At a retirement reception in December, Yoder鈥檚 long service and insightful guidance were honored by many in attendance, as well as by Huxman, who offered a warm parting tribute.

鈥淭wila trained three presidents,鈥� Huxman told the gathered crowd in the Campus Center, which fittingly included some other beneficiaries of Yoder鈥檚 gentle tutelage.

Yoder has actually worked with six men and women who occupied , some for many years and others for interim terms.

Beginning in June 1999, she worked with Joseph Lapp (1987-2003), then Loren Swartzendruber (2003-2016), and since January, Huxman.

Additionally, however, three interim presidents kept the business of the university moving forward: Beryl Brubaker (May-December 2003); Fred Kniss (May-August 2013 for Swartzendruber鈥檚 sabbatical), and Lee Snyder (July-December 2016).

With all of these presidents, interim and permanent, Yoder enabled smooth functioning at the highest levels of the university. Among her duties, she 鈥�schedules all of the president鈥檚 meetings; serves as corporate secretary to the Board of Trustees; aids in the development of numerous administrative documents, such as board policy manuals; and serves as a representative of the president鈥檚 office on numerous committees including the crisis management preparedness team and the facilities task force, among other duties,鈥� according to an October 2015 Weather Vane profile.

Over the years, Yoder equipped her office on the third floor of the Campus Center with symbolic reminders of positive operating procedures in the 鈥減ressure cooker, roller coaster world of the university president,鈥� Huxman said, referencing Yoder’s 鈥淭op Ten List鈥� of how to deal with disgruntled callers and two stones marked strength and joy.

Yoder occupied her role with 鈥減urpose, positivity, patience and perspicuity,鈥� Huxman said, elaborating on this last word by praising her colleague鈥檚 ability to 鈥渟ee clearly, deeply, reverently … with insight.鈥�

From anticipating sensitivities of various campus constituencies to holding confidentiality on a range of subjects to informing the community of births and deaths, 鈥淭wila has put her master鈥檚 degree from our seminary to very good use,鈥� Huxman said.

Yoder is a 1998 graduate of Eastern Mennonite Seminary. She and her husband聽Steve Yoder 鈥�78, SEM 鈥�98 have four adult children, three of whom graduated from EMU.

In a recent interview, Yoder shared that she looks forward to time with family聽and another 鈥渃hapter鈥� of meaningful work.

鈥淚t has been an incredible blessing to serve an institution I love in a role that has been so life-giving for me. I will miss all the people that give life to this incredible place,鈥� she said.

welcomed students, faculty, staff and guests with a summary of the summer鈥檚 events on the national, denominational and local levels, situating these events as sources of fear, unrest and anxiety, as well as of grace and hope.

鈥淥ur aspiration is to be a university community that embodies these signs of hope, nurtures their development, and provides an alternative to the fear, ignorance and violence that drives so much of human society,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e aspire to be an engaged community of learning that is bound together by love聽鈥� the love of learning, the love for God as revealed in Jesus Christ, and a love for each other.鈥�

President , who will after 13 years at EMU, gave his final convocation speech, sharing his dreams for the future: 鈥淭hese are the dreams I have for you and my grandchildren: to serve as co-creators with God for a more sustainable world in which all God鈥檚 people can flourish, to be sustained by a faith that is grounded in hope not fear, and to be energized by an insatiable thirst for discovery and knowledge, not for ourselves but for the good of the world.鈥�

He pointed to tangible actualizations of sustainability on the campus itself that he could already share with his

grandchildren: the recently revived by the student-run Sustainable Food Initiative, a new set to begin this fall, and the .

And in speaking to all in the community who mentor and support each other, Swartzendruber observed that too often Christians fall into argument or dissent, and are not exemplars of Jesus鈥� commandments: 鈥渓ove God with heart, soul, mind and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves.鈥�

In a fitting intergenerational tribute, Swartzendruber was introduced by Student Government Association co-presidents Hanna Heishman and Rachel Schrock, and then promptly turned to introductions of honored guests and members of the EMU community.

Those present included former presidents and ; and , former interim president, as well as Shirley Showalter, former president of Goshen College, and Laban Peachey, former president of Hesston College who was also a professor and dean at EMU.

The event concluded with a sending of the China cross-cultural group and the traditional 鈥淪henandoah Welcome,鈥� during which the campus community forms two rows and new students walk between the clapping crowd to the sounds of traditional bluegrass music.

Frederick is currently library director at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois, a post she has held since 2006. Before that she was director of library services for eight years at The King鈥檚 University College in Edmonton, Alberta. And previous to that, she was director of library and information services for five years at the Institute for Christian Studies, a graduate school in Toronto.

In addition to her library work over the years, Frederick served on university committees on environmental sustainability, racial/ethnic diversity, gender equality and spiritual formation. She has taught several courses over the years, including 鈥淭ruth and Falsehood in the Marketplace of Ideas,鈥� centering on information seeking and retrieval.

While in Illinois, Frederick has been active at Community Mennonite Church in Markham. She preaches about once a month and was approved by Illinois Mennonite Conference as a supply preacher. She is currently finishing a three-year non-degree program at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Indiana.

