The C.S. Lewis Circle

A small circle of partners who stand closest to our children

WHY LEWIS?

‍ "A brief and true definition of virtue is this: love in the right order."

— St. Augustine, City of God (as C.S. Lewis loved to remind us)

Here is what that means, in plain English. A good person isn't someone who loves less — it's someone who loves rightly. God first. People more than things. What is true more than what is easy. Every good thing gets loved as much as it deserves — no more, and no less.

C.S. Lewis built his great little book on education, The Abolition of Man, around that very idea. He reminded his readers that Augustine said it, that Aristotle said it, and that Plato said it before either of them: the real aim of education is to teach a child to love what is worth loving. A child can learn a great deal and still love the wrong things. Lewis called the result "men without chests" — clever heads with no trained hearts beneath them.

That is classical Christian education in a sentence. Our children read real books, memorize Scripture, and learn to reason well — but the deeper work is helping them love what is true, good, and beautiful, in the right order. Lewis's mind and his faith run all through that work. So when we gathered our most committed partners together, his was the natural name to give them.

WHAT THE CIRCLE IS

The C.S. Lewis Circle is a small group of partners who give at least $2,000 a year, or pledge a minimum of $160 a month. That's roughly what it costs to give one child a full year of classical Christian education here on the north coast of the Dominican Republic.

These are the people who make the school possible. We want them to see it the way we see it — up close, by name, from the inside.

WHAT MEMBERS RECEIVE

A place in a small fellowship of friends — in the spirit of Lewis’s own Inklings — who see this school as it really is: its achievements, its challenges, all of it
A signed certificate, with a personal note from me
Circle-only letters two or three times a year — named students and their stories, prayer requests with real first names, photos we don't share publicly, and notes from Stephanie in her own voice
Raw, unedited, behind-the-scenes video from our classrooms
Occasional live conversations with Stephanie and me about classical education and what's happening in our classrooms
The first invitation to join mission teams
A first look at our year-end appeal, before anyone else sees it

THE FOUNDING CIRCLE

Fourteen families formed the founding Circle in 2026. Founding membership stays open through December 31, 2027. After that, anyone can still join the Circle — but no one can ever become a founding member again.

JOIN US

If your heart is already with these children, I'd love to welcome you in. Give monthly or once a year — whichever fits the way you give.

Join the Circle

Prefer to give by check? Make it out to Tri-Lakes Church of Christ, write "Dominican Republic" in the memo line, and mail it to Tri-Lakes Church of Christ, PO Box 1545, Monument, CO 80132.

Questions? Write me at cslewis@cabrerachristian.org. I read every note myself.

Every one of these children has a name. In the Circle, you'll know them — and you'll be part of their story.

— Dr. Tim Slater, Headmaster