Fall 2003 - Northwestern College

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R o a dr a l l yN o r t h w e s t e r n C l a s s i cPedal PowerN o rt h w e s t n e rRDs bike across countryby Brian GundersonWest Hall RDWhile you’re ponderingwhat you might do on yourvacation, do you ever think,“I’m going to bike across theUnited States?” If you think afamily outing to GlacierNational Park or perhaps atrip to Disney World is moresuited for you, you’re in them a j o r i t y.But for Jon Cavanagh,Marlon Haverdink ’97 andme, it only seemed right thatt h ree out-of-shape men nearingmiddle age shouldembark on such a journ e y. Soon May 19, we set out fro mF l o rence, Ore., with all theexcitement and trepidation oft h ree freshmen making theirway cro s s - c o u n t ry to begintheir college experiences. Ofcourse, that analogy fails toinclude the fact that mostrecent high school graduateswould be making any suchtrip in a car—with ane n g i n e—and air conditioning.Traveling 3,000 mileswith nothing supporting themajority of your body weightexcept a half-inch of foam ona seat four inches wide can beh a z a rdous. Not many sign upfor such a task, but if youhappen to try it, remember tostand up every so often whilepedaling. Besides the saddled i s c o m f o rt, the majority ofthe ride went fairly smoothly—nomajor mishaps, anywa y. From the Oregon mountainsthrough the Gre a tDivide, across the plains andPennsylvania hills to the EastCoast beaches of Rehoboth,Del., we traversed this gre a tnation and gained memorableexperiences with every milec o m p l e t e d .Our two greatest challengeswere the mountainsand the wind. Which do Ihate more? I look at it from aphilosophical point of view:The mountains have been onthis earth since before Godb reathed life into humanki n d ’s lungs. I respect thatand have little pro b l e mattempting to climb these oldp a t r i a rchs of the earth.The wind, however, is ad i ff e rent story. It is as fickle asit is two-faced. One day it isour best friend, and we praiseit for pushing us along. Thenext day it slaps us in theface, bracing against us, slowingus and aggravating us aswe look forw a rd to another100 miles against our neuro t-ic foe. Even now, as I writethis, my legs burn in memoryof wind-caused lactic acidosis.The wind will always bemy most painful memory ofthis trip.If the ride itself wasexhilarating yet painful, thepeople we met were nothings h o rt of amazing. WhetherN o rt h w e s t e rn alumni andfriends, family members orcomplete strangers, the serva n t - h e a rted hosts wee n c o u n t e red opened theirhomes to us, fed us until wew e re uncomfortably full andmade sure we had adequateplaces to rest our weary bodies.I hope many of our hostsa re reading this now, becausewe want to thank you againfor your outstanding hospitalit y. People asked us, “Whatwas the best part of yourcoast-to-coast ride?” Alwaysthe same answer: “The people.”It was probably the onlything we could always agre eon after spending six weeksalmost exclusively together.Marlon said before wes t a rted that he wanted this tobe a capstone experience forthe three of us, havingworked together asN o rt h w e s t e rn resident dire c-tors for the past two years.Now that Jon and Marlonhave moved on to graduateschool and away from NWC,I think we all agree that thist ruly was a grand finale to ag reat working friendship.Resident directors (left to right) Jon Cavanagh, Brian Gunderson and Marlon Haverdink celebrate the end of their coast-tocoastride in Delaware .2 2 ▲ F a l l 2 0 0 3
N o r t h w e s t e r n C l a s s i cA l u m n ie w sA l u m n c io rn e rK a ren Woudstra’79, Director ofAlumni and Pare n tR e l a t i o n sI love to hear a good story, especially if itmakes me laugh or touches me emotionally.When I was a kinderg a rten teacher, storytellingwas one of my favorite activities. Now,in my new role, the stories are diff e re n t — b u tI enjoy them just as much.At the Council for Christian Colleges andUniversities alumni conference I attended inJuly at Wheaton College, I was challenged toreally listen to alumni stories. Hearing aboutwhat you are doing with your careers, in yourc h u rches and communities, and with yourfamilies is an important part of my job formany reasons. First, it broadens my view of God and Hisworld as I hear about the many places and positions God hasput you in since leaving Nort h w e s t e rn. Second, your storieschallenge others and me in our faith as you share what Godhas done in and through you. Third, your stories, which tellhow God is using your gifts and talents to serve in hisKingdom, validate Nort h w e s t e rn ’s mission to all who work atNWC or support the college. Stories from alumni need to bes h a red as witness to God’s presence