Lititz Christian School
Emma Christner
Senior
Emma Christner, a senior at Lititz Christian, was born to Aaron and Heidi Christner in Warsaw, Indiana. Her mother is someone she admires most because of how well she raised Emma and her three older brothers: Alex, Jack, and Stephen, who also attended and graduated from Lititz Christian in the past years. Throughout Emma’s years at LCS, she has been involved in many in-school and extracurricular activities that have helped shape her into an outstanding student. These activities include varsity volleyball and basketball, being the Student Activity and Leadership Team president, yearbook, National Honor Society, and fulfilling the role of Stage Manager for the school’s 2024 spring musical. In addition to these activities, Emma likes to spend her free time baking, cooking, playing sports, and spending time with her family. What she loves most about school is her friends and teachers, as well as Calculus class with Mrs. Hoover and Economics class with Mr. Swift.
After graduating from high school, she plans to attend Lancaster Bible College to major in business and play basketball for the women’s team. Emma was raised in a Christian school and household. She and her family also attend the Worship Center in Leola, where she attends youth group. Lastly, something she would change in the world would be to make the Bible more accessible in other communities and countries.
Written by: Lilly Woratyla
Elroe Abebe
Senior
Elroe Abebe is a senior at Lititz Christian School and has attended LCS since his junior year. His greatest joys at Lititz Christian School are the friends he’s made and the conversations they have, as well as the way they make high school less stressful and more about memories.
His favorite class here at Lititz Christian School is Economics, because he says it is practical and useful for his future and everyday life.
Elroe enjoys playing soccer with his classmates and friends and loves the perseverance and teamwork it brings.
After high school, he plans on going to college somewhere warm to continue studying business, where he can focus on his goals without the fear of freezing.
In his free time, Elroe enjoys listening to music, watching, editing, making videos, and researching cars. His hobbies include working out, detailing cars, and listening to audiobooks and music in his free time.
Elroe says that if he could change one thing in the world, he would erase taxes because they are difficult and annoying. Lastly, Elroe states that he admires anyone who has shown positivity and support throughout his life, as it means a lot to him and leaves a lasting impact.
Written by: Lauren Hurst
Yoniel Gonzalez
Senior
Yoniel (Joni) Barreto Gonzalez, son of Jennifer and John Zunner, may seem like a quiet and reserved student at first acquaintance, but he has many friends and is well-liked by both the teachers and students. He is quite popular among the Juniors and Sophomores due to his involvement in sports. He has been playing basketball for multiple years and has become a constant face on the court. Recently, he also began playing on the school volleyball team.
Joni enjoys and excels in physics with Mr. Swift, developing a working Rube Goldberg machine with his classmate Lilly. He is exploring Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology for a degree in metal fabrication or HVAC.
Joni was recently hired at the newest Chick-fil-A location in Lebanon and works as much as he can to save for college. He has encountered much success in his work there on top of his academic advancements at LCS.
One thing Joni loves about Lititz Christian School is the teachers. He looks up to Mr. Swift particularly due to his intelligence and his wealth of wise advice. He attends Manheim Brethren in Christ Church and is looking to join its youth group as well.
Coming to the U.S. from Puerto Rico, Joni has been a welcomed addition to the LC family.
Written by: Jeremiah Young
Lilly Woratyla
Senior
Lititz Christian School provides a warm and spiritually rich environment for all its students through Christ-centered approach to education. Virtually everyone who has graduated from this school has been profoundly impacted by the teachers and the parents who have dedicated their effort to the LC community. In the 2025 school year, eleven seniors will graduate from this wonderful school. One such senior, Lilly Woratyla, wanted to share with the Lititz community about her experience as a student at the school.
Lilly was raised in a household devoted to Christ and His teachings. Her parents, David and Heather Woratyla, instilled the Word of God into her. As Lilly grew up into a teenager, she became deeply intrigued about sports. Despite her small stature, she excelled in softball, a sport that demands a great deal of physical and mental endurance. In her junior year, she was selected by the Warwick School District to play on the district’s behalf. She has carried her team into many victories, including winning the league for Warwick.
When Lilly is in school, she enjoys learning and talking to her friends about the academic struggles and breakthroughs of her study. One of her favorite classes is Physics: “My favorite class is physics because Mr. Swift challenges me with tough problems.” Her sense of curiosity of God’s created world has driven her into pursuing an undergraduate degree in biomedical science.
