Many students at Missouri Southern experience the difficulty of having to juggle their schedules.

With school, work and family it can be difficult to have a social life. Josh Depoe, junior elementary education major, is one student with a lot on his plate.

Depoe is taking 20 credit hours at two different colleges, plays basketball for Ozark Christian College, has a weekend children’s ministry, is engaged and referees intramural basketball games.

“It can get difficult trying to balance everything and everyone,” he said. “There is a lot of pressure to succeed in sports, in school, in everything.”

Depoe originally transferred to OCC after his freshmen year at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College.

The past two and a half years he has been taking classes at both OCC and Southern.

“I only planned on being at Ozark for one year, then it was on to Southwest Baptist to play basketball,” he said. “But God had other plans.”

During the summer of 2003, Depoe gained an internship in Owasso, Okla., as a children’s minister.

He said he felt God calling him in a different direction – one that would keep him at OCC and Southern.

Every Sunday, Depoe makes the two-hour trip to Owasso in attempts to help young people learn more about God.

He teaches Sunday school, leads youth worship and prepares lesson plans.

“I like to think I have had an impact on the kids in Owasso,” Depoe said. “I know they have had an impact on me.”

But school and his ministry aren’t the only things Depoe does.

He is a three-year letterman on the OCC basketball team.

This year, Depoe helped lead OCC to a 13-12 overall record, and a 7-3 mark in conference play.

“I’ve played basketball for as long as I can remember,” he said. “I can’t imagine not playing.”

Darrell Doss, head men’s basketball coach at OCC, enjoys having a player like Depoe on his team.

“Josh brings so much to the floor,” Doss said. “He has leadership qualities, a great outside game and just an uncommon knowledge for the game of basketball.”

Depoe is getting married in the summer, and he said he is looking forward to gaining some stability in his daily schedule.

“I’m getting married in July. This is my last year of playing ball, and I have one more year of school after this one,” he said. “In a way I am looking forward for things to start settling down, but at the same time I know there are certain aspects of it all that I am going to miss.”