The Vick family’s legacy of faith-filled education
Mike and Kristin Vick have spent decades nurturing a vision rooted in faith, family, and generosity. A dream of providing a solid foundation of Christian education for their own kids expanded to wanting to share it beyond their community. God provided, and a single first step of faith with a few friends grew into a legacy that will last.
With two sets of Christian parents, Mike and Kristin grew up with strong examples of faith and generosity. They learned early the importance of tithing to their churches and began understanding the need to expand their giving to Christian ministries too. These early lessons would later shape their approach to family giving and evolve into community impact.
A vision for Christian education
The couple developed an interest in Christian education as they were preparing for their oldest daughter, Chelsea, to enter kindergarten. After visiting the local public school, they felt something was missing. They knew the teaching wouldn’t be from a biblical worldview, but it was more than that. “We just didn’t feel God’s presence at all. It felt dark,” Mike says.
Kristin had attended a Christian school in Florida and had a great experience. The couple wanted their children to have a similar education – one that didn’t sacrifice academic excellence or sound theology. And their church in Tucson, Arizona (Catalina Foothills Church) had like-minded families who had the same desire, including their pastor and his wife.
So, Kristin, along with the other parents, developed a vision for starting an excellent Christian school in their community that better aligned with their values. The families began to dream and work together to make that vision a reality, and just a few years later – with their church’s support – Cornerstone Christian Academy was born.
Launched as a 1st through 4th grade Christian grammar school, they used a classical learning style, beginning with memorization, moving to critical thinking using logical thought patterns, and then to effective communication and eventually public speaking and debate.
The approach quickly attracted other families, and the school grew to a K-6 campus on the church’s property. By 2000, with the help of some generous supporters, the church purchased an existing school property in Oro Valley and opened a 6-12 school, which they called Pusch Ridge Christian Academy (PRCA). Eventually, the two schools merged to create a complete K–12 system.
“It was a lot of work, especially in those early years,” Mike admits. He credits his pastor, Mark Roessler, with being instrumental in getting the school started and established. Mark had believed they could do it, even when others didn’t.
Since then, the four Vick children have graduated from PRCA, and now Mike and Kristin’s grandchildren are also students there. But thousands more have had the opportunity to receive this kind of Christian education because of God’s work through the Vicks and others along the way.
A big gift
A new opportunity came in 2008. Mike’s parents had told the couple about donor-advised funds and introduced them to the National Christian Foundation (NCF). They had given Mike and his sister a piece of property in North Carolina, and when an opportunity arose to sell it, the parents suggested donating the land, so the net proceeds could be used for supporting their charitable goals.
“My sister and I decided that was a good thing,” Mike recalls. “So, we did it.”
With money in their Giving Fund at NCF, Mike and Kristin could give more generously than before, and it laid the foundation for engaging their own children in family giving for years to come.
Expanding generosity
In 2021, an opportunity arose for the Vicks to help provide kids in another part of town with the same solid education they’d given their own kids. PRCA’s headmaster learned that Christian parents in the Hispanic community in Tucson’s south side shared the concerns the Vicks had when their daughter was starting school. The school district was implementing a program that was contrary to the community’s values, but there was no opt-out option.
Mike was serving on PRCA’s school board at the time. Tucson’s south side was a very underserved part of the community with limited options for Christian education, he says. The PRCA board wanted to help, “but we didn’t have any money, and we didn’t have a site. We didn’t have anything except vision,” he says.
Despite the risks, they moved forward. “This is the scariest thing I’ve ever done,” their board chair at the time said. “But it’s also the most exciting thing I’ve ever been a part of.”
In January of 2021, through what can only be described as providential timing, they found a church property for sale on the south side of Tucson. And in 2022, PRCA’s South Campus opened as the first dual-language Christian classical school in the country, with 41 kindergarten and first-grade students.
Preparing for the opening of the PRCA’s South Campus was an opportunity for the whole family to serve and get involved.
“It was a scramble and imperfect. But we got it open,” Mike says. Today, the school serves 150 students in grades K-4, with plans underway to expand through eighth grade. “God has again provided funds to sustain the school,” Mike says. “And all along the way, we’ve been amazed at how faithful he’s been.”
Engaging the next generation
Inspired by NCF’s resources on family giving, Mike and Kristin established a family Giving Fund in 2020. They seeded it with their own money and offered to match contributions from their adult children. The first gifts their kids made supported the South Campus, helping build a library and purchase playground equipment.
South Campus Principal, Jonathon Basurto, on the new playground.
A living legacy
Today, the Vicks’ generosity is reflected on PRCA’s three campuses, which serve hundreds of families. Kristin reflects on their journey: “As our family was growing, God allowed me to be involved in two ministries very close to my heart – our church and the new school. It’s been a gift to watch God work in these places.”
The South Campus has become more than just a school. It now serves as a community anchor, where those on campus minister to widows, befriend neighbors, and reach out to local retirement communities. Instruction in the early grades is 90 percent Spanish and 10 percent English, progressing to true bilingual fluency by graduation, helping students maintain their heritage while readying them for whatever is next on their paths.
In its Mariachi program, led by Señora MonaLisa Amado, students of all levels learn to sing and play instruments. In its Mariachi program, led by Señora MonaLisa Amado, students of all levels learn to sing and play instruments.
Mike and Kristin have served multiple times on the school board, witnessing firsthand the fruits of their faith and giving. Their grandchildren now run across playgrounds of the schools they helped establish – a living legacy that extends far beyond their own family and community and will remain for generations to come.
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Jill Foley Turner is NCF’s director of editorial and content. She serves the marketing and communications department by leading the team that curates content for NCF’s Saturday 7 newsletter. She loves writing stories from the Bible, stories about generous people, and articles about trends and research into what is happening in the world of giving.ncfgiving.comall stories