鈥淭he search committee was impressed both by her vision for the role of a library in an Anabaptist institution of higher learning and by her breadth of experience in library directorship,鈥� said EMU Provost Fred Kniss.

鈥淚鈥檓 a librarian because I love bringing people together to create community around ideas, gathering and sharing resources to nurture deep reflection,鈥� said Frederick. 鈥淢y calling as a library director is to bring a deep focus on institutional mission into ongoing conversations about that community鈥檚 information needs.鈥�

A 1982 graduate of Beloit College in Wisconsin, Frederick went on to earn three master鈥檚 degrees 鈥� a master鈥檚 of library science and an M.A. in American history from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and a master鈥檚 of philosophy from the Institute of Christian Studies in Toronto.

Frederick will come to EMU with her husband, Paul Cook, a studio artist, and her 11-year-old daughter, Jocelyn Cook.

She will oversee a staff of seven as well as numerous student assistants. The three-story , which includes the , is located near the center of EMU鈥檚 campus. It was built in 1971 after a student-led fund drive pushed the project over the finish line for a federal matching grant. The student effort attracted national media attention.

Brubaker, who has directed Hartzler Library for six years on what was initially a 鈥渢emporary鈥� basis, is finally retiring after a life-long career at EMU. Starting as a nursing instructor, she later chaired the nursing department, became vice president for enrollment management, was selected as the school鈥檚 first provost and even served as interim president.

Rutt initially earned $1.85 per hour as a trainee in underwriting. Three years later 鈥� at age 25 鈥� he was named head of the automobile underwriting department, succeeding his mentor, a pastor who was transitioning to full-time ministry work.

Suddenly, Rutt was managing a department of about a dozen people, developing underwriting procedures for no-fault automobile insurance. 鈥淭he job of an underwriter is to find people you don鈥檛 want to cover with insurance and to exclude them,鈥� he now says wryly, by way of explaining why he decided not to make a career out of the position as his predecessor had done.

Goodville did, however, expose him to the workings and possibilities of computers 鈥� the company had an IBM mainframe that processed data that Rutt鈥檚 underwriters needed.

Next life stage: one of six owners and president of an office supply and furniture business. Through the 1980s, this new company, The Office Works, added a personal computers sales division and grew to have seven retail outlets in Pennsylvania and North Carolina.

Rutt found himself writing the software code that his company needed for inventory control, accounts receivable, and service-work orders. He worked on a mini-computer that was one of the first to challenge the dominance of IBM mainframe computers for small businesses.

Ironically, the only class Rutt had ever dropped at EMU was Fortran taught by聽Joe Mast, because the challenging class didn鈥檛 seem worth it when Rutt already had a full courseload. As a result, Rutt had to learn about computer technology the hard way 鈥� on the job.

Rutt and his partners sold their computer division to a national chain in 1990. Almost immediately, Rutt was recruited to be systems manager for a health maintenance organization affiliated with Blue Shield of Pennsylvania. There he supervised a small group of employees responsible for keeping three high-availability, multi-million dollar computer systems running. There, too, he earned the highest annual income of his lifetime.

That work continued until聽Beryl Brubaker, then vice-president of enrollment at EMU, contacted him to consider the role of information systems director at EMU, where Rutt鈥檚 two children were then undergrads. Feeling called, Rutt took a substantial pay cut to come to a place in December 1999 where stability was needed 鈥� he would be the third IS director in as many years.

The changes in EMU鈥檚 information systems since 1999 have been extensive. Computer technology now claims about 5% of EMU鈥檚 total budget. Key markers: the staff nearly doubled in size under Rutt鈥檚 leadership; about every seven years, the core networking infrastructure has been replaced; its student information system was converted in 2007-09 to a new operating platform.

In May 2014, Rutt handed over his departmental leadership to someone he had trained,聽Ben Beachy 鈥�02聽and stepped into a pre-retirement role of doing project management and communications facilitation for EMU鈥檚 building renovations.

Rutt is married to聽Gloria Short Rutt聽鈥�72, a schoolteacher for much of their married life. Their children are聽Eric Rutt 鈥�01听补苍诲听Megan Rutt Rosenwink 鈥�02.

Retiring librarian is 鈥減roudest鈥� (her word) of the many researchers she has helped in her 45 years at the historical library. In addition, she has cataloged thousands of books, including many rare and foreign titles. With a masters degree from Harvard University and a second masters from Catholic University in rare book librarianship, Bowman is EMU鈥檚 longest serving faculty and staff member, beginning in 1962.

鈥淥ne of the jewels of EMU鈥檚 crown is the Menno Simons Historical Library which Lois has helped to create,鈥� , director of the Sadie Hartzler Library,聽said at a retirement reception for Bowman on June 11. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a jewel not only because of the materials Lois and others have collected but also because of the in-depth knowledge and interest of its staff. Ask her anything about Mennonites or related groups or about genealogy or the Shenandoah Valley, and Lois will shower you with information. She enjoys talking with visitors. She鈥檒l proudly show you the rare book collection too, a collection that is second to none on the East coast.鈥�

Looking ahead to her retirement, Bowman says of her library work, 鈥淚 don’t expect to miss any of it, because I plan to continue as a volunteer, doing the work I enjoy most.聽The rest I won’t miss!鈥�

Her successor Simone Horst is a 2012 graduate of EMU. This May she completed a master of library and information science from the University of South Carolina. She is co-director of EMU鈥檚 digital conversion project and since 2008 has worked as an assistant in EMU鈥檚 archives.