in our lives.When you send updates of new jobs, moves, marr i a g e s ,b i rths, etc., to the college, you probably simply want to keepNWC and your classmates updated. That’s wonderful, becausewe do need your new information so we can keep you knowledgeableabout what’s happening at Nort h w e s t e rn or to sendout Homecoming and reunion information. But I want toinvite you also, if you have the time, to write a brief story ornote when you send your information updates. You need toknow that by sharing your story, you just might be an encouragementto others.A re you doing Kingdom work that would challenge orencourage others? Do you know someone else you coulds h a re about? Has God worked in a miraculous way in yourlife or is He challenging you in some way? Sometimes weinclude these stories in the C l a s s i cor other publications;always we celebrate, thank God and praise Him for what He’sdoing.S t o rytelling is a great gift that passes down somethingi m p o rtant for us to remember from one generation to another.D o n ’t stop telling your story, whether it’s a note or e-mail tome or to someone who needs to hear how God is working.Real stories from real people are truly inspirational and a wayto witness and bring glory to Christ.To update your information and/or to share a story, visitw w w. n w c i o w a . e d u / a l u m n i / e m a i l / a d d rf o rm . a s p .D e a t h sFrances (Brink ’40, ’41) Bloemendaal,age 80, died June 14 at a nursinghome in Remsen, Iowa, of complicationsfrom Alzheimer’s disease.She assisted her husband,L a w rence, in the operation of theBloemendaal Hatchery in Alton andwas a homemaker. Surv i v o r sinclude her husband and three children, including daughters N o r aReekers ’71 and Nita Savage ’78.Reynold Van Gelder ’41, age 80, diedJuly 13 at the Orange CityMunicipal Hospital Long-Te rm CareF a c i l i t y. After his time atN o rt h w e s t e rn, he graduated fro mthe University of Alaska and attendedSioux City’s National BusinessTraining School. He served in theA rmy from 1943-46. He farmed for15 years near Alton, was part ownerof a Ford agency for eight years, andthen became a realtor and auctionee r. Reynold was a member of theAlton Reformed Church, where hes e rved on the consistory, taughtSunday school, and sang in choirsand small groups. He served on theb o a rds of the Newkirk ConsolidatedSchool, Sioux County Board ofEducation, Northwest IowaCommunity College and AltonCommunity Bank. He is survived byhis wife, Eleanor; three sons; twosisters, Elizabeth Brown ’48 and A n nVande We e rd ’52; and a bro t h e r,Gerben ’64.Anna Marie (Geurink ’42, ’44)K o l b e rg, age 77, died Aug. 5 at ac a re center in Yankton, S.D. Sheworked as a secre t a ry atN o rt h w e s t e rn and later as a bookkeeperat Great American InsuranceCo. in Chicago. She married RobertK o l b e rg in 1956 and moved to af a rm near Gayville, S.D. She was amember of the Gayville LutheranC h u rch, American Legion Auxiliaryand Gayville Garden Club.S u rvivors include her husband; twodaughters; a son; and a sister,Henrietta Slobe ’50.R o b e rt Mouw ’54, Albany, Ohio,died May 23 at the age of 68. AnAir Force pilot, he re t i red as a majorafter 21 years of service that includedterms in the Vietnam War and inLibya, Spain, Turkey and Gre e c e .He earned degrees in aero n a u t i c a land mechanical engineering fro mthe Air Force Institute ofTechnology and in education fro mthe University of Houston, Vi c t o r i a .He taught advanced math andphysics at the high school level for15 years in Port Lavaca, Texas, andspent the last 10 years farming inOhio. Bob was a member of AlbanyBaptist Church. Among his survivorsare his wife, Evonne; a son;and a daughter.J e remy Davenport ’05, age 20,Granville, Iowa, died July 29 ofinjuries he received in an automobileaccident near Hospers. He wasa business administration/managementmajor. Among his surv i v o r sa re his parents, Paul and Caro l y n ;and a bro t h e r.Megan Queitzsch ’06, age 19,M e l rose, Wis., died as the result of af a rming accident in Irving, Wi s . ,June 20. An agri-business major, sheis survived by her parents, Yv o n n eWe i h rouch and Leonard Queitzsch;two sisters; and a bro t h e r.F reeman DeGro o t, Bozeman, Mont.,who worked in the maintenanced e p a rtment from 1975-89, died onJune 4 at the age of 75 after alengthy battle with Parkinson’s Plus.He served in the Marines duringWorld War II, attended FinleyEngineering College in Kansas City,Mo., and worked as an electricianand HVAC technician in OrangeC i t y. Survivors include his wife,Nancy; two sons, including Tad ’84;a daughter, Thea ’89; and twob rothers, including S t e w a rt ’40.2 3 ▲ F a l l 2 0 0 3
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