Grace Alliance Christian School: Matthew Rossey fueled his creative side during high school

Grace Alliance Christian School senior Matthew Rossey has an unusual career path mapped out, planning to study business and mortuary science so he can work in the family business, Spokane Cremation Funeral Services, as a funeral director.

Rossey has attended Christian schools for his entire education, first Southside Christian School and then Grace Alliance Christian School starting in the ninth grade. He heard about Grace Alliance from families at Southside Christian and liked that families of many different faith backgrounds sent their children there. Rossey said he thinks that diversity is important.

“It’s not associated with any one denomination,” he said. “It also has a unique culture at school.”

That culture comes from combining 200 students in grades K-12. Older students frequently interact with the younger students. “It’s very tight knit,” Rossey said.

Writing teacher Jenice Baker said she has come to expect creativity and wit from Rossey. “He’s very witty, very intelligent,” she said. “He’s diligent. He does good work and it’s not halfhearted.”

He also does a good job with the younger students, Baker added. “I would say he’s a really good role model for the younger kids,” she said.

The school is divided up into houses named after gospel writers Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Each house contains about 50 students across all grade levels. They participate in activities together as well as community service opportunities. Each house is led by senior students and Rossey is one of the leaders of the house of John.

It’s fun for the houses to compete against each other and earn points by doing activities and playing games, Rossey said. It’s an interaction he doesn’t get as an only child. “It gives me an opportunity to interact with younger students,” he said.

Rossey enjoys the opportunities he’s had at Grace Alliance. He plays guitar on the school’s worship team, an instrument he only learned to play a year and a half ago. “I’m pretty new, but I’ve played every day,” he said.

Before he picked up the guitar, Rossey had played the ukulele for two years. Many people think the small stringed instrument is like a guitar, but it’s really not, Rossey said. “It is its own instrument that has its own unique sound,” he said. “I knew someone who played it and she taught me.”

Rossey plays soccer and basketball through school. Because his school is too small to field a full team in any sport, the school partners with Mount St. Michael Academy to get together enough students to fill a team roster. The teams play teams from other Christian schools in Eastern Washington and North Idaho.

The one experience Rossey always wanted during high school was to perform in a school play. Grace Academy puts on one production each year and Rossey said he always managed to miss them. This year it almost appeared that he had missed it again when he reached out a week after auditions had been held. He was given small roles in the musical production of “Annie,” including as the dog catcher and a servant in the Warbucks mansion.

“It was definitely an exciting and cool thing to be a part of,” he said.

Rossey’s college plans haven’t been decided yet, though he’s considering studying at either George Fox University, Seattle Pacific University or Northwest University.