Pacifica Stories

I remember Pacifica’s first day at the corner of 18th and Wilshire in the center of Santa Monica. It was September 7th, 2005 at 8:00 AM. A visionary board of trustees, eight brave staff and forty two pioneering students and their parents began a remarkable journey. We all pitched in and did everything. Painting hallways & sets, teaching, marketing, driving, fundraising, and more. It was a special time. The first play, performed in the courtyard, was Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare. Cameron Bell scored the very first basket for Pacifica in a scrimmage against Campbell Hall. Mr. Pacifica, Triple MMM, Screen, and i.Sight 1.0 happened. We traveled to the Florida Keys to swim with dolphins. The first all school retreat was at El Capitan State Beach in Santa Barbara. The first gala was in the gym. The science labs were on the third floor, the admin office was in the 200s space, and for two weeks in August of 2005 Verizon cut off our phones. After Mr. O’Neil and Mr. Minchin spent three days on hold, we still don’t know what happened.

It was an important time, a founding time. One filled with courage, wonder, sacrifice, vision, and humility. What would a Christian high school on the Westside look like, what impact would it make, would it last? Over the past twenty years those questions and more have been answered. Today we have 260 students, 17 graduating classes, over 1,000 alumni, and 53 staff.  SO THIS YEAR WE LOOK BACK AND WE CELEBRATE.

Time is a gift from God. An accurate and well-rounded view of time helps us flourish. We must consider the past, present, future, and eternity with equal seriousness. C.S. Lewis reminds us, "Aim at eternity and get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and get neither." We must take hold of eternity while being fully present today. This integration is a recipe for thinking and living well.

Celebrating Pacifica's 20th birthday, we have set LOOKING BACK as the theme for the year. Looking back helps us:

Celebrate achievements

Celebrate the success and accomplishments within our community. From our founding over the past 20 years, there is much to celebrate and important milestones. So we celebrate our:

• Diverse group of students, staff, parents, and community members who seek to pursue what is good, true, and beautiful.
• Mission and core values that set the course for an education that helps all of us think and live well.
• Founders that led with vision, courage, and service.
• Wonderful campus and partners at Pilgrim Lutheran Church. 
• Alumni that continue to build lives of meaning and purpose.
• Traditions like the Dedication Service, Triple M, All-School Retreat, Travel Program, i.Sight, Homecoming, and the Senior Dinner.
• Generous donors who have helped our school grow and develop.
• Impact on West Los Angeles, our students, and families.

Express gratitude

Give thanks for God's provision and the gifts of others through a posture of gratitude.

honor predecessors

Acknowledge the sacrifices, courage, wisdom, and leadership of those who came before us. Recognize that we are part of an ongoing story— others have laid the foundations, and others will follow. It is tempting to ignore and discredit the past while romanticizing our era. We must avoid "chronological snobbery" and assess all time using wisdom.

confront our shortcomings

Face the truth about our flaws and mistakes. Looking back, we can reconcile, forgive, and ask for forgiveness. We can deal with our personal and collective mistakes. This allows us to have a healthy present and a more hopeful future.

LOOKING BACK reminds us that we are part of a larger story, a bigger picture. It reminds us that we are not the center of the universe but connected to something more meaningful and purposeful. We are connected to God, history, our past, those around us, and those who will come after us. We have inherited a legacy, are living a legacy, and will pass on a legacy. 

Many people believe that their time is “the best.” The truth is that all generations– past, present, and future, have something to contribute, and all will fall short in some way. W.E.B. Dubois remarked:

“Nations reel and stagger on their way; they make hideous mistakes; they commit frightful wrongs; they do great and beautiful things. And shall we not best guide humanity by telling the truth about all this, so far as the truth is ascertainable?”
- Black Reconstruction in America 1860-1880

We must not relegate any part of time to something insignificant. We must lean in to receive what was good, true, and beautiful while acknowledging what was evil. This balanced view of time keeps us from falling to margins, making us less effective and, in my opinion, less human. Our grandparents and parents have passed on a legacy. We should LOOK BACK to get to know it and them. The good and the bad. We should be grateful for the parts that are worthy of gratitude. We should offer forgiveness for the times that others fell short, and we should ask for forgiveness for the times we fell short. The past is part of our story. It informs our reality and helps us develop a vision for the future.

Next year, 2025-2026, our theme will be LOOKING FORWARD. We will look to the future and explore hope, possibilities, and vision. We will consider how we might best look forward.

This year we celebrate Pacifica’s 20th Anniversary. We have a knock-out gala planned for March 29, 2025 to honor our history. While we look back we never forget to remain planted in the present, considering the future, and doing it all with an eye on eternity.