When Lilly graduates from LCS, she wants to attend a four-year biomedical science program at Messiah University. Prior to attending Messiah, she will participate in a gap year program – OneLife in Morris, PA. After her studies, she wants to use her skills to improve other people’s lives.
Written by: Toby Harnish
Toby Harnish
Senior
Toby Harnish is a senior and has been attending Lititz Christian School for three years. One thing he loves about Lititz Christian is its Christ-centered education. Since the day he came to Lititz Christian, Toby has proven his incredible abilities in academics. Math is one of Toby’s strongest subjects which is clear to see through his success. Toby says his love for math comes from its challenging yet fun components. Because of Toby’s love for math and all things technology, after graduation, Toby plans on going to college to study computer science. While Toby is incredibly smart, his favorite part of the school day is his lunch period. Lastly, one of Toby’s favorite parts of Lititz Christian is Mr. Swift, his economics and physics teacher. Toby admires Mr. Swift because he is a very wise and godly person.
In addition to school Toby is a part of his church which he attends with his parents Kelly and Dale along with his siblings. While Toby attends church every Sunday, he is not currently a registered member of his church. In his free time, Toby enjoys more math because of its intricate elements. In summary, Toby Harnish is incredibly smart and gifted; he excels in all of his classes and is a great friend.
Written by: Emma Christner
Lauren Hurst
Senior
Lauren Hurst, daughter of Tony and Nicole Hurst, believes that the assistance she receives from her teachers is the most fun component of attending Lititz Christian School. The teachers’ desire to go the extra mile was one of the most important parts of her high school experience.
Lauren participates on the volleyball and basketball teams, as well as the yearbook committee and the student leadership team. After graduation, she plans to do a gap year program with Atlas Travel and Study Abroad in Costa Rica before pursuing a cosmetology license.
Lauren spends her free time listening to music, hanging out with friends, and producing art. She enjoys remaining active with volleyball, and basketball, and working out to Les Mills Body Pump. She also enjoys time resting and contemplating. Her interests reflect her well-rounded personality, blending physical exercise with artistic outlets.
Lauren hopes more people will slow down and enjoy the small things in life, which she loves tremendously. Her favorite class at school is Spanish, where Senora Rittler’s engaging approach has generated an interest in the language and culture that she wishes to pursue further.
She admires her parents for living their values and providing constant support. Their example had a significant influence on her, molding her into the person she is today.
Written by: Elroe Abebe
Federico Cortes
Senior
Federico Cortes, son of Juan Camilo Cortes and Angela Maria Gomez, is a senior at Lititz Christian School. Federico was born and raised in Pereira, Columbia where he learned to love sports at a young age. Basketball is one of his favorite hobbies, and his love for it is demonstrated as he excels on the school’s varsity basketball team. Along with basketball, Federico’s extracurriculars include soccer, worship team, National Honor Society, and running on the Warwick track team.
His favorite part of Lititz Christian School is the community of people. He loves getting to hang out with his friends in and outside of school, specifically while fishing. His favorite class is Marketing with Mr. Swift because he wants to study Marketing after school. Federico plans on attending college to do so and also hopes to play basketball while there.
If he could change one thing about the world he would make Dual Citizenship more accessible for people like himself.
Federico Cortes is an excellent student and a hard worker. He is sure to go far and do great things because of the work ethic he has developed now.
Written by: Sarah Smith
Sarah Smith
Senior
Sarah Elizabeth Smith is a student from Lititz Christian School who right now is in her senior year; she is 17 years old, and after high school she wants to study healthcare administration or accounting. Her parents are Bradley Smith and Kathie Smith.
Sarah is very happy at Lititz Christian School. She has attended since pre-K. She loves everything about LCS, but her favorite things are the excellent education that she receives at LCS and the people of LCS. She feels confident that for these two reasons she will be prepared for any college.
She participates in many extracurricular activities; during fall she normally practices volleyball which is actually her favorite sport; she also participates in yearbook and worship arts. She is one of the best students in the school, so she takes part in her school’s National Honor Society. Furthermore, she is also part of the Language Honor Society because she takes Spanish classes and is taking Spanish at the college level this year.
Outside of school, Sarah enjoys hanging out with her best friends; another hobby is that she loves to watch movies, and she loves to work at Camp Conquest. It was a great experience to talk with Sarah, I wish her the best in her future and hope she accomplishes all she wants to do.
Written by: Federico Cortes