The university鈥檚 2017 centennial 鈥渉as placed a well-deserved spotlight on our special collections,鈥� says Horst. 鈥淗opefully it will allow us to share the many hidden gems we have with a broader audience.鈥� Sociologist Donald Kraybill, , is using the EMU archives as a primary source of university history.

Equally at home among rare old books or fresh digital scans, Horst is excited about the opportunities to extend the reach and utility of the historical library.

鈥淭he library staff has worked since about 2011 on a project to digitize items from EMU’s special collections and make them available online,鈥� says Horst. 鈥淚t’s been a learning process for everyone, but it has been exciting to see the fruits of our labor in the recent months! We have teamed up with information systems and other departments on campus to ensure that our digitized materials are maintained for the long-term and made easily available now for those who want to use them. The digitization of library and archival materials is something I am very passionate about. Digital collections offer many new opportunities for libraries and library users.鈥�

A link to EMU鈥檚 digital collection (publications such as early Weather Vanes, the Bulletin and student handbooks) is at or at the .

Then moderator of the Virginia Mennonite Conference, Mumaw convened a committee to explore alternatives to institutionalization at places like the Lynchburg State Colony, standard practice at that time for families who were unable to support a member with an intellectual disability. This work culminated in 1971, when six adults with intellectual disabilities moved to Pleasant View, a house the conference purchased between Broadway and Timberville, where they received care and support from the Miller family living with them.

Mumaw has been regarded ever since as Pleasant View鈥檚 鈥渇ounding father,鈥� according to its executive director, Nancy Hopkins-Garriss. (Providing non-institutional, home-like care to people in the community was also an emphasis of Mumaw鈥檚 some years later when he led a strategic planning process for the Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community. Long-time EMU administrator Beryl Brubaker joined the board right after she arrived to teach nursing at EMC in the summer of 1970. She served on the board until 1992 in various roles as secretary, vice president and chair of the Strategic Development Committee.)

Today, Pleasant View offers numerous programs at 11 locations, including nine group homes, a nursing facility for residents with certain medical needs, in-home care, day support services and employment programs to help the people it serves find jobs or volunteer opportunities. It serves more than 100 people in its residential programs and about 125 in various day support programs, and employs around 200 people, including Dave Gullman, a 1991 seminary student, its pastor, and Heather Newland Corbin 鈥�98, director of social services.

The organization also serves as a resource for family members of an adult with an intellectual disability, helping them to navigate the complicated social services and disability systems, said Hopkins-Garriss.

More than half of the current members of Pleasant View鈥檚 board of directors are EMU alumni or staff, including Dave Yutzy 鈥�82, Donnie Dillon 鈥�11, Ann Yoder, class of 鈥�61, Maynard Weaver, class of 鈥�75, Elroy Miller, director of EMU鈥檚 department of applied social sciences, and EMU associate professor of organizational studies David Brubaker.

Hopkins-Garris said that creating meaningful roles close to home for adults with intellectual disabilities enriches the entire community in both practical ways 鈥� those in Pleasant View鈥檚 programs serve countless volunteer hours with local organizations, for example 鈥� and philosophical ones.

鈥淥ne of the big gifts our people give us is [helping us] recognize our own weaknesses and strengths, and that鈥檚 lost for the whole community when people [with disabilities] are sent away from home,鈥� she said.

鈥� Andrew Jenner 鈥�04

Sentara RMH Medical Center and its affiliated offices of healthcare providers, plus a plethora of private offices offering medical, rehabilitation and wellness services, employ the vast majority of our alumni. This community-themed Crossroads did not contain sufficient space to do in-depth coverage on the vast array of our alumni in local healthcare, so we chose to focus on their work at the heart of some unique healthcare services for often-marginalized people 鈥� the kinds of services that might not be readily found in other communities.

HEALTHCARE FOR THE HOMELESS

As its name suggests, all the necessaries for Harrisonburg鈥檚 Healthcare for the Homeless Suitcase Clinic fit in a suitcase toted from place to place by the clinic鈥檚 volunteer nurse practitioner on weekly rounds of the city鈥檚 homeless shelters. At each one, the nurse practitioners offer free, on-site medical care to some of the neediest patients in a city population that ranks among the neediest in the state.

(The most recent figures from the U.S. Census Bureau put Harrisonburg鈥檚 poverty rate at 31.8%, nearly three times the statewide rate. Nearly one in five people below 64 years old in a several-county area that includes Harrisonburg lack health insurance, also according to the census bureau.)

