Christian Shepler — Walking by faith
Charger Football | Class of 2020 | Mineral Point, WI
Words & Photo by Calli Townsend
Despite his quiet demeanor, Christian Shepler's got big ambitions. And he's got the discipline and motivation to get there. As a member of Hillsdale's Psi Chi National Honor Society, Christian's efforts in the classroom rank among the top.
"It's essentially a national honor society for psychology. It identifies psychology students in good standings, with a 3.0, and it's designed to promote excellence in psychology," Christian said. "We help run and promote different activities within the department."
He's double majoring in exercise science and psychology in pursuit of a career in neuropsychology. He says he'd like to work in the hospital setting, helping people with brain injuries or neurological conditions.
"The field is kind of newer and growing quickly. The brain and how it works interests me. I like to learn about disorders, how does it happen, how can we fix it, how we prevent it," he said. "I could be a neuropsychologist and work with sports teams, but I think I'd lean more toward the hospital setting for the variety of situations I could see. There you're looking at the whole spectrum really, from head trauma to birth defects."
Being at Hillsdale has helped Christian chase his dreams. He's surrounded by a good group of friends who support him and encourage him along the way.
"I think you'll find there aren't a whole lot of supportive people out there, but once you get that close group of people who care about you, they'll support your goals. Your aspirations aren't really people's business anyway," he said.
Which is why his advice to his younger self is: "Aside from close, supportive friends and family, don't let others know your goals, just grind in silence."
Christian knows who he is, and he knows what he wants for his life, and he's determined to make the most of it. He doesn't chase popularity or tell everyone about his lofty goals. He will work hard whether anyone is cheering him on or not.
"I feel like the environment at Hillsdale is a lot different than most places. People are more accepting and the college setting is a lot different than the high school setting," he said. "In high school you kind of have more of a pressure to fit in and but once you get into college there's a whole lot of difference niches and different people and you're forced to accept people who are different than you."
The different niches of Hillsdale has allowed Christian to dive into some of his other interests outside of football or the classroom, one of which is drawing. He says his ability is a combination of his own natural talent and the skills he's been taught along the way.
"Ever since I was a toddler I was drawing. I took some art classes when I was young, but then I got away from it for a bit in high school and in the beginning of college," he said. "I took a drawing class this semester and I'm kind of getting back into it. It's not a required class, it's just a hobby."
His favorite medium is just a good, regular pencil, and he enjoys drawing people the most.
"I like to draw anything really. I like drawing people though," he said. "I always use a pencil. I can draw with charcoal or marker, but I really enjoy drawing with just a straight pencil."
As he continues to chase his dreams and prepare for the "real world" in a few short months, Christian says he leans a lot on his faith, quoting his favorite Bible verse, 2 Corinthians 5:7: "For we walk by faith, not by sight."
"It's about faith in the unknown, really. I feel everyone is concerned about their future, but they don't know what's going to happen, we can't see what's out there," he said. "To me, even with being able to identify my career, it's still kind of up in the air for me."
He said his coming to Hillsdale was a result of trusting what God had in store for him next.
"I just felt the peace. One day my mom was like, 'You should check this place out.' My parents subscribe to Imprimis. So I did and Hillsdale happened to have a football team, that was important to me," he said.
After applying to several other schools, nothing else was working out, except for Hillsdale. Within a few weeks, Christian made his decision to be a Charger.
"It just kind of felt like God was moving the pieces around. I was definitely supposed to be here."
"That's kind of the state with most of my life. It's always, 'What's going to happen next?' whether it's academics, football, or my social life," he said. "It's about trusting God and believing he'll lead you to the right spot and the right time, but walking by faith is so important."