Featured Alumnus - October 2021

My name is Linus Chan, and I graduated from Chicago Christian High School in 2013. It was a really formative period of my life, and I’m glad to have made some lifelong friendships and grew a little more into myself during that time. My fondest memories center around the many plays and musicals I got to act in under the guidance of Mrs. Lenters, Mrs. Riley, and Mr. Kowallis. I’m certain that my desire to work on creative projects with other like-minded folks was nurtured because of those productions, and I still carry that spirit with me today. I also quite enjoyed AP U.S. History with Mr. Altena, who ingrained in me an appreciation for history (and some very good tunes). Finally, I remember having a great time in Mrs. Medema’s classes and being encouraged to try many different kinds of art. 

In those years, when I wasn’t acting on stage or doing homework, I would work on game projects as a hobby. I didn’t really know if a career was viable. However, as I entered senior year, I decided that making games was where my interests naturally drifted. My mind was made up, so after high school, I packed up my things and moved across the country to Washington state where I went on to attain a Bachelor of Arts in Game Design at DigiPen Institute of Technology. I gained a lot of practical knowledge and skills including programming, art, and design during this period. I also contributed to many game projects with fellow students. After I graduated in 2017, I went through a tough period of job searching. I’d been confident enough to know I wanted to work on games, but never really found my place in what turned out to be a really diverse field. 

However, in 2018 I was contacted by an agency I’d spoken to very briefly at my college’s career fair a year earlier. They told me about a 3D Artist job at Minecraft for someone who could do pixel art. I had picked up pixel art e in my game-making endeavors and could do it with some skill. Minecraft at that time had already become a worldwide phenomenon and its developer, Mojang, was bought by Microsoft in 2014. In a happy coincidence, my college was located near where Microsoft was headquartered. It has been about three years since then, and I am still happily employed, working at Minecraft and on my own game projects in my spare time. 

I look back on my experiences at CCHS positively. I am thankful for all the supportive teachers and staff at CCHS who work hard to make a safe and welcoming place for students to learn. Truly, I could not have gotten to where I am today by my own power; I am immensely grateful for the blessings God has placed in my life such as my family and friends, and the opportunities He has graced me with. I don’t know where I’ll be in the years to come, but I hope to continue making entertaining and inspiring games for people to enjoy. More importantly, I hope to continue growing closer to Christ in word and deed, as imperfect as I am and serve others with an open heart.