In high school, Kambree Baker was a standout volleyball athlete, who, like many young women, battled anxiety and perfectionism. But everything changed when she heard the Gospel at her local Fellowship of Christian Athletes Huddle.
Baker started playing volleyball in 4th grade through the city leagues in Pendleton, Ore., where she grew up. She fell in love with the sport and continued playing on club teams in middle school and eventually at Hermiston High School.
“I always loved volleyball,” Baker, a middle blocker, said. “It was never a negative experience, but I have always been a perfectionist in nature and felt the pressure to perform. It never felt light.”
As an athlete, Baker struggled with body image, comparison and insecurity. She explained that her identity was very much grounded in her sport when she went to Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington.
“That perfectionism drove my anxiety and caused it to keep festering,” Baker said. “I was worried because I wanted to perform so well. I was worried about things I couldn’t control.”
Baker played just six games in the preseason when she experienced a devastating injury to her ankle that had her in a boot for weeks and ended up taking her season away.
“I felt like everything came crashing down,” Baker said. “It was really disheartening.”
She felt far from home and couldn’t fulfill her role on the team. Baker primarily saw herself as a volleyball player. She didn’t know anything else.
Not long after that, Baker’s roommate invited her to an FCA Huddle. Although Baker had attended some FCA meetings in high school, she didn’t have a deep faith. She saw Christianity more as a “cage of rules.”
“I went for the community at first,” Baker said. “It was less about Jesus. It was more about hanging out with my roommate.”
She enjoyed the games and fellowship and started to pay attention to the lessons presented by FCA staff and athletes. Baker’s demeanor and outlook changed as her identity began to be rooted in Jesus Christ.
“Developing a relationship with the Lord helped me gain confidence and wiped away some of those struggles, superficial insecurities and anxieties,” Baker said. “I think we had something really special, and people weren’t afraid to be vulnerable. We didn’t have to pretend.”
Alyssa Root came on staff with FCA as Cowlitz County Director partway through the year and witnessed the changes in Baker.
“It was so fun to watch her grow and lead,” Root said.
Root became a mentor to Baker and eventually baptized her and invited her to join FCA leadership. They met regularly for coffee, and Root cheered her on at volleyball games. She loved watching Baker compete with a newfound freedom and confidence, challenging her teammates to the next level of integrity.
Samantha Farland, Baker’s volleyball teammate, noticed the transformation in her as they engaged in FCA and continued to play the sport together.
“It was super cool to see that work both on and off the court,” Farland said. “As an athlete, it’s easy to just conform to your teammates.”
Farland mentioned that Baker was an encourager on the court, a role model to the team who also modeled integrity behind the scenes. She was the captain and made sure the music was appropriate and uplifting.
Baker and Farland led lessons at FCA together and encouraged each other to keep their eyes up, focused on the “audience of One.”
Now Baker is sharing her journey and testimony with others. She speaks at different FCA Huddles back home and attends church with her mom. She played her last season at Columbia Basin College in Pasco, Wash., is finishing her bachelors degree, and plans to attend dental hygiene school.
Baker says FCA has changed her life and equipped her for the future.
“It’s brought a lot of opportunities to learn about Christ, but also to live and experience what it looks like to live like Him.”
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Photos courtesy of Kambree Baker, headshot photo by Kim Fetrow (Kim Fetrow Photography), and action shots by Tyler West (CBC Graphics)