New Christian High School Set to Debut This Fall

Parents searching for a faith-based education in the Fenton area will have another option this fall when Living Faith Christian Academy opens its doors  this fall.

The school will serve students in seventh through 12th grades in a new, $1.4 million building under construction on the grounds of , at Smizer Station Road and Gladiator Drive, Fenton.

The school is a partnership between the school board, Southwest Christian and is part of an expansion plan developed by St. Luke's Christian Academy, a kindergarten through eighth grade school in south St. Louis.

"The school will serve that group of people who are interested in a faith-based education or who have home-schooled their children up to high school age," said Lawrence Trokey, one or the organizers of the new Living Faith Christian Academy.

The St. Luke's connection is through Loren Copp, a senior minister at Southwest Christian Church and the head of Ma-Ji-Ryu Karate, an organization he founded that provides martial arts training to youthsa nd adults.

The pairing of religion and karate might seem odd, but Copp used his business skills to rescue St. Luke's Lutheran School, a south St. Louis fixture that existed for nearly 100 years. The school faced financial difficulties and was scheduled to close in January 2010.

Copp conviced the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod to transfer control of St. Luke's to Ma-Ji-Ryu Karate. The school — now St. Luke's Christian Academy — is a non-denominational Christian school and is on a sound fiscal footing.

"I call it taking a big faith walk," Copp said. "We had $500 in the bank and a $4,500 payroll. We reorganized the structure there and cleaned the place up. We applied good business practices and had faith in God."

Now Copp and Trokey are on another big faith walk with Living Faith Christian Academy. They are planning a full-service high school with a full curriculum of classes in addition to a sports program and other extra-curricular activities. The middle school (seventh and eighth graders) also will feature a full array of coursework.

Eager to tell the Living Faith Christian Academt story, Trokey and Copp have scheduled a parents' meeting at 6:30 p.m. this evening at RiverChase in Fenton. School representatives will be on hand to answer questions and introduce the school's concept to prospective sutudents and parents. It also marks the official start of enrollment for the new school. Full-time tuition is $6,500; $3,250 for a part-time program.

"It's a lot more affordable than most private schools," Copp said. "And we have a policy of not turning people away. God always provides."

Parents can reach Trokey at ltrokey@livingfaithschool.org or Copp at lcopp@charter.net