Tulsa Adventist Academy hosted Gymfest 2026

For years, acrobatic teams from all over the United States, Canada, and even Puerto Rico have long gathered for an event called Acrofest on the second weekend of November to experience a college campus, learn new skills, and develop spiritually. This pattern was interrupted by the pandemic. 

During the 2021/22 school year, Larry Seery, the principal of Tulsa Adventist Academy, contacted his former coach at Southwest Adventist University (SWAU) to ask if we could host a small event with a few teams during the pandemic when everything else was on hold. Together they invited every acro team in our Union, and it was a huge success! 

Compared to the larger Acrofest event, teams were able to connect and get to know one another better because of its small size.

One team’s coach proposed that the event should alternate between the various academy campuses every year during the second semester. 

The first "Gymfest" was held at Sunnydale Adventist Academy in 2023 after this dream was conceived during the 2021–2022 academic year. It featured a group routine that all teams practiced and developed so that they could perform it together as one of the event's key highlights. Teams under various coaches, from various states, and from various schools came together as one family to exalt the name of Jesus. With over 130 athletes from four states and six different coaches, TAA successfully hosted Gymfest for the second time in February 2026. 

All of the participating athletes executed a group routine to cap off the evening. No single team is big enough to handle it alone, as it requires more than 100 athletes to perform the last move of concentric circles. This routine has only ever been performed at Gymfest.

The collaboration needed is comparable to that needed to share the good news of Jesus Christ! No church, school, camp, club, conference, or union can reach everyone who needs to be reached, speak to everyone who needs to hear, or provide assistance to everyone who needs it. We must cooperate in order to spread the love of Jesus and experience a little bit of heaven on earth!

Larry Seery – Principal, coach, servant

Tulsa Adventist Academy