Coleman Armes

Staff Writer

Steve Hartman, a reporter for CBS, once did a series called “Everyone Has A Story” where he would travel around the United States to different towns, find a phonebook, pick a random name from that phonebook, interview the person and film their story. I decided to bring this to Coppell High School. I went to the school directory and randomly opened to a page and picked a name.

Kristin Anderson has a story.

Anderson, a freshman at CHS, already has a very busy schedule and is involved with activities she believes are important. After doing gymnastics for eight years at Everybody Fits, Anderson decided it was too time consuming. Anderson quit the sport in eighth grade and decided to focus on something new.

When tryouts for freshmen cheerleading came up, Anderson thought she might as well give it a try since she already possessed the tumbling skills needed. She was right. Anderson made the team and is one of the few freshmen cheerleaders this year. Over the year she has made a good impression on her teammates and coaches.

“Kristin doesn’t say much but when she does she keeps the team entertained with her dry sense of humor. It seems like every time she opens her mouth something hilarious comes out,” freshmen cheer coach Britne Lambert said. “She is very mature for her age too.”

This was not the only new activity Anderson tried this year, though. Anderson is also a member of EMAC Academy, which she says she enjoys except for the fact that her classes are with the same twenty people. Anderson also tried pole vault for the first time this year. She said it was a great first-time experience and that she looks forward to it next year.

Of all the things Anderson takes part in, there seems to be one thing she is really passionate about: her church. Anderson first attended Fellowship Bible Church in second grade and has been attached ever since.

Anderson’s dad was Catholic and her mom Greek Orthodox. For the first part of her life Anderson went to a Greek Orthodox Church. Anderson says she was not happy going there due to the fact that it was an hour away and Greek was spoken which, she could not understand. She also mentioned that it was tough because crossing your legs during the service was considered suggestive.

Soon her parents decided that this church was not the best fit and wanted to try out a new church. This was when they decided on Fellowship Church in Grapevine. Since it was a non-denominational Bible based church it was a good compromise for the two parents. This compromise has worked out very well for Anderson.

Every Sunday Anderson helps lead the children’s group. She has a good reason for doing this too.

“Helping out with the kid’s ministries is something I believe is very important because the kids are so young and have their whole lives ahead of them,” Anderson said. “I know for a while in my life I didn’t choose the best friends and I have also been through other situations they will face. Through helping I can teach them from my experiences and be a positive influence in these kid’s lives.”

One of her best friends, freshman Amy Ammouri, who also attends The Mix, Fellowship’s Wednesday night youth service with Anderson, has taken notice of Anderson’s caring ways.

“Kristin cares about others and really puts others before herself,” Ammouri said. “I know she has a huge impact on those kids.”

Anderson also enjoyed going on mission trips with Fellowship to Corpus Christi and Galveston where she helped victims of Hurricane Rita. She also went on church retreats to Allaso Ranch.

As for the future Anderson plans on continuing being involved with her church, cheer and pole vault. She is also looking forward to joining KCBY next year. As for the distant future Anderson is not exactly sure but says she is interested in working with animals and caring for them.

Overall Anderson is a very involved person that truly cares for others. Her story is filled with examples of this and people that know her well can back this up. It is good to know that someone this young can still have a huge, positive impact on people’s lives.