23 May 116,000 Hours Of Dedication
You may recall the 16,000 hours that we reference as the time a child is in school from kindergarten to twelfth grade. This year, we recognize the 116,000 hours that three of our faculty have collectively poured into the lives of our students. We are grateful for them and are truly blessed to have spent time working alongside them.
Mr. Bruce Buit began his journey with WA in 1978. In a series of events only possible through God, he graduated from Calvin College, married his wife, Fran, and moved to South Florida. For the past 46 years, Mr. Buit has taught math his entire teaching career at WA. He also coached varsity softball, which included three state championship teams, and varsity basketball, which included our current WA Athletic Director, Ehren Walhoff. Coach Buit was inducted into the WA Athletic Hall of Honor in 2014. Throughout the decades, students recall the mandatory pizza parties, Christmas cookie decorating, open gyms, and countless hours of chess. Mr. Buit’s love for the Lord is evident in the numerous ways he spoke into students’ lives and made them feel like family. He and his wife, Fran, have three children, all WA lifers. We are so grateful to God, who ordained this time with Mr. Buit as part of our WA family.
We bid a fond farewell to Mrs. Jan Glenum after two decades of enriching our classrooms with the beauty of the Spanish language and her unwavering faith! She began as an Elementary school Spanish teacher and then moved to Upper School Spanish. She took great joy in encouraging students to overcome adversity and excel in the classroom and beyond. Though her dedication to teaching the Spanish language and culture was evident, her love of students and her deep desire for them to have a relationship with Jesus marked her tenure and fueled her days at WA. Her dedication has touched countless lives, including her two children, who are proud WA lifers. She and her husband, Paul, are moving to North Carolina. We’re grateful for her commitment to our WA community and wish her all the best in this new season.
After an incredible 26 years at WA, Mr. Kent Stolley is saying goodbye. His dedication to our school community has been nothing short of inspiring. Mr. Stolley wasn’t just a science, technology, and engineering teacher—he was a visionary! He ignited countless students’ passions for STEM and is the mastermind behind our thriving robotics program. We’re incredibly grateful for his commitment to fostering academic excellence and Christian values in our young minds. Thank you, Mr. Stolley, for your legacy of learning and faith. We wish you all the best in your well-deserved retirement!