I’ve been connected to Athletes in Action and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes since my high school and college playing days. Through those years, I was blessed to participate in prayer groups alongside remarkable men of faith, including Coach Tony Dungy during the Pitt gatherings now known as “The Huddle.” The former FCA Director, Coach Les Steckle, is a dear friend, and some of the early leaders of Athletes in Action, including the Peterson brothers and several Olympic wrestlers, were instrumental in planting the seed of Christ in my heart at a young age. I remain deeply grateful for the strong, faithful Christian men who have mentored, challenged, and encouraged me throughout my life.

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I also want to give credit for my strong faith foundation to Sister Adalfrid at St. John the Baptist in Allentown. Her thoughtful tutelage helped shape me into the man I am today. Father Murphy, Rev. Barker, and Rev. Stoner of First Presbyterian Church, as well as Pastor Randy Landis, were fundamental pillars in my Christian upbringing.

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For more than 20 years, I have been a registered Independent, believing that faith, integrity, and principle should guide decision-making above party lines. My commitment has always been to values over politics and service over partisanship.

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During the COVID pandemic, my family was honored to be one of 30 families from the Allentown Diocese chosen to lead a virtual prayer gathering. In a time of uncertainty and isolation, it was a privilege to help bring encouragement and spiritual unity to our community.

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Service has always been central to our lives. My family and I regularly support and give to food banks throughout the Lehigh Valley, helping care for the underprivileged and striving to live out our faith through action, not just words.

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The Atiyeh family legacy spans ambassadors, clergy, farmers, professors, governors, professional athletes, Olympians, and teachers. Yet the greatest among us was my beautiful mother, Jamilie Ibrahim Atiyeh.

With extraordinary courage, she journeyed from Syria to America by boat in the 1960s carrying three young children and pregnant with a fourth. She would later give birth to three more, raising seven children with unshakable faith, relentless perseverance, and enduring hope.

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A single mother who relied fully on God as her provider, she never accepted welfare. Instead, she worked tirelessly, purchased property, and ran her own small business. Not bad for a five-foot-tall woman who stepped off a boat into a new country with nothing but faith and fierce determination.

God blessed me beyond measure with this extraordinary woman. Everything good in me traces back to her example.