This suitcase clinic traces its history back several years to when the director of a local homeless shelter called a meeting of health workers to talk about how to handle what they expected to be a bad flu season. Tammy Kiser 鈥�88, assistant professor of nursing, took a few students from her community health class to that meeting. Soon thereafter, a group of those students began visiting the shelter to provide foot care to some of the men staying at the shelter, and the idea snowballed. Soon, Kiser and like-minded people at James Madison University and other local agencies began talking about how they could give more comprehensive care to the city鈥檚 homeless.

When the Healthcare for the Homeless Suitcase Clinic officially began in the summer of 2011, Kiser and others guessed they鈥檇 be seeing 50 to 80 patients per year. Instead, they saw 130. The following year, that total jumped to 245 individuals, and current year-to-date figures are on pace to remain at that level. Everything is free for the patients; the clinic鈥檚 shoestring budget has been funded by a combination of grants, church donations, private support and fundraisers. It has one paid staff member, a case manager who oversees the work of several volunteers.

鈥淭his is genuine. It鈥檚 grassroots,鈥� says Kiser. 鈥淸The clinic] is a good fit with the whole philosophy of the EMU nursing department. It鈥檚 providing quality care to people whatever their situation is.鈥�

But a suitcase can only fit so much, and some patients have needs beyond the clinic鈥檚 modest capabilities. When such an instance arises, staff refer them to several other providers 鈥� and hand them a bus ticket to get there 鈥� that also do their best to care for the many people in Harrisonburg who would otherwise slip through the cracks. These other agencies include the Harrisonburg Rockingham Free Clinic, the Harrisonburg Community Health Center and the local Virginia Department of Health office, all of which also have strong ties to EMU. Overviews of the work of alumni at each of these organizations follow.

鈥淲e emphasize that it鈥檚 an honor as a nurse to be able to care for people who are in vulnerable situations,鈥� says Kate Clark 鈥�07, an instructor in the nursing department. 鈥淭hat mentality makes our graduates more inclined to work with vulnerable or low-income people on a level that I don鈥檛 know a lot of other programs do.鈥�

HARRISONBURG COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER

The Harrisonburg Community Health Center (HCHC) saw its first patient in 2008, opening as a federally qualified health center with a federal grant. A lack of providers in the area, particularly pediatricians, who accepted Medicaid was one of the major factors in its grant award. David Cockley, an adjunct professor in the nursing and MBA programs (as well as a professor in James Madison University鈥檚 health sciences program), was among the group that applied for the founding grants and remains on HCHC鈥檚 board today.

HCHC, which employed just one physician at the beginning, has seen its patient base expand rapidly. In 2011, it saw about 5,600 patients, in 2012 saw about 6,900 patients and in 2013, more than 7,400. A total of seven pediatric and adult providers 鈥� a mix of doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants 鈥� now work at the health center. Because a significant number of the center鈥檚 patients are non-English speakers, one full-time and two part-time Spanish interpreters work for the HCHC, and most of the center鈥檚 nursing staff are bilingual in English and Spanish. The center also employs a part-time Arabic interpreter.

Although it receives federal grants to provide healthcare to 鈥渦nderserved communities and vulnerable populations,鈥� the community health center has a broader mission.

鈥淎s a federally qualified community health center, HCHC is committed to serving as a medical home for all members of our diverse community,鈥� says HCHC director of nursing Christine Reimer Wagler 鈥�08. 鈥淧roviding comprehensive, excellent quality care, with the patient at the center of our practice, is the heart of our mission.鈥�

The center offers sliding scale fees to patients without insurance or ability to pay for their care, and it also accepts 鈥� and welcomes 鈥� all major insurances.

In 2011, HCHC partnered with EMU to launch a Community Health Worker program. Clark, the EMU nursing instructor, was then working part-time at HCHC and helped found the program (she is also David Cockley鈥檚 daughter). Jointly administered by EMU and HCHC, the program employed four women to educate and support high-needs patients by visiting them at home. That year, HCHC also became the parent organization for the Healthcare for the Homeless Suitcase Clinic described earlier. (The homeless clinic has since spun off as its own outfit, and the grant that funded the Community Health Worker program has expired.)

The next year, HCHC opened a satellite office at the Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community that, like the main office on the east side of town, is open to the entire community.

Wagler notes that EMU鈥檚 emphasis on peace and justice also have direct tie-ins to healthcare.

鈥淗ealthcare is a justice issue,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here is no bigger issue, in my mind, than ensuring that every single person has meaningful access to quality care if they want it.

鈥淲orking in healthcare is not for the weary,鈥� she continues. 鈥淣avigating the brokenness within the various systems can be exhausting at times. Yet amidst all of this, there is change, which creates movement. It鈥檚 an exciting time.鈥�

Wagler finds hope in there being so many others here in Harrisonburg doing their own bit to untangle one of our society鈥檚 most difficult problems.

THE FREE CLINIC

Nearly 1,000 patients per year come through the doors of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Free Clinic in downtown Harrisonburg. To qualify for services there, a person has to have an income at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty limit, be an authorized resident of Harrisonburg or Rockingham County, and have no health insurance.

The clinic focuses on treatment and management of chronic health problems; nearly two-thirds of its patients have been diagnosed with three or more chronic diseases, says executive director Keith Gnagey 鈥�76.

