Here’s an article written by Kevin Thompson at The Palm Beach Post.

M. Nelson Loveland, one of the founding members and former president of The King’s Academy, a private Christian school in West Palm Beach, died Sunday at his Palm Beach Gardens home after battling an undisclosed illness for more than a year, the family said.

He was 88.

His high school sweetheart and wife of 66 years, Margaret Jane, and his daughter, were with Loveland when he died, said his son, Jeff Loveland.

A Navy veteran who served in World War II, the elder Loveland was known as a tough taskmaster in his earlier years at The King’s Academy, which he helped start in 1970.

“I’ve heard stories that he was definitely hands on and that he made sure things were done the way he wanted them done,” said Randy Martin, the school’s chief financial officer since 2006. “But by the time I met him, he had probably mellowed at that point.”

The younger Loveland said his father always demanded a certain level of respect from his children.

“We were expected to do what we were told,” said Loveland, The King’s Academy president. “My father was a strong disciplinarian and he needed to be. But he wasn’t doing anything different from any other parent of his generation.”

Loveland said the best advice his father ever gave him was this: “The only people who make mistakes are those who are doing something.”

Loveland said his father, who was also the former owner and president of Gilmore Electric Co., decided to start a private Christian school after growing dissatisfied with the kind of education his children were receiving in public school.

Joining a group of like-minded men in 1969, including Kye Harris, a man who had started other Christian schools throughout the country, Loveland helped raise more than $35,000 for the new venture. After renovation was completed on Belvedere Baptist Church on Cherry Road in West Palm Beach, The King’s Academy opened in mid-September 1970 with 245 students.

A year later, the school bought the 20-acre Roger Dean estate at the west end of Cherry Road for $472,000. In 2001, the Palm Beach County Airport Authority bought the Cherry Road campus for $14.5 million and the school began a move after buying 60 acres on the northeast corner of Belvedere Road and Sansbury’s Way from the county for $2.7 million. The new campus opened in 2005.

Today more than 1,800 alumni have earned diplomas from the school.

Loveland served as The King’s Academy president for 25 years.

“I relied on him heavily,” Martin said. “I came from real estate and didn’t have experience in the school business, but he taught me how to run a school efficiently and effectively. If you were doing anything to help The King’s Academy, he was a friend of yours.”

Loveland is survived by his wife, five sons, one daughter, 18 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

The funeral is scheduled to be held Friday at The King’s Academy’s Sports and Fine Arts Center at 1 p.m. Students will be dismissed at 11;45 a.m. on that day, the school said.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The King’s Academy for the M. Nelson and Jane Loveland Scholarship Endowment.

On Tuesday the TKA Boys Track team accomplished a 3-peat, winning the District title for the third year in a row. Plus, the TKA Girls Track team made school history by defeating The Benjamin School for the first time ever and taking home the first-place trophy.

Between the boys and girls there were 15 first-place finishes. Next Thursday (4/21/11), TKA Track will be taking its largest group ever to the Regional competition. Including 26 individuals and 6 relay teams.

Story by SunSentinel

Pierre Garcon knows what it’s like to be an underdog.

The 2004 graduate of John I. Leonard High School in Greenacres has gone from relative obscurity as a sixth-round National Football League draft pick to catching a touchdown pass from Peyton Manning in the 2010 Super Bowl.

Garcon and other past and present NFL stars took part in the third annual NFL vs. SWAT Softball Showdown to benefit the Heath Evans Foundation at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter.

Garcon, David Thomas (New Orleans Saints), Jay Feely (New Orleans Saints) and John Denney (Miami Dolphins) each smacked home runs as the NFL stars defeated the SWAT squad in front of more than 2,000 spectators.

Proceeds benefited the not-for-profit Evans foundation, which is dedicated to fostering hope and healing in the lives of children and families affected by sexual abuse.

When he wasn’t sending pitches over the fence, Garcon could be found along the outfield fence signing autographs. Other former Palm Beach high school stars now in the NFL who played in the game included Evans (New Orleans Saints, King’s Academy), David Clowney (Carolina Panthers, Delray Beach Atlantic) and Jarrett Brown (Cleveland Browns, Palm Beach Lakes).

“It is real good to come back and set positive examples for the younger people in the community,” Garcon said. “Hopefully it’ll trickle down to them, and they will do the same thing in 10 years.”

Other NFL players who participated included Evans’ Saints teammates Garrett Hartley, Anthony Hargrove, Roman Harper and Chris Ivory, as well as Calais Campbell and Feely (Cardinals), Sen’Derrick Marks (Titans), and Jerraud Powers (Colts). Former NFL fullback Keith Byars, 47, also played.

Evans, who will be inducted into the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame on March 27, started the foundation in 2006 with his wife, Beth Ann, who was sexually abused as a child, to help others.

Along with the softball game, they host a 7-on-7 high school football tournament and a new fishing event to raise awareness and money. Evans said he expected to raise more than $40,000 from the softball showcase.

Evans, 32, who graduated from The King’s Academy in 1997 before attending Auburn, has played in the NFL with the Seattle Seahawks, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints.

Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Grant Henderson, of the PBSO SWAT squad, came up with the idea three years ago after talking to Randy Moss at Evans’ 7-on-7 summer tournament.

“The monster that we are fighting here is probably the biggest battle to protect the children, who can’t protect themselves,” said Henderson, who was one of 16 officers to play in the game. “… Our guys have a blast. They look forward to this year in and year out.”

Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw threw out the first pitch and commended his officers.

“Heath Evans does a really good job, and we are all about raising money for whatever charity that is involved with kids and victims,” he said.

Byars, Boca Raton High School’s football coach, lauded Evans’ efforts.

“It is great to be a part of something so positive in the community,” said Byars, who was playing in his first softball game since he was 18.

Jarrett Brown, a 2005 Palm Beach Lakes High School alumnus who went on to play at West Virginia University and is now a member of the Cleveland Browns, said he enjoys giving back.

“You do things like this and you do things for the kids, and it shows the effect you can have on others and what you can do for them,” he said. “… This is the greatest part of it … giving back.”

On July 23, 2010, Christian Science Monitor published a story on their website. The story was all about the progress toward making cheerleading an official sport, and what one federal judge had to say about the issue. A picture of The King’s Academy‘s Cheerleaders was featured with the story. You can read the full report at CSMonitor.com.