Evergreen Lutheran High School opened its doors in DuPont, Washington, on September 26, 1978. The dream of establishing an ELS/WELS Lutheran high school in the Pacific Northwest finally became reality for countless families. Their prayers were answered with a leased campus in DuPont. In 1988, the DuPont campus was closed because the City of DuPont sold the property and Evergreen moved to the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church (HTLC) campus where it leased space. For the past 25 years, Evergreen has resided at the HTLC campus. Currently both the Lutheran grade school and Evergreen have run out of space.
On December 18, 2012, the dream of a new and expanded campus for Evergreen was fulfilled with the purchase of an almost new high school campus in Tacoma, Washington, for $4.6 million. This purchase brings with it the clear challenge of meeting the financial obligations associated with following through on this decision. Over $1.2 million has already been committed and that much again is needed to fully stabilize the next phase of occupying the new campus.
God has blessed Evergreen with this purchase. It is centrally located to serve all ELS and WELS Lutheran elementary schools and congregations in the Puget Sound area. The 54,000-square-foot modern facility, built in 2005, has enough space for the high school to expand. The facility increases Evergreen’s ability to educate the whole person—academically, spiritually, and physically. The 30-acre campus will have room to provide student housing in the future.
Most importantly, Evergreen will also have the opportunity to improve recruitment of community and international students, many of whom will hear about their Savior Jesus for the very first time. It will draw students internationally from locations including Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and China. Through this program, students will hear God’s Word and the seeds of faith will spring to life.
Here are just a few of the ways our new campus will provide students and their families an unparalleled experience in education and spiritual growth:
- The eleven classrooms will provide sufficient space to relieve crowding and enhance program offerings. The additional facilities will provide opportunities in the arts, technology, and sciences. There will be adequate office space to accommodate school administration, student health facilities, counseling services, and parent conference sessions.
- This campus meets and exceeds our goals by providing dedicated music and theatre rooms. The theatre room is also a multipurpose room that can be used in a variety of ways, serving drama club, choir, band, and chapel. The campus has two computer laboratories, two science laboratories, a dedicated arts classroom, and our very first library.
- The new campus will truly provide a high-school-caliber gymnasium and athletic facilities, enhancing athletic opportunities for Evergreen students and ELS and WELS elementary schools. The gymnasium has a remarkable full-size basketball court that can be reconfigured to two full-sized basketball or volleyball courts. It also has fully equipped boys’ and girls’ locker room facilities. The gym can also be used for any major event that will seat over 1,000 attendees.
Stan Bauer is the Development Director at Evergreen Lutheran High School in Kent, Washington.
