Michael Wilson ('01): 2026 Distinguished Alumni Awardee

"Remain in me, as I also remain in you... Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me." — John 15:4

Michael Wilson, class of 2021, has been abiding in the Vine.

A visual storyteller who seeks God's direction in every season, Michael has found his place in God's story. Like the branches of a vine, the many chapters of his life all connect to one life source—Jesus Christ.

One of the strongest branches of that story is Des Moines Christian Schools.

Michael first walked through DMC's doors as a first grader after his mother, Pam Wilson, accepted a teaching position at the school. Although the school had few resources at the time, he never noticed what it lacked.

"It was obvious that the teachers loved Jesus," he says. "DMC has always been on this trajectory. It's very evident the Lord is in the growth and sustainment of this school."

After graduating from DMC, Michael attended DMACC before working for AT&T. Eventually, his love for coaching and mentoring students led him back to Iowa State University to earn his elementary education degree. While completing school, he worked 30 hours a week, coached cross country, competed in an IRONMAN, and ran the Boston Marathon—a work ethic he credits in part to his DMC experience.

In 2013, Michael returned to DMC as a fifth-grade teacher. Though the school was still growing, he recognized the same thing he had experienced as a student: God's faithful provision. Veteran teachers like Jody Keithley and Brenda Baker helped guide him through his first year in the classroom.

While teaching, Michael also became a technology coach, and his gift for visual storytelling soon led him behind the camera. Over the years, he has created many of DMC's most meaningful videos, including the 75th anniversary feature, True Blue Gala stories, music videos, and countless testimonies that capture the heart of the school.

This spring, Michael was honored as the first recipient of the DMC Distinguished Alumni Award at the True Blue Gala. Before the event, he had driven his mother past the new campus property. As he accepted the award and saw tears in her eyes, it became a full-circle moment. Her decision to teach at DMC decades earlier had become part of a much bigger story—one only God could weave together.

Michael moved to Nashville, Tennessee, this summer. In October, he married his wife, Rachel. He plans to continue serving Des Moines Christian and Valley Church with visual storytelling.