Most high school students spend their summers sleeping in, basking the sun, and connecting with friends.  Not so for TKA senior Maddie Collins, the soon to be crowned valedictorian for The King’s Academy’s 2012 graduating class. She spent last summer pursuing her private pilot’s license, gaining skills and knowledge that she intends to use for humanitarian causes in her future.  Maddie’s heritage with flying extends through 3 generations, beginning with her great-grandfather, through her pilot grandmother, to her father, who is a commercial-rated instrument pilot as well.  By fulfilling this goal, Maddie is honoring the feats of her great-grandfather, a veteran of World War I, who was awarded the 26^th pilot’s license in America from the United States Army Air Service in 1917.  Maddie stated, “No other discipline so finely teaches me the balance between risk and reward, and it is an honor to carry on this family tradition.”

No stranger to sacrifice, commitment and hard work, this senior obtained her license during the summer of 2011, after logging only 52 hours of flight.  This is just 12 hours more than the FHA minimum.  As she does with everything in life, Maddie met this challenge head-on and completed it successfully and efficiently, in the same manner that she has diligently worked to earn the highest weighted GPA in the 42-year history of The King’s Academy.  Now, she carries the torch of this accomplished legacy of flight to serve others through humanitarian causes.  We salute the efforts of this talented and brave young woman and applaud her dedication to this challenging endeavor.

The King’s Academy is a nationally recognized private Christian school serving approximately 1,200 students from preschool through twelfth grade and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the Association of Christian Schools International, and the Florida Association of Christian Colleges and Schools. The King’s Academy serves students and their families across Palm Beach and Hendry Counties at its main campus at Belvedere Road and Sansbury’s Way in West Palm Beach, its Clewiston campus on Caribbean Avenue, and its satellite preschool campuses in Greenacres, Palm Beach Gardens, and Royal Palm Beach. More information about The King’s Academy is available online at http://www.TKA.net.

The TKA baseball team came into Tuesday’s game against district rival Benjamin in a must-win situation to split the #1 spot in district 13-3A. After a loss at Benjamin in March 6-1 the Lions were looking for the opportunity to avenge their only district blemish on the season.

In the third inning junior first baseman John Monte got the offense going with a solo home run to center field. Benjamin got out to a 4-1 lead in the 4th inning with a combination of timely hitting and TKA errors in the field. Later in the 5th senior catcher Kevin Stypulkowski cashed in on a bases loaded situation with a base clearing triple to tie the game at 4-4. Sophomore Dominic Mercurio followed Stypulkowski with an infield single to drive in the go ahead run to put the Lions up 5-4. Starter Matt Pisciottano left the mound in the 3rd inning and was replaced by freshman left-hander Matt Tucker. Tucker was superb in relief only allowing one run on a sacrifice fly to tie the game 5-5. Senior Troy Snider came into the game in the 8th inning in relief of Tucker to pitch 4 scoreless innings and earn the win on the day. Senior designated hitter Myles Basore walk-off game-winning RBI singling in Stypulkowski in the bottom of the 11th inning to hand Benjamin its’ only district loss of the season.

The victory puts TKA’s district record at 5-1 and in a statistical dead heat with Benjamin. The #1 seed for the district tournament will be determined by a coin flip by the district coordinator. The next big match-up for the Lions will be Thursday at home as the team looks to knock off area power Royal Palm Beach High School at 4 p.m.