Anthony and Michelle Leake have home schooled their children utilizing the Christian Liberty School curriculum for many years. Their son, Noah, was scheduled to graduate from Christian Liberty at the time of his death on May 11, 2002 (Christian Liberty Academy issued a posthumous diploma to Noah’s family). Only their strong faith sustained them as they dealt with the devastating loss of their son. Years later, the rippling effects of Noah’s life and death are still being felt by those connected to the Leake family.
The attorneys who assisted the Leake family in the investigation into their son’s death have recently announced the formation of the Christian Liberty Noah Leake Scholarship Fund. Tony and Michelle Leake hope that this fund will assist families who also seek to honor the Lord through the Christian education of their children. When Christian Liberty learned of the planned donation, it was greeted as confirmation of the continuing impact the program hopes to have on the families it serves.
“To tell you of the practical reasons for our support of and appreciation for Christian Liberty would probably read like a testimonial out of their catalog. The program, textbooks and publications demonstrate a reverent love for our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus, a dedication to sound Biblical doctrine, an urgency to solidify the student's understanding of God's sovereignty and a real compassion for the student and family. My daughter's thoughts best describe our appreciation. She recalls that Liberty's Christ centered curriculum laid such a foundation of Biblical truths that it continually turned her heart back to God's word which is the source of our saving faith.” - Michelle Leake
On May 11, 2002, 18-year-old Noah Leake was driving on Interstate 70 in Kansas City, Missouri, on his way to work at the family business. The driver of a tractor trailer owned and operated by a large trucking company drove too fast around a sloping curve and lost control of the truck. The trailer, which was fully loaded with Life Saver candies, landed squarely on top of Noah’s car. Noah was pinned underneath the trailer and a fire erupted. Noah died of smoke inhalation.
Although the Leake family did not want to file a lawsuit, they were determined to expose the irresponsible actions of the trucking company, and were willing to do whatever it took to try to protect other families from the company’s careless practices. They retained the law firms of Dollar, Burns & Becker and Joe Morrey to guide them through the legal process so that the family could focus on healing. Further investigation revealed that the young tractor trailer driver had as many as 10 prior speeding convictions. The trucking company did not settle the case until the third day of trial, but ultimately agreed to change its policies and procedures to ensure that drivers with multiple traffic violations were not allowed to operate the company’s tractor trailers.
The faith and forgiveness extended by the Leake family impacted everyone involved in the tragedy, including police officers, emergency responders, the judge, the jury, the defense attorneys, the owner of the trucking company, and even the driver whose recklessness killed their son. When the attorneys recently informed the family of their desire to honor their son Noah through a donation, the family believed that a donation to Christian Liberty Academy would be a fitting memorial to the manner in which Noah Leake lived his life.
Noah was a dedicated student enrolled in Christian Liberty Academy’s satellite program at the time of his death. Through the strong doctrinal emphasis of their curriculum, Noah’s understanding of his Lord and Savior was strengthened. Because of this former graduate’s life and faith, others have been inspired to assist families in obtaining the same foundation which Noah received through the teachings offered by Christian Liberty Academy.
