Cheering Them On, Loving Them Well

By Madison Maxwell BS 18

The Davidson family’s connection to Grace began long before any of their sons enrolled. 

Lisa’s husband, Marc, a standout basketball player, attended a Lancer camp and was heavily recruited by Coach Jim Kessler. He never played for the Lancers, but years later, in 2000, while Marc was playing professional basketball in France, the Davidsons met Grace alumni Dave and Susie Hobert. 

The Hoberts, who served as Encompass missionaries an hour away, connected the Davidsons with Kessler once more, who was soon bringing the men’s basketball team to their town to run a French basketball camp. Marc and Lisa (pregnant with Frankie at the time) helped out with the camp, translating the players’ testimonies. 

Little did they know that, 23 years later, on the one-year anniversary of their father’s passing, their sons Frankie and Marcus would go on the same Go Encounter trip the team took to France all those years ago—a moment she can only describe as God’s providence.

Over the past seven years, three of the seven Davidson kids: Frankie, Marcus, and Jimmy, have attended Grace and played Lancer basketball. Lisa has watched Grace coaches and professors invest in her sons not only as athletes and students, but as people, playing pickleball with them, sharing meals with them, attending important events in their lives, and walking alongside the family through Marc’s 18-month battle against cancer.

Lisa, who has worked at Blackhawk Christian for the past 13 years, first as a preschool assistant and now as a French teacher, knows the value of Christian education and the importance of young people having adults beyond their parents pointing them toward Jesus. 

She treasures the opportunity to partner with teachers, coaches, and mentors who care about her children’s spiritual lives as much as their academic or athletic success.

As she has watched her sons grow into the men God has called them to be at Grace, she has also served as a “team mom” in the Grace community. She has been a faithful cheerleader for her sons’ teammates as they have made school history on the court, but she has also celebrated their milestones, attended weddings, and loved these young men as her own. 

Through it all, Lisa describes Grace as more than just the school her sons chose for college; it has truly become a family, and she is grateful that God has allowed her sons to be part of it. 

Read this blog to hear firsthand from student-athletes about what it’s like to compete at a Christian college.