Student Stories

Kim Do

Junior

I remember the experience of coming to CAL as a freshman was a scary and lonely one. I decided to attend Koinonia’s New Student Welcome Night and I remember introducing myself to and meeting a lot of people. I was cynical and assumed that the people I met would forget my name and that we would never see each other again. On the contrary, they not only remembered my name but also my roommates’ names, what major I was, and where I was from. I learned that these Christians were not handling me with common courtesy but actually trying to get to know me in hopes of establishing a sincere friendship. This is the reason why I kept coming back: the evidence that Christ is truly present in my life and working through others to reach me. I have no doubt in my mind that God led me to Koinonia and that He has blessed me with such loving friendships. So as the freshmen start their college career, I pray that they too realize that God has been waiting with open arms to start a personal relationship with them.

Steve Plouffe

Senior

While I was checking out different fellowships, I was a little intimidated by the large crowd at the Koinonia welcome night. Koinonia was certainly much larger than those of the other fellowships, plus I felt like I was so different from the people at Koinonia. However, the longer I stayed, I realized that it was actually in Koinonia that I made the deepest friendships. The way Koinonia is broken down into clusters and home groups makes it very easy to connect one-on-one with others, much more than I thought possible. It’s all about finding somewhere where you can connect and really grow in your relationship with Christ. Looking back at how I was so insecure about how I would fit in, now I can see that my best friends and those I have gotten closest to are very, very different from me.

Joe Toan

Senior

Coming to college as a Christian, I really wanted to find a fellowship with strong leadership. Growing up in church, there was simply too much pretending that everything was okay, relational issues ignored, and dull hours spent listening to Bible stories that just didn’t seem to connect to anything that was going on in my life. I had a lot of that strong feeling of “someone should say something” but no one would. The leadership here at Koinonia was just what I was looking for. Leaders who are not afraid to speak out. Leaders you can actually relate to and share laughs with. Not just there out of duty because they signed up to do it, but who are here because they honestly care. So when I found Koinonia and got to know the people here, students and leaders alike, who really lived out what they believe, I thought man, this is the place for me.