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Sports

Fellowship of Christian Athletes Launches Hopkins Chapter

The organization emphasizes fellowship, athletics and faith.

The newly created Hopkins Chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes finds that adult leadership, student enthusiasm are the recipe to a successful start.

FCA kicked off its Hopkins chapter with a meeting May 11 that attracted one of the largest launch crowds FCA has seen in the Twin Cities.

FCA is an international organization that emphasizes fellowship, athletics and faith. Hopkins Patch sat down with Suzanne Huss, parent representative for Hopkins FCA. Here’s what she had to say.

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Hopkins Patch:  Why is the FCA starting a Hopkins chapter?

Suzanne Huss: The FCA is an international organization that is always trying to reach new members and we had the fortune of two coaches, (Football) Coach (John) DenHartog and (Girls Basketball) Coach (Brian) Cosgriff, who really got behind the program and led the efforts to get things started.

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Hopkins Patch: How did your first meeting on May 11 go? Did you meet your expectations?

Huss: We didn’t really know what to expect going in—four kids, 10 kids. We had just sent out emails and had people hand out some fliers so we really didn’t know what we’d get. When the director of the West Metro portion of FCA came, he said that it was the largest “first huddle” (a huddle is what the FCA calls its meetings) he had been to. We had over 50 kids and really packed it in . We had good speakers from Bethel come and we were all pleasantly surprised by the turnout.

Hopkins Patch: What is the goal of FCA?

Huss: We want to show kids that there are other kids looking to hang out with people of similar interests to theirs and be leaders on and off the field. We also want to set an example as what it means to be a good Christian. We want three student volunteers of each gender to step up to be leaders of the Hopkins chapter. We want them to meet a week before each meeting to plan activities, locations, and speakers. We want it to be organized by students who understand what will reach their peers.

Hopkins Patch: How long have you been involved with the FCA?

Huss: All of my older brothers were a part of FCA when we were growing up and my oldest brother started a Hopkins chapter during the '70s. I’ve always been interested in having one for Hopkins but this is my first year of actually being involved in the organization.

Hopkins Patch: What would you say to a junior or sophomore student at Hopkins to get them to come to a meeting?

Huss: I would say just to come out and see what we’re about, whether you’re Christian or not there is no pressure to change. Just come and hear about the Christian faith. You won’t be forced to do anything; you’ll just be informed. Also, if you’re interested in fun activities, hanging out with kids your own age and hearing interesting speakers give us a try.

 

The FCA will have its next huddle from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. June 20 at The Depot. For more information on FCA, visit the organization's website. The Hopkins chapter can be found on Facebook under “Hopkins FCA.”

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