With just two full-time staff 鈥� Gnagey and an office manager 鈥� and 12 part-time employees, the clinic relies almost entirely on several hundred volunteers, who see patients, run lab tests, work the pharmacy and fill pretty much every other role there. The fact that volunteers perform the most skilled and fundamental roles at the Free Clinic distinguishes it from many other nonprofits.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just putting on stamps and folding mailings. It鈥檚 about getting healthcare out the door,鈥� says Gnagey.

Among the doctors who volunteer at the clinic are Wes Ross 鈥�74, who sees patients there once per week and also serves as its medical director (a position that entails things like chart reviews and signing off on lab reports) and Don Martin, class of 鈥�79, a rheumatologist who sees patients at the clinic once a month.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no way in our lifetime that all the inequities in our society are going to be resolved, but those of us who have opportunity to work on that should,鈥� says Martin. 鈥淲e can鈥檛, as individuals, solve some of our bigger problems, but we can certainly try to address some of these things that are in our own back yard.鈥�

Internist Richard Stoltzfus 鈥�59, who used to treat coal miners in Harlan County, Ky., before he officially retired, sees patients once a week, working alongside his wife Elaine Stoltzfus, who is a health educator. (Elaine spent 1961-62 studying at EMU鈥檚 seminary.)

Clinical services director Janice Good Gandy 鈥�87 said the rewards of working at the clinic include knowing that 鈥測ou鈥檙e really helping a very needy population, and you can really see it make a difference in their lives.鈥�

In her current role, Gandy manages the schedules of the volunteer doctors and nurse practitioners; before taking the part-time job at the clinic, she volunteered there and also taught at EMU.

The biggest challenge at the Free Clinic from a healthcare standpoint, Gandy says, is the fact that patients face so many economic and social barriers to maintaining healthy lifestyles.

鈥淲e just have to do so much education. Sometimes it鈥檚 like we do all we can, and we just hit the wall,鈥� says Gandy, who often draws on lessons about holistic well-being, and viewing specific health problems in relation to other life circumstances, that she first learned at EMU.

Funding presents the clinic with another significant challenge. As the large majority of its budget comes in donations from people, businesses, churches and other organizations in the community, revenues took a significant hit after the 2008 recession. A 鈥渞ainy-day fund鈥� got the organization through a number of lean years, but the clinic also began to institute a modest fee structure for most patients (making the name 鈥淔ree Clinic鈥� something of a misnomer) as a way to ensure that it will remain open.

It is a confusing time to be in healthcare. Many people, Gnagey says, are under the impression that healthcare reform will eliminate the need for a place like the Free Clinic (鈥渇ar from true,鈥� he says, particularly given Virginia鈥檚 decision, as of press time, not to expand Medicaid eligibility). It鈥檚 not clear what, exactly, the future holds for the Free Clinic. Uncertainty about healthcare abounds; this small organization, scraping along to provide needy patients with expensive services at little to no cost, is being swept along for the ride.

鈥淚 love working for a small, local organization serving an important local need,鈥� Gnagey adds. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a privilege.” The former chair of EMU鈥檚 nursing program and provost, Beryl Brubaker, class of 鈥�64, was a founding board member of the free clinic, serving 1991-98.

VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

Job responsibilities for Laura Quass-Ferdinand 鈥�06, a public health nurse, include screening Medicaid patients for eligibility for in-home personal care or nursing home placement, working in the immunization and sexually transmitted infection clinics, and helping with the refugee health and baby care programs. Debbie Gullman 鈥�73, also a public health nurse, primarily works in maternal and child health.

While the health department performs a wide variety of functions 鈥� it also enforces health code in restaurants and has an entire environmental health arm 鈥� public health nurses like Gullman and Quass-Ferdinand mainly provide preventive healthcare to populations that otherwise would have none. (Undocumented immigrants, many of whom lack insurance and who are ineligible for Medicaid, for example, comprise much of the obstetrical practice.)

鈥淚 like that I can be involved with people who are at the margins,鈥� says Gullman, adding that public health nursing is 鈥渞eally nursing and social work [mixed] together.鈥� The EMU nursing program鈥檚 strong focus on the social dynamics of health and wellness translate well to this kind of nursing, adds Quass-Ferdinand.

鈥� Andrew Jenner 鈥�04

On Nov. 14, 190 people gathered at the Eastern Mennonite High School dining hall for a program and dinner to remember and to honor the godly legacy of John R., Esther M. and Evelyn K. Mumaw.

Former EMU presidents Myron S. Augsburger and Joseph L. Lapp and current president Loren Swartzendruber honored their predecessor John R. Mumaw at a ‘Celebration of Ministry’ event. Photo by Steve Carpenter

John R. married Esther Mosemann in 1928 and together they raised five daughters – Helen, Grace, Catherine, Lois and Miriam, in Harrisonburg, Va. John R. possessed exceptional leadership gifts. He went on to become the fourth president of the former Eastern Mennonite College, 1948-1965, served twice as moderator of the Mennonite Church, 1961-63 and 1969-71, and led Virginia Mennonite Conference as moderator, 1968-1974.

