Like every good book, the LCA story is filled with chapters. As new students enter the LCA story, other students turn their tassels and transition to the next chapter. At LCA, we believe in the phrase “once a Lion, always a Lion,” so we love to hear from our alumni about where they are in their stories today. Hear from Abbey (Browning) Richey, class of 2016, about where God has led her as well as how her chapter in the LCA story has affected her life.
I'm Abbey Richey, formerly Abbey Browning, and I graduated from LCA in the class of 2016. After graduating from LCA, I went to Anderson University to pursue a degree in Interior Design with a minor in Business. Since graduating this past May 2020 (yes, during COVID), I've been working with an Interior Design firm called Gina Sims Designs in Atlanta, Georgia. I interned with this firm between my junior and senior year and had a job secured before I even graduated. This was such a blessing at the beginning of 2020 because little did we know the pandemic would hit and affect many jobs. I was so grateful to have that assurance and for our business to still be soaring today amidst a year long pandemic.
While I may not have taken Interior Design classes at LCA, my journey from kindergarten through senior year at the school was my biggest blessing in my personal life and my career. I get a little choked up when I try to think of a way to thank all of the teachers, administrations, my parents, and classmates that made my 13 years at LCA so impactful. It was because of the rigorous academics at LCA that I was able to go into college with so many extra credit hours already built up. Because of the way the 4-year Interior Design program was structured, I couldn't graduate early, but I was able to add on a minor without having to add on extra course hours each semester. I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the way LCA influenced my spiritual walk. Having gone to private school my whole life, I can't say what my experience would have been like at a local public school, but I can attest to the positive influences I was surrounded with at LCA. I have friendships that I still treasure to this day, friends that I met while in KINDERGARTEN at LCA and that's incredible to me. Their spiritual walk impacted me to live my life for the Lord and to not be distracted by worldly desires. They continued to push me to be better and to continue to pursue Christ all my days. Reinforcement came from the faculty and staff as they poured into me in the classroom and out of the classroom and still to this day stay connected with me and all my endeavors.
Going into the "real world" after college sometimes isn't easy, but I felt more than prepared and I owe a large part of that to the time I spent at LCA. I'm able to continue to show the love of Christ through work, in my new marriage, and in friendships that continue to blossom. Although Interior Design can sometimes be a weird field to incorporate my faith into, it's how I act in the workplace, treat my clients with love, and continue to grow in my walk with the Lord. Today, about 9 months after graduating college, I continue to work for Gina Sims Designs in the residential Interior Design field, and am pursuing my own passions of art and design and I couldn't be more grateful for what I get to do and to share it with all of you. Just waiting for LCA to build some new buildings now, so they can have an alumni design them!
