Praises sung at graduation built for two

One Five Oaks Christian Academy graduate plans to become an X-ray technician while the other has law school in his sights.

By SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADA
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 31, 2002

PINELLAS PARK -- Whether the ceremony honors hundreds or just a handful, high school graduation is a very big thing for those involved.

[Times photo: Cherie Diez] The Five Oaks Christian Academy Class of 2002, Matthew A. Stephen, left, and Chlarence P. Nicolas, dress for their graduation ceremony Thursday at Five Oaks Community Christian Church.

It was no different Friday at the Five Oaks Christian Academy in Pinellas Park where two seniors, clad in cap and gown, sat through songs and sermons and awards to receive that important piece of parchment, a diploma.

Chlarence P. Nicolas and Matthew A. Stephen smiled as they listened to school director the Rev. Kent F. Austin Jr. bid them farewell and praise them for reaching a "benchmark of accomplishment."

"You are graduating into a very different world," Austin told the graduates, urging them to put their "trust in the Lord."

"Everything changed after Sept. 11," he said. "We see things differently. We understand things differently. Everyone has been profoundly changed by a senseless act of hatred in the name of God."

Austin told the graduates it was no accident they came to Five Oaks Christian Academy. "God's hand was upon you," he said.

Both graduates plan to attend college. Nicolas wants to be an X-ray technician, and Stephen intends to become a lawyer.

The school provides a specialized Christian education program for students who have learning or emotional disabilities. Many are referred by the public school system.

About 20 students are enrolled.

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