Pastoral skill and vision

During the evening, many spoke of John R’s pastoral skill, vision and administrative ability. Nancy Hopkins-Garriss, executive director of Pleasant View Homes, Inc., recounted how he started Pleasant View as a place for adults with developmental disabilities. Ron Yoder, CEO of Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community, recalled how John R. gave vision to the expansion of VMRC, while Dr. Linford Gehman cited his leadership as executive secretary of Mennonite Medical Association,1969-79.

Sprinkled in were stories of Esther and Evelyn’s service to the church given independently of and alongside their husband. Esther died suddenly in 1964. One year later, John R. then EMU president, married Evelyn King, the college’s dean of women.

Byron Peachey

Byron Peachey, a campus minister at EMU and John and Esther’s grandson, emceed the evening. His mother Helen, died in 2000 and was the only Mumaw daughter not present. Byron read a remembrance from Hubert and Mildred Pellman. They recalled Esther winning a game of Scrabble, then looking at John with a mischievous smile and saying, "…and I didn’t even go to college."

Lee M. Yoder, president of his EMU class under John’s tenure, recalled presenting a demand for a forum to express student opinions. John R. acquiesced and provided a prominent display board. The only problem – it was completely enclosed in glass. The only way to get something posted was to go through the dean of students and the president’s son-in-law, Laban Peachey.

Another commented how effective John R. was in dealing with his critics by referencing his constituency. On one occasion the moderator of VMC approached him with an issue. John R. replied "You meet on campus in assembly once a year. I work with this community every day. I cannot do what you ask."

Later, EMU’s current president Loren Swartzendruber jokingly commented, "Tonight I learned a lot from John R. about how to deal effectively with both VMC’s moderator and student class presidents." Swartzendruber also shared reflections on taking a homiletics course with Mumaw as a seminary student in 1973. Mumaw expected all sermons to be written in manuscript form, saying, "The Holy Spirit is present in the study as well as in the pulpit."

All three surviving present or former presidents of EMU – Myron Augsburger, Joe Lapp and Loren Swartzendruber, along with former EMU interim president Beryl H. Brubaker – were present to honor one of their own. EMU helped sponsor the event along with VMRC, PV Inc., and Dr. Gehman.

This was Virginia Mennonite Conference’s 10th Celebration of Ministry banquet. In addition to honoring a remarkable man and his family, it raised funds for VMC and established a ministerial training and trust fund for the theological education of pastors in the Potomac District of VMC.

Steve Carpenter is conference coordinator of Virginia Mennonite Conference.

EMU’s Study and Training in Effective Pastoral Ministry (STEP) program will hold its second annual graduation at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 24, in the West Bethany Chapel at Landis Homes, 1001 E. Oregon Rd., Lititz, Pa.

University Provost Beryl H. Brubaker will address the graduates on the topic, “Lessons Learned.”

Mark R. Wenger, director of the STEP program, will preside and confer certificates on the seven members of the STEP class of 2008. STEP graduates receive a certificate in pastoral ministry from EMU.

The STEP program is intended to train leaders for congregational ministry. Most of the students are bi-vocational pastors without a college degree. The program meets in cohort format, with groups meeting one Saturday a month, September-May for three years.

The commencement service is open to the public.

For more information call Julie Siegfried at (717) 397-5190.

President Loren Swartzendruber will confer 411 degrees – 291 undergraduate, 89 graduate, 17 associate degrees, 7 graduate certificates and 7 Study and 7 pastoral ministry certificates on graduates of the STEP (Training for Effective Pastoral Ministry) program at EMU Lancaster (PA).
Last year, EMU awarded 403 degrees.

Key Speaker

Beryl H. Brubaker, EMU provost

Beryl H. Brubaker, EMU provost, will give the commencement address on the theme, “A Metaphor for Remembering.”

Dr. Brubaker has devoted 37 years of her life to a variety of teaching and administrative roles at 草莓社区. She has been provost since 2000, responsible to give overall guidance to the school’s undergraduate and graduate academic programs, Eastern Mennonite Seminary, various university services and the Adult Degree Completion Program.

In 2003, Brubaker served seven months as interim president at EMU. She plans to officially retire in June 2008 but will continue on a part-time basis to manage aspects of the upcoming Southern Association of Colleges and Schools reaccreditation process.

Brubaker joined the EMU nursing department faculty in 1970 and became department chair of the innovative program in 1984. Prior to becoming provost, she was vice president for enrollment management.

She won recognition for direction of a university self-study in 1990 that resulted in the school’s reaccreditation. Among the grants she wrote was the almost $2M Title III federal grant that was used in the nineties to create EMU’s computer network.

The Belleville, Pa., native attended EMU for two years. She earned a BS degree in nursing from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, an MS in nursing from the University of Pennsylvania and a DSN in nursing from the University of Alabama.

Brubaker’s churchwide and community involvements have included serving as past president of District 9 of the Virginia Nurses Association and as a board member of Mennonite Mutual Aid (MMA), the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Free Clinic, Pleasant View Homes and Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community. She received the Anabaptist Health Care Award from MMA for “distinguished service within health, educational, community and church settings over four decades.”

