New Visions for HU’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes
With full schedules and busy seasons, student-athletes can find it difficult to gather all sports teams together. However, once a month, Huntington University sets aside one hour for its 340 student-athletes to meet, fellowship, and learn more about integrating their faith into their various sporting activities through Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).
Serving 114 countries over 60 years of service, FCA has impacted countless lives through the connection of faith and sports. Until recently, HU’s head men’s basketball coach and assistant athletic director, Kory Alford, led FCA meetings. However, as more student-athletes and coaches sought revival in their faith, a full-time position needed to be filled. In May of this year, God graciously gave the Foresters FCA representative Hannah Doden, who has stepped into the role as leader of HU’s FCA.
Doden’s role in FCA is to serve the coaches and student-athletes of HU and challenge them to grow in their faith, following the command of Jesus in Matthew 28:19: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Doden has a beautiful mission for FCA at HU that acknowledges past leadership and anticipates the future.
“Kory Alford deserves major credit for leading and developing FCA on campus the past few years — he is our FCA superstar volunteer! My vision is to see the world transformed by Jesus Christ through the influence of coaches and athletes. The strategy to achieve this is to engage, equip, and empower coaches and athletes so that we can make disciples of all nations just as Jesus commanded.”
Working for FCA, Doden has grown deeper in her own faith and has seen lives transformed by the power of the Gospel. She appreciates the working relationship that she has with FCA members, often mirroring the biblical principle of iron sharpening iron.
“One beautiful aspect of FCA is that it creates a space for Christ-honoring community where the participants can grow both athletically and spiritually together. Being on staff with FCA has both challenged and strengthened my faith beyond measure. Many times, I am learning and growing right alongside coaches and athletes through this ministry.”
Even though FCA meetings have been held at HU for many years, having an FCA full-time employee guiding the program will further develop and deepen its goals. Doden has a heart for cultivating discipleship in both student-athletes and coaches alike. During the fall semester, the Student-Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) and the FCA leadership team received training in FCA’s discipleship strategy, learning how to engage, equip, and empower their teammates.
“Once spring semester rolls around, we will have approximately 20 student-athletes trained to lead, serve, and disciple others, ultimately leading to discipleship multiplication. We have also established a Bible Study for the coaches at HU where we are growing together in God’s Word by reading through the book of Mark.”
At HU, we all have a mission to point glory back to God, whether that is through our academics, service, or athletics. Thankfully, God has given us a strong woman of faith to add to the Forester Family who can steer us in the right direction. For more information on FCA, check out their official website. Let Doden’s excitement for spiritual growth and athletic excellence energize you as we look forward to this new chapter for HU’s FCA:
“I will forever be grateful that God used the organization of FCA to hold me accountable and provide space to grow into a closer relationship with Jesus. I’m excited to see how God uses Huntington University this year to accomplish the Great Commission through sport!”
