CROSS FIT Many of the faculty and staff were involved in extracurricular activities that were important parts of their lives. In the spring of 2011, assistant football coach Kevin Chism became involved in CrossFit, a popular fitness program. CrossFit was a strength-and-conditioning regimen created by Greg Glassman over several decades. The trainers met each participant at his or her present fitness level and brought them up to their peak fitness by working through the Workout of the Day and training them to have an overall healthier lifestyle. Chism was a defensive end at Harding from 1998-2000, and he worked as a graduate assistant for the Bison football team from 2010-2011. He also worked with the offensive line as a volunteer in 2012. During that two-year span, he heard about CrossFit through a friend and decided to try it out, thinking it might be beneficial for the football team. "I was a graduate assistant at the time when we talked about opening our own CrossFit gym," Chism said. "We started small to seek out interest within the Searcy community." Chism achieved his level one CrossFit trainer certification June of 2011, which provided basic knowledge of the program itself. Head Football Coach Ronnie Huckeba offered use of the weight room to Chism when he started training, and word quickly spread about the new fitness endeavor. Because there was no official CrossFit gym in Searcy at that time, Chism and some friends did the CrossFit Workouts of the Day in the weight room of the Ganus Athletic Center. Soon, the community grew too big to continue using the weight room. After Chism's group had grown to about 75 members, Chism joined with Rob Hefley, another Cross Fit devotee, to create the Searcy Cross Fit Gym. Chism and his partners found a warehouse that could help propel the business idea into a reality. Chism opened the Searcy Crossfit Gym in the fall of 2011 and started building the platform from there. Chism combined CrossFit with coaching, working at the gym during the day and helping with the football team in the evening. Chism said over 300 people attended Searcy Crossfit at one point in time, and some were Harding students. Sophomore Kody Goings, a CrossFit trainer at Searcy CrossFit, had nothing but praise for Chism. "Kevin Chism has influenced me in multiple ways," Goings said. "He has given me a much-needed job, as well as giving me the platform to meet people through the gym." Senior Ben Stevens also trained under Chism during the "on-ramp" introduction class. Chism was a role model for Stevens, who came to respect Chism for the godly example he set. "He was a wonderful teacher who was always willing to talk about life and fitness," Stevens said. "It was evident that he lives out his faith. He constantly has his children with him and sets a great example for them. He is very real and is approachable. He is someone I quickly grew to look up to." Chism saw Searcy CrossFit as a place for people to work out and create connections to last a lifetime. He said CrossFit was a place where people found encouragement and a place where people pushed others in their group to give their best. "We try and purposely bring a spiritual atmosphere to our gym," Chism said. "We put scriptures on the walls, and there is always clean music. It's amazing to see people become friends through the gym, reading and studying the Bible after workouts." Shane Schock
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