Like Father, Like Son?
Two Generations Compare Notes
Justin Buzzard ’00 transferred to Westmont as a sophomore and missed bonding with his first-year classmates. So he set a goal of meeting 10 people every day to make friends and connect. “I loved Westmont and had a fantastic experience,” he says. “I found buddies I’m still tight with.”
This fall, Crusoe “Cru” Buzzard ’29, the oldest of Justin’s three sons, started his own Westmont adventure as an Augustinian Scholar. “We visited campus when I was younger, and my dad told me lots of stories — but I didn’t want to relive his college experience,” Cru says. “I was pretty set on not coming to Westmont, but I remained open-minded. Then I learned about the Augustinian program and met Russell Smelley, Westmont’s track and field coach. I’m so glad God put me here as a student-athlete.”
A fifth-generation Californian, Justin grew up in Sacramento and enrolled at Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington, to play football. But an injury and the cold climate led him to look elsewhere. “Westmont popped up on my radar,” he says. “I visited Santa Barbara for the first time and wondered why no one had ever told me about the city. I fell in love with both the college and the town.”
Justin switched majors three times, and his adviser, former history professor Shirley Mullen, asked him which classes most excited him. When he said communication studies, she replied, “Why don’t you major in that?” “That’s when I learned the power of making decisions based on desire,” he says.
Meanwhile, a call to ministry grew in him. While attending Santa Barbara Community Church and growing close to Pastor Reed Jolley ’75, he fell in love with the local church. “For the first time, I saw it as a weeklong community of believers where God shows up and transforms people,” he says. “Professors and friends told me I’d be a great pastor.”
Through contact with an alum, Justin became a youth pastor in 2002 at Saratoga Presbyterian Church, which paid for his degree from Fuller Seminary. Then Central Peninsula Church hired him to start a ministry to people in their 20s and preach. In 2011, Justin founded Garden City Church in the San Jose area, where he serves as lead pastor. “It’s been a great adventure,” he says. “Tim Keller inspired me to think about church planting, and I realized it was something I wanted to do. I wanted to be both pastoral and entrepreneurial.”
Justin’s entrepreneurial bent has rubbed off on Cru, who chose a major in economics and business emphasizing entrepreneurship. During the summer, he started a business detailing cars that he marketed on social media. He now rents the equipment to his brother to earn some passive income. Cru also founded a high school investment club to teach students to be smart with money and invest, beginning with two people and growing it to 50.
A track athlete since junior high, Cru competed in the 110 and 400 hurdles at Abraham Lincoln High School in San Jose. He started training with the Warrior track and field in September and says it’s one of his favorite things at Westmont. “Hurdles represent more of a challenge than just running,” he says. “It’s not about raw speed — I’m not naturally the fastest — so I can make up for that through training and technique.”
Justin notes changes since he graduated: new buildings, the move to NCAA Division II, cameras everywhere (making pranks more challenging) and the Augustinian Scholars program, which he finds impressive. “It elevates the life of the mind and the life of the heart,” he says. “Where else can you get that combination? I want to take all of Cru’s courses.”
He started Garden City with three people, $3,000 and faith in a really big God. “I love Silicon Valley and had a strong sense of call to serve a largely unreached population,” Justin says. “By pastoring and making disciples in this influential place, we shape a region that reaches the world. We’ve seen many people come to faith in Jesus and become leaders, and we sent 50 people to plant our first church. We’re excited to keep growing and keep planting — and about what God is doing in our church and throughout the Bay Area.”
Justin has always enjoyed writing and posts articles on JustinBuzzard.net. His book “Date Your Wife” calls men to keep dating and pursuing their wives. He also produced a study guide on John and authored “The Big Story.” Tim Keller wrote the forward for his book “Why Cities Matter.”
His next book addresses the confusion about being a man today and the huge opportunity Justin sees for men. “Having grown up with some challenges with my dad, I developed a huge heart for men — for my three sons, my friends, men in my church and the many I write for and speak to,” he says.
“I received a life-changing education and experience of community at Westmont,” Justin says. “My wife, Taylor, and I are thrilled that Cru has chosen to study here.”