She is married to J. Mark Brubaker, who teaches biology at James Madison University. The couple has two adult daughters and four grandchildren.

Honors

During the ceremony, “graduates’ perspectives” will be given by Emi Oda, a Justice, Peace and Conflict Studies major from Sapporo, Japan; Jered Lyons, a communication major from Frederick, Md.; Jacqueline C. Bulanow, Herndon, Va., graduating with an MA degree in education; and Joseph H. Morris of Harrisonburg, an Adult Degree Completion Program student receiving a BS degree in management and Organizational development.

Oda and Lyons are two of the 10 recipients of EMU’s “Cords of Distinction,” annually bestowed on students who exemplify the school’s highest ideals. Read more…

Baccalaureate Address

Christian Early, associate professor of philosophy and theology

The seniors have elected Christian Early, associate professor of philosophy and theology at EMU, to be speaker for the baccalaureate service to be held 7 p.m. Saturday, Apr. 26, in Lehman Auditorium. Dr. Early earned a BA in biblical studies from the University of the Nations in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii; an MA in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary and a PhD in philosophy from the University of Wales.

Originally from Denmark, he previously taught at Fuller Theological Seminary and at Azuza Pacific University. He specializes in philosophy of religion.

The salutation will be given by senior class co-presidents Lisa King, a nursing major from Harrisonburg; and Christopher Lehman, an English major from Chambersburg, Pa.

EMU music students will give a short concert in Lehman Auditorium immediately following the baccalaureate service. President and Mrs. Swartzendruber will host a reception for the graduates and their families in the University Commons, second floor corridor, immediately following that program.

In case of rain, commencement exercises will be held in the Yoder Arena of University Commons, which can accommodate 3,600 people. An announcement to that effect will be made by 11 a.m. that day on WEMC, 91.7 FM, and other area radio stations.

The service closed with candlelighting and opportunity for the campus community to pray individually and in small groups, remembering the Virginia Tech community’s tremendous loss in the wake of the Monday morning shootings on their campus, just three hours distance from EMU.

Campus ministries staff and pastoral assistants were available to minister to persons as needed.

Opportunities for Prayer and Support

• Watch the WHSV News Video Coverage of the Prayer Ceremony

  
  EMU will join other schools and organizations in observing a moment of silence at 9:45 a.m. Monday, Apr. 23, marking the one-week anniversary of the Virginia Tech campus shootings and loss of 32 lives.

• Candlelight Prayer Vigil:
  A prayer vigil scheduled for Wednesday, April 18, as a response to the showing of Invisible Children (Uganda) will now include prayers for the greater Virginia Tech community. Please meet on the front lawn at 9:30 p.m.

• Hokie Hope Day:
  Friday is Hokie Hope Day across the nation. Wear maroon and orange all day in solidarity with the VA Tech students, faculty, staff, families and alum.

• Talk with the Pastor:
  Campus Pastor Brian Martin Burkholder will host the campus community on Wednesday, April 18, in the Northlawn residence hall from 4-5 p.m. for prayer and support for the Virginia Tech community, as well as any EMU community members who may have direct connections to people affected by the tragedy.

• Sign a Banner:
  Students, faculty and staff are invited to sign a banner for VT that will be hand-delivered to Tech’s campus. The banner will be on display for at least the first hour of Springfest on the front lawn. The greater campus communities of JMU, Bridgewater, and Blue Ridge Community College are also participating.

• EMU’s Counseling Center continues to be available to students, faculty and staff in need of support. Call (540) 432-4317 for more information.

Campus Responds

“We are deeply saddened by the events unfolding on Virginia Tech’s campus in Blacksburg, Va.,” wrote 草莓社区 provost Dr. Beryl Brubaker in a campus communiqu

Jews, Muslims and Christians may nurture interfaith understanding via an Abrahamic traditions studies center.

These proposals come from a smorgasbord of about 30 submitted by EMU students, faculty, staff and friends at the invitation of an ad-hoc "Micah Think Tank." Each of these visions, unveiled at a March 23-24 conference on campus, aims at helping the university better exemplify its mission described in Micah 6:8: "to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God."

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The new faculty, announced by Dr. Beryl H. Brubaker, EMU provost, and Dr. Marie S. Morris, vice president and undergraduate academic dean, are:

Peter Dula, assistant professor of religion and culture. Dr. Dula earned a BS in history from EMU, an MATS from Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Ind., and a PhD in theology and ethics from Duke University.

Dula has taught at Lancaster (Pa.) Mennonite High School, Duke University, Meserete Kristos College in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and at Babel College in Baghdad, Iraq. He is a member of the Peace Committee of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) and has served with MCC in Burundi and most recently in Iraq.

Dula says he “will seek to offer students theologically disciplined models of relating to other religions and thinking about other religions. Education, at its best, draws the self into question. Christian education subsumes that questioning under the great question mark of the cross, allowing the life and death of Christ to interrogate all our human projects and fantasies.”

Violet A. Dutcher, associate professor of English. Dr. Dutcher earned BA, MA, and PhD degrees in English, rhetoric/communication from Kent (Ohio) State University. She has given numerous presentations related to her dissertation topic and writing and comes to EMU with many years of teaching experience at Kent State and The University of Akron.

