Walk the halls of Maranatha long enough, and you’ll start to realize something consistent in the way people talk about their time as a Mustang. Years later, after life has brought them across states, jobs, college, and careers, they all come back to one word: community.

That was true for Cece Lamah, class of 2022. A beloved member of our Maranatha community, Cece still takes time out of his busy days to revisit campus to say hi and connect with his school family.

Speaking as one who’s had a bit of distance and clarity in his years since graduating, Cece said, “When I think of Maranatha, I think of community. I think of the friendships and the relationships that I was able to build out of the school that gave me the platform to even connect with the people that I grew up with [...] and went to class with every day.”

Cece went on to talk about how Maranatha helped give him the space to form true friendships that have lasted the test of time. “Once you graduate, you don’t really understand how sometimes you can distance yourself from your so-called ‘friends,’ stuff like that. But there’s always the group of people who are always with you along that ride—and that’s what Maranatha Christian Academy provided for me.”

That kind of consistency doesn’t just happen by accident. Students feeling deep fulfillment in where they graduated from can only occur in a place where students are truly known, where teachers are fully invested in their students, and where faith isn’t just an afterthought but instead core to all things on campus.

Reflecting on what Maranatha did to help build his faith, Cece said it “provided me ways to never lose my faith, never disconnect from God. Christianity was always held to a standard [...], and I always thank it for allowing me to be able to see and maintain my faith in God in every little thing I do.”

Reflecting on how things have been since graduating, and just how essential that foundation built here at MCA has been for him, Cece said, “I’m 22, so time goes by fast, but,” he paused, “you realize that nothing is important without that relationship with God.”