford Christian Academy for their children for generations to come.

To learn more, browse this website and come to one of the school’s next Open Houses, held in BCA's academic building located at 97 Oxford Avenue in Bradford, MA.