Home-school grad off on Czech mission
Olivia Roskos of Kalispell in the "school room" of her home with her mother Brenda, and siblings Seth, 6, left to right, Kirsten, 16, and Sophia, 13, on Friday in Kalispell.
On Saturday, Olivia Roskos graduated in a small, intimate ceremony with 20 other seniors with whom she technically hadn’t gone to school.
They might have had a class or two in common, but for the most part, the 2010 Flathead Home Educators Association graduates went through high school on their own. Roskos, 18, was home-schooled all her life.
And while many of her sort-of classmates are preparing for college this fall, Roskos is preparing for a different education: She leaves in July for a six-month stint in the Czech Republic.
She will teach English at a Czech camp for two weeks, then might teach at other camps throughout the summer. After that, Roskos will intern with missionaries.
Going to Europe after graduation wasn’t an easy decision, especially when the expectation for high-school graduates is to go to college in the fall, Roskos said.
“This last year I felt super torn about what to do after school,” she said. “I have prayed about it a lot ... trying to figure out what God wants.”
She and a friend, Abby Smith, had talked about returning to the Czech Republic. Roskos had gone there twice already, and Easthaven Baptist Church was planning to send a short-term mission team to the Central European nation the summer after graduation.
Roskos hoped to find a missionary internship in the Czech Republic, but she wanted to find a program that lasted longer than three months — the norm for most mission trips in the country.
After praying about it for weeks without a clear answer, Roskos told Smith, “Let’s pray about it one more week. If a six-month internship opens up, we’ll go.”
On the last day of the week, Roskos received an e-mail. An internship was available.
“At that moment, I decided to do it for six months rather than go to school first semester,” she said.
Roskos might go to college after she returns from Europe in January, but she hasn’t committed herself to any school or particular path.
She would like to record music — she sings and plays violin — and is considering going to Hillsong International Leadership College in Sydney, Australia, when her younger sister, Kirsten, goes in 2011.
But ultimately, people matter more to Roskos than school.
“When you die, people look at how much you cared for others and how much you showed God’s love to others,” she said. “There are a lot of really broken-hearted people out there.”
Caring for others has been the dominant theme of Roskos’ life. When she isn’t studying, she is serving.
She and her sister Kirsten have led worship and taught at Serius JuJu, a local skateboard ministry. She has volunteered with Feeding the Flathead.
In addition to two mission trips to the Czech Republic and the third coming up this summer, Roskos also has been to Mexico, where she was part of a prison ministry, helped rebuild a church and put on Vacation Bible School for children.
She and her family have opened their home to people who are lonely or hurting. Their Thanksgiving dinners might have 40 or 50 attendees, Roskos said, and last year they delivered about 50 boxes of food with Central Bible Church to families in need.
They’ve tried to turn their home into “a safe place for people to be,” Roskos explained — and people have responded in droves. “I have three sisters and two brothers, but Mom always says we have a huge family.”
Roskos has also been active in the pro-life movement, praying outside Kalispell’s Planned Parenthood office and delivering anti-abortion speeches before the Legislature.
Roskos said she has been motivated by the belief that more young people should be involved in the pro-life movement and by her Christian faith.
“I believe life is a gift from God. It shouldn’t just be carelessly thrown away,” she said.
Her faith has only deepened in recent years. While Roskos grew up in a Christian home, she says the whole family went through a transformation a couple years ago. That’s when their faith transformed from dry religion to powerful motivation for living.
“It’s different when your heart changes, when you’re [serving] because you have a relationship with God — he’s a friend and you want to please your friend,” Roskos said. “You do it because you see how God has changed your life.”
Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.