All In: Distinguished Alumni of the Year, Mr. Kenneth J. Huiner

In conversations with people, you can tell when you land on a topic that taps into something deep within them. Their eyes light up, their facial expressions intensify, their voices connote excitement. It happens when people talk about their family, a recent vacation, a hobby they enjoy, or their favorite sports team. For this year’s Alumni of the Year, Ken Huiner, it’s when he talks about Timothy Christian Schools.

Ken is a 1982 graduate of Timothy who has served in numerous capacities at Timothy. He has been involved in alumni events ever since his graduation, serving on committees that have organized class reunions. He has served on the school board for multiple terms and has spent most of his time on the Marketing Committee and the Advancement Committee. If there is an activity at Timothy, you will see Ken there lending a hand, cheering on teams, or working behind the scenes.

Ken inherited his love for Timothy through generations of involvement. He remembers his grandmother, Jenny Huizenga (who is one of the women memorialized by the Huizenga Auditorium), reminding him of the importance of keeping three priorities: faith, nurtured by the church, family, and school. She didn’t just talk about those priorities; she put them into practice. His parents, Tom and June (Huizenga) Huiner (Class of 1959), are Timothy graduates, and his only child, daughter Shelby, is a 2021 Timothy graduate.

When Ken reflects on his own experience at Timothy, he describes himself as a “social butterfly” with friends across the breadth of the student body. He wasn’t an athlete or an academic high achiever, but he had friends who were athletes, some involved in the arts, some in music, and some in other special interests.

Ken’s most endearing memories from his student days at Timothy are of the staff. He remembers them as being kind, gracious, and supportive. They were interested in him as a person and wanted to see him grow academically, emotionally, and spiritually. It was always clear to him that they cared about his well-being. “The same is true today. Timothy has facilities that rival any school in the area, but our best assets are our teachers and administrators. They are dedicated to the mission, vision, and values of Timothy,” commented Huiner.

Timothy has changed in many ways since Ken’s time as a student. One of the significant changes has been in the diversity of the student body. When Ken attended Timothy, it was a provincial school with the student body made up mostly of students from Christian Reformed Churches. Today over 180 different churches are represented and students come from over 70 different suburbs. He feels that this has been a necessary change and one that enhances the Timothy experience. “The improvement of our facilities, the variety of academic and extracurricular offerings, as well as the diversity of our student body enriches the experience for our students. To stay a viable institution, you should continue to evolve,” says Huiner.

“Timothy has facilities that rival any school in the area, but our best assets are our teachers and administrators. They are dedicated to the mission, vision and values of Timothy”

Huiner’s desire for Timothy is to continue to grow. Not just in the number of students who attend, but to continue to explore new opportunities to offer our students. “We have a wide variety of AP classes for students, and things like Robotics, VEI, DECA, and other opportunities that make a student’s experience richer. We need to keep expanding.”

When asked about Ken Huiner’s involvement at Timothy, Superintendent Matt Davidson says, “If you’re looking for an example of a servant-leader to show your children, just introduce them to Ken Huiner. Ken loves Jesus and is an MVP-type of volunteer.”

That kind of enthusiasm and involvement make Ken Huiner an obvious choice as Alumni of the Year!