Up and Comers

In 1993, at the age of four, Shanthi Teike could not have possibly imagined her future. Her world was an orphanage in Madras, India. Mark and Debbie Teike changed all of that. They adopted her as their daughter and put her on the path for an incredible journey that seems headed for East Lansing, Michigan, of all places. At seventeen, Shanthi Teike has become a top level gymnast. She has been courted by Division I schools across the nation, but has verbally committed to Michigan State University for the fall of 2009.

Mark is better known as the Rev. Mark Teike, senior minister at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Columbus. But today, he plays the role of proud father, smiling broadly as he tells the story that began in 1993. “(Debbie and I) knew that we wanted to expand our family,” he says. “We also knew that there were children who needed a home in different parts of the world.”

Working through an adoption agency in the Pacific Northwest, the Teikes settled on a little Indian girl, after receiving information on her, and seeing a videotape. “We met her at O’Hare(airport in Chicago) on a Sunday morning in May of 1994”, says Mark. “She didn’t speak a word of English, and we didn’t speak a word of Tamil(her native language).”

Today, one would find that hard to believe. Shanthi speaks fluently with no hint of an Indian accent. On this, Mark gives full credit to his wife. Debbie is a social worker by trade, but described by Mark as a “jack-of-all-trades.” After attending St. Peter’s Elementary School through the third grade, Shanthi was completely home schooled by her mother for two years, to work specifically on language skills. The home schooling continued on a partial basis through the eighth grade.

The gymnastics came much earlier, and quite by accident. Older sister Erin was a cheerleader, who couldn’t quite get the back handspring down, a staple for all cheerleaders. A neighbor suggested that she be enrolled at Wright’s gym in Southport. Shanthi tagged along. As Erin was working out, the coaches noticed her pre-school sister trying to imitate her, and a star was born. For the last twelve years, under the guidance of the Wright’s coaches, Shanthi has performed successfully at every level. There have been a lot of bumps and bruises along the way. Her first competition was at age 7 in Indianapolis. She fell off the beam, trying to get on. “I just toppled over, “she laughs. “Got on, fell off.”

Today, she is at level 10, the highest level. She had reached that by 2003 as a seventh grader. In Springfield, Massachusetts, earlier that year, she had placed third in the Level 9 nationals. Her coaches at Wright’s Gym thought she was capable of going a level up. She has stayed there for five years. The road to the top has been painful. For the last few years, Shanthi has competed on a torn ACL. She isn’t even sure how the injury happened. Mark says, “The doctors aren’t even sure how anyone could do that.”

Wright’s Gym has a history of placing top gymnasts on the national stage. Their website lists nine current gymnasts on Division I teams across the country. The Teikes shuttle their daughter to and from practice in Southport four nights a week. Practices are more than three hours long. When asked about the sacrifice required to do this, Mark talks of both Shanthi and his wife Debbie. He credits Shanthi with having the mental toughness that it takes. “She has to work hard most of her life,” he says. And when it really gets tough, Debbie gives her the extra push. “She has pushed her to do the strengthening and conditioning things that Shanthi doesn’t want to do.”

Complete stories like that of Jed Zayner, as well as other prominent athletes, can be heard weekly on Face to Face. For a free copy of the interviews, call the Face to Face office at (800) 479-0952 or email us at faceit@face-2-face.org.