There’s a wide eyed little fellow,
Who believes you’re always right,
And his ears are always open,
And he watches day and night;
You are setting an example
Every day in all you do,
For the little boy who’s waiting
To grow up and be like you.

These poetic words give true meaning to the word: INFLUENCE. Simultaneously, the words of David Dean written in 1967 give cause to the daily life choices and heartfelt actions and efforts of Zoey McClellan, a senior at McCurtain High School, who was recently selected to receive the Oklahoma Fellowship of Christian Athletes All-State award.

“Influence is the way your actions reflect on other people.  Everyone has influence on someone, you decide if that influence will be positive or negative,” Zoey replied. “I try to be a positive influence by example and not necessarily being outspoken.  Actions do speak louder than words.”

The starting leftfielder for the Lady Bulldogs, “ZO” strives to be a champion, on and off the field of play. 

“A champion is the person who works hard and pushes through adversity.  Even though you may not always win, you become a better person,” replied the 2022 co-Valedictorian at McCurtain.  

In the classroom, McClellan has maintained a 4.24 GPA as well as serving as president of the Business Professionals of America and Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapters at her school. Simultaneously she will graduate having earned 37 hours of college credit through concurrent enrollment.

“My schedule has required lots of planning and organization and making sure that I set enough time aside to complete my college work and homework.”

Being honored with the Oklahoma FCA All-State award has a personal meaning for McClellan.

“It is honor to be chosen on the merits of your faith. In every thing I do, I try to not let other people negatively influence my relationship with Christ and by doing the right thing even when it’s not the popular thing,” she said with a voice of passion. “That means always being honest because lying will always hurt your influence on others.”

Above all, Zoey McClellan confirms there’s one source for her energy and smile everyday.  

“Psalms 55:22- Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken,” she noted as her favorite scripture. “To me it means that when I have problems I can trust Christ to give me strength to stand.  It means that I don’t have to face problems alone.”