While in Nepal preparing to lead a pastors’ conference, Joshua Fleming ’93 took the time to share his family’s beginnings at Ben Lippen and how his alma mater represents a generational story of faith, calling, and service.

In the 1940s, Joshua’s grandmother, Ouida Jones, was widowed after her husband died in a tragic car accident in Alabama. At the time, she had two young sons, Malcolm and Lewis, both of whom would later attend Ben Lippen. Ouida’s connection to Ben Lippen was established through a family friend, Francis McCurdy Smith, who invited her to the Victorious Christian Life conference on the school’s campus in Asheville. There, in the North Carolina mountains, Ouida became a Christian. Her new faith, soon followed by her husband’s acceptance of Christ through a Bible study, started a spiritual legacy that would influence generations of the Fleming family. Joshua recalls, “She’s the one who led me to the Lord. In a sense, Francis Smith and Ben Lippen are like my spiritual grandparents.”

The impact of this connection went beyond Grandmother Ouida. Her husband, Harold Eich, gave up everything to study the Bible at CIU and became a Christian educator for the rest of his life. In the early 1970s, Joshua’s uncle, living in California, was discipled by a friend who attended CIU. Deeply influenced, he crossed the country in a hippie van to enroll as a CIU student. This journey ultimately led to Joshua’s parents meeting in Columbia when Joshua’s father moved here to live with him. “He graduated from Eau Claire High School and met my mother, and so CIU is directly responsible for my family existing.”

Financial hurdles never stood in the way of the family’s commitment to Ben Lippen School. Joshua recalls, “My mom worked multiple jobs so my brother and I could attend. I swept and mopped the cafeteria after school because I loved Ben Lippen.” This sentiment was not just a result of his academic and athletic opportunities. Mr. White, an exceptional and godly math teacher, not only excelled in his subject but also invested in students’ spiritual lives, mentoring them in their faith. Joshua reflects, “God used that to revolutionize my walk with the Lord.” Equally influential was Mike Hathaway, Ben Lippen alumnus and legendary Hall of Fame coach. “He did a good job coaching, but he also helped me become a man. He taught me principles that I think have helped me throughout life.”

Service and a sense of calling have always been part of the family’s DNA. Whether in missions, military, or teaching, the Fleming siblings all found their own ways to serve. For Joshua, the shaping force was a school “ethos” that looked outward, instilling the value of the Great Commission and showing that being a part of “what God is doing in the world” was a real possibility. The impact shaped his calling and career, “Ben Lippen and CIU were very instrumental in teaching [missions] to me, as well as my church, Columbia Evangelical, and then later Hope Church, which is where I'm a pastor.”

Ben Lippen’s non-denominational nature helped prepare him for the realities of the mission field. “You learn to get along with others. Overseas, you need to work together,” Joshua explains. “And going through school with people from all over the world, it’s a treasure. Later, when I’d meet someone from Uganda or Korea, likely I knew someone from their region. What a precious gift that is to be able to have something in common with people, and Ben Lippen gave me that as well.”

Joshua’s own journey led him (and his family) overseas as the IT director of a Spanish-speaking Christian organization in North Africa and the Middle East. What began as tech support blossomed into church planting, drawing people from Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, and beyond. “That just kind of exploded,” he recalls. “That’s part of the reason I’m in Nepal now. One connection led to another, and we started leading leadership conferences in 2017.” Today, his work continues through various partnerships, helping to nurture pastors in rural Nepal, a country with a Christian population of less than 1% but a rapidly growing church.

Joshua also speaks fondly of his sister, Hannah ’97, and brother, Gabriel ’95. Hannah now teaches at Ben Lippen, and his nephews - Jonathan (of whose recent baptism he is particularly proud), Sam, and Grady - currently attend the school (and Michael, another nephew, graduated in 2024), continuing the family legacy. “The people God gives us to walk through life with are a huge blessing. I’m proud of Hannah no matter what, but it’s fun to see her at our alma mater.” Gabe’s spirit of service, cultivated at Ben Lippen, led him to serve as a respected Airbase Group Commander in the U.S. Air Force. His older brother (who married alum Kelly VanWyke ‘91) also thrived at the school. “He’s always been very generous, and he has a mentality for serving people. I’m sure Ben Lippen helped instill some of those traits.”

Ben Lippen shaped more than faith for the Fleming family. Inspired by his time on the Mountain of Trust, Uncle Lewis carried the school’s values into his work in Columbia. In 1973, he and his brother Malcolm opened The Backpacker, an outdoor store that encouraged others to enjoy God’s creation and served the community for over 40 years.

Hannah Fleming, Josh’s sister, married into the Edgren family, which also shares close ties and a lasting impact on Ben Lippen School. She married John, whose father, Dr. Dave Edgren, served as the headmaster of Ben Lippen from 1992 to 2000. During his tenure, the school’s international student program thrived, welcoming students from around the world into the Ben Lippen family. Dr. Edgren’s commitment to the school has not wavered. Even recently, he partnered with Ben Lippen’s International Student Program (ISP) director, Steve Sark, on a recruiting trip to China, continuing to foster the school’s global connections.

Looking to the future, Joshua hopes the family’s legacy not only continues but also multiplies. “Somewhere down the line, somebody told my grandmother, my grandmother told me, and I don’t want the chain to stop. I want to see it expanding exponentially until the day Christ returns. My hope is that the Lord continues to use us as His vessels of blessing for the spreading of the Gospel and His glory.”