Fall 2003 - Northwestern College

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A l u m n ie w sN o r t h w e s t e r n C l a s s i cM i n ip ro f i l eJodi Rodgers, director of the Redlands,Calif., Sylvan Learning Center, presents ateaching award to Josh Bird .by Amy ScheerA few games onN o rt h w e s t e rn s ’ campusg reen, and Josh Bird ’95knew he wanted to be ane l e m e n t a ry teacher.During his junior year,B i rd took an elementaryeducation class with pro f e s-sor Laura Heitritter, whop a i red up her students withfifth grade pen pals from alocal school. One afternoon the pen pals came to the college tovisit, and Bird enjoyed them immensely. Playing games andinteracting with the kids confirmed Bird ’s long-held suspicionthat he should become a teacher like both of his parents.Sylvan Learning Center and KNBC-TV in Los Angelesrecently aff i rmed Bird ’s choice of vocation by awarding him at rophy for being an educator who makes a diff e re n c e .Community members recommended Bird for the honor, thankfulfor his devotion to their children in his fourth grade classroomat Redlands Christian School. The school, where Bird hastaught for seven years, received the Sylvan/KNBC SpotlightSchool Aw a rd—a distinctive honor for a small Christian schoolsitting among thousands of schools in the Los Angeles basin. As h o rt commercial spot featuring Bird and his school aire dB i rd is big role model for fourth graderst h roughout the week of the award ceremony on KNBC.“I love teaching,” says Bird. “I hate taking days off. Theygive us free days, but I don’t take them. I enjoy being with thekids.” Bird also coaches the elementary soccer team, the juniorhigh boys’ basketball team, elementary softball and an intramuralprogram. He’ll play on the playground at recess just to findout about a kid’s life. He’ll take his class out for ice cream at theend of the year to watch them interact in a new setting. Andthis past year, the 6’8” Bird played Goliath in a school musical,to the cheers of the young crowd.A strong supporter of Christian education and its mission,B i rd grew up attending Christian schools in Hull, Iowa, beforee n rolling at NWC. “People in the education department re a l l yi n s p i red me to teach,” he says of Nort h w e s t e rn, complimentingp rofessors Heitritter, Ed Starkenburg and Ron Juffer (who Birdcalls “a great role model”). “To this day, I still think of thingsthey taught me.”Summers find Bird tutoring at his house and at Sylvan. Heand his wife, Jamie, also make time to enjoy life on the We s tCoast, designating their summer Fridays as “Beach Days.”During the school year, Jamie is an active presence in her husba n d ’s classroom, appearing regularly to play games or getinvolved in activities.For Bird, the trophy from Sylvan and KNBC is impre s s i v ebut unnecessary—teaching is its own prize. “It’s very re w a rd i n gbecause I have the opportunity to work with kids e v e ry day. ”Alumni - What’s New with Yo u ?Let us know so we can tell your friends and classmates. Send to: Office of PublicRelations, Nort h w e s t e rn College, 101 7th St. SW, Orange City, IA 51041. Or e-mail tobeeson@nwciowa.edu; fax number is 712-707-7370. Deadline for the Winter C l a s s i ci sOct. 24.Name _________________________________________________________________A d d ress ________________________________________________________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Home Phone ________________________________________ Class of ____________E-Mail ________________________________________________________________’ 3 7The Rev. Lloyd De Jong re c e n t l yreceived the Paul Harris FellowshipAw a rd from the Rotary Club ofFond du Lac, Wi s .’47A new film highlighting the lifelongm i n i s t ry of Ken Jacobs and his wife,Elaine, was pre m i e red on campusand at Orange City’s Dover Av e n u eAlliance Church in late June. T h eRight Thing tells of the Jacobs’ 50years of service with Wy c l i fe BibleTranslators and the Chamula peopleof southern Mexico. The movie wasc o o rdinated by Barry Lawre n s e n ,N o rt h w e s t e rn s ’ director of AV andthe Learning Resource Center, with2 4 ▲ 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 sP r a y e c ro rn e rThe Rev. HarlanVa n O o rt ’82C h a p l a i nassistance by Paul Lubbers ’70 andSarah Yoder ’02. Tim Poppen ’76n a rrated the film.Scholars pray. Nort h w e s t e rn College is adistinctively Christian educational institution,dedicated to the life of the mind. It isbold to assert that the teacher is Godt h rough the reign of Jesus by the power ofthe Spirit. There is a connection betweenl e a rning and praying.Simone Weil, the brilliant German mysticf rom a few decades ago, uses the word“attention” to get a handle on the task ofstudying. In her book Waiting for God, sheexplains that to learn anything, one mustpay attention. Because prayer is deep attentionto God, it becomes the beginning for learning in twoways. First, it puts us initially in touch with the One whoowns everything we learn. Second, prayer induces humility tomake us teachable.The author of Psalm 71 understood this connection: “OGod, from my youth you have taught me, and I still pro c l a i myour wonderful deeds. So even to old age and gray hairs, OGod, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to all thegenerations to come.” The psalmist seems to be saying thre ethings about education: First, it is connected to faith. Second,it is lifelong. Third, teaching is mostly proclaiming what Godhas done.N o rt h w e s t e rn College connects learning and prayer, payingattention to God, alert to the reign of Christ in the world,listening to the Holy Spirit. When a college lives by prayer, asN o rt h w e s t e rn does, scholarship forms the lines of a prayer.Those who study and serve at NWC, with attention to God,a re learning to pray.Scholars who are not at Nort h w e s t e rn are asked to prayfor those who are. Together with Christ’s disciples in Luke11:1, let us say, “Lord, teach us to pray.”’ 4 9B e rnie Nibbelink, Sioux Center, andhis wife, Hazel (Sprik ’52), will celebratetheir 50th wedding anniversa ry in October. They are among sixcouples of the Sprik family whoheld a family reunion in PrairieVi e w, Kan., this summer. All sixcouples have been married for atleast 50 years. Included in the gatheringwere Alvina (Sprik) andC o rnie Keunen ’48, ’50 of OrangeCity and Leona and Stanley Sprik’50 of Wo rthington, Minn. Both ofthose couples have been married 52y e a r s .’ 5 4C a rol (Onken) Spiering, Biloxi,Miss., has been a widow since1995. She has a daughter in LittleRock, Ark.; a son in Pass Christian,Miss.; and three grandchildre n .’ 6 5Dean Reevert s, Colchester, Ill., iss e rving as pastor at BlandinsvilleFirst Baptist Church. His daughtergraduated as student of the yearand valedictorian of her high schoolclass, and is a freshman at HopeCollege this fall.’ 6 6C l a rence Kry g s h e l dis retiring fro mthe Chicago Public Schools on Oct.31 as the assistant principal of theRay Graham Training Center, whichs e rves severe to profoundly cognitivelydisabled students from ages15-21. In his 36 years in education,C l a rence taught regular classes andspecial education, coached numeroussports, served as a counselor atthe elementary and high school levels,and worked in various administrativecapacities.’ 6 9Ron Van Berkum re t i red from teachingin June. He taught two years atSioux Center and spent the last 32years teaching junior high socialstudies and 10th grade world historyand coaching junior high sport sat English Valleys School District inN o rth English, Iowa. He and hiswife, Kathy, have three childre n :Matt, Chrissy and Joni.’ 7 0Junko Nagao, Tokyo, Japan, ise n rolled in Nort h w e s t e rn s ’ one-yearEnglish as a second language programto brush up on her English.The Rev. David Schutt, pastor ofChrist Community Church inC a rmichael, Calif., is serving as pre s-ident of the Reformed Church inA m e r i c a s ’ General Synod for 2003-04. He was vice president last y e a r.’ 7 5The Rev. Dr. Tom Smith and his wife,Peg (Hofmeyer), have moved toRock Va l l e y, Iowa, after 17 years inBloomington, Minn. Tom is ministerof church life at Faith Reform e dC h u rch, and Peg is the secre t a ry forthe superintendent of the Boyden-Hull School District.The Rev. Paul We rn l u n d, Bro w nD e e r, Wis., was appointed chairm a nof the mission committee for theRegional Synod of Mid-America inJ u n e .The Rev. Bruce Wi l t e rd i n kis serv i n gas minister under contract at ElimR e f o rmed Church in Kings, Ill. He’salso doing outreach ministries innearby Davis Junction.’ 7 9D r. Timothy We s t c o t thas beennamed interim dean of underg r a d u-ate studies at Park University inParkville, Mo. He is an assistantp rofessor of history.’ 8 0D r. Rhonda Pennings is the newdean of arts and sciences/businessand health at Northwest IowaCommunity College (NCC) inSheldon. She taught communicationsat NCC for the past 11 years.’ 8 2Rebecca (Vander Laan) Koster,M o rrison, Ill., taught an English asa second language course atBlackhawk Community College inMoline this summer. She is teachingF rench part time in Geneseo thisf a l l .’84D r. James Kennedy is a professor inm o d e rn history at Free Universityin Amsterdam, the Netherlands.’ 8 7Laura (De Geest) Magg received herm a s t e r ’s degree in education fro mDoane College in May. She teachesfifth grade at West Park ElementarySchool in Columbus, Neb.Te rry Meier, Lincoln, Neb., is dire c-tor of community development forthe Southeast NebraskaDevelopment District. His wife,2 5 ▲ F a l l 2 0 0 3
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Fall 2003 - Northwestern College

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