Dutcher incorporates service-learning into her teaching and engages in community literacy research. “My pedagogical theories and practices are informed by my faith and by my commitment to helping meet the needs of students and the community,” she states.

Toni M. Flanagan, associate professor of teacher education. Dr. Flanagan earned a BS in biology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an MT in science education from the Curry School of Education at University of Virginia and an EdD in educational leadership from Liberty University.

Flanagan comes with over 13 years of teaching experience as a science and mathematics teacher (grades 5-7), as a biology and earth science teacher (grades 9-10) and several years tutoring students in reading and mathematics. She wants to interact with local school systems in developing teacher mentoring programs and linking the university with these mentoring programs.

“Christian liberal arts education should weave Christ into the fabric of each course – not as the fringe, but as the very fiber of the cloth,” Flanagan says.

Greta Ann Herin, assistant professor of biology. Dr. Herin earned a BS in biochemistry and psychology from Kansas State University and a PhD in neurobiology from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Herin has taught at Kansas State University and at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Most recently, she completed a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at the Max-Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt, Germany. She has numerous publications to her credit and received the Scottish Rite Schizophrenia Research Fellowship.

She notes that “a liberal arts atmosphere and Mennonite tradition” were primary reasons for applying to teach at EMU.

Karen L. Madison, associate professor of nursing. Madison earned a BS in nursing from George Mason University, an MS in psychiatric-mental health nursing from Catholic University of America and completed a post-MSN Adult Nurse Practitioner Program from George Washington University. She has more than 15 years of professional and teaching experience in nursing with 10 years of private practice as a therapist.

Madison has teaching experience at George Mason University, Marymount University and Northern Virginia Community College and has served as a consultant, pulmonary hypertension nurse specialist and nurse practitioner. She holds professional certification from the American Nurses Association as an adult nurse practitioner and a clinical specialist in adult psychiatric-mental health. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau and the Northern Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners.

Lara L. Scott, associate professor of visual and communication arts. Scott earned a BA in art from Yale University and a MFA from the University of Pennsylvania. She comes most recently from Greenville (Ill.) College where she taught digital video, graphic design, digital imaging, digital photography and painting. She has numerous solo and group exhibitions and was a panel participant at a Pew Graduate Summer Seminar held at The University of Notre Dame on “Christian Scholarship in the Visual Arts.” She also received the Lawrence Shprintz Award at the University of Pennsylvania.

Scott says that her teaching goal is “to create an environment where students will engage with the whole fabric of aesthetic, political, cultural and theological questions as they make art. Together with my students, I hope to create a learning community where we engage with the created and creating world, in the context of Christian faith, through the process of artmaking.”

Matthew S. Siderhurst, assistant professor of chemistry. Dr. Siderhurst earned a BA in chemistry and molecular biology from Goshen (Ind.) College and a PhD in entomology from Colorado State University. He has taught at Colorado State University and just completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship as a research chemist/entomologist for USA ARS PBARC in Hilo, Hawaii. In addition to having received several major academic and teaching awards, he has three patents pending for termite feeding stimulants and one patent pending for a western corn rootworm feeding stimulant blend.

“Learning is a lifelong process, and the small college setting is a particularly exciting learning environment with its class sizes, opportunities for undergraduate centered research and close interactions between students and teachers,” Siderhurst states.

Heidi Winters Vogel, associate professor of theater. Vogel earned a BA in theater from the University of Minnesota and an MFA in directing from Pennsylvania State University. She comes with teaching experience at Webster University Conservatory of Theater Arts, St. Louis University, Washington University in St. Louis and Pennsylvania State University. In addition, she has directing and costume design experience at Huntington College, North Hennepin Community College and Normandale Community College.

“Theater, at its best, fires an audience’s imagination and reveals truth to them,” Vogel notes. “If a production doesn’t capture our interest, the truth is buried. Without substance, the effect is fleeting. Without ‘truth and action’, theater is ‘sound and fury, signifying nothing,’ ephemeral and boring. The same applies to my Christian
faith.”

Judith H. Wilfong, associate professor of teacher education. Dr. Wilfong earned a BA in education from Bridgewater College, an MA in reading from James Madison University, and an EdD in educational leadership from Nova Southeastern University.

Wilfong brings more than 20 years of teaching and administrative experience in the local public school system to her new role at EMU. Most recently she was principal of Fulks Run (Va.) Elementary School where under her leadership the school won the Distinguished Title I School of Virginia award in 2005. She will retire from the public school system in December this year and join the EMU faculty full time in January 2007.

“When I learned that a position in elementary education was open, I was ecstatic,” Wilfong notes. “Teaching students aspiring to become educators is exactly what I want to do. I love working with student teachers. I choose to live my life in service to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and will be delighted to work in an atmosphere that is openly Christian.”

In addition, the modern languages department at EMU will have four teaching assistants through a program sponsored by Mennonite Central Committee:

Rachel HannebicqueL (French), France
Jakob Kneisler (German), Germany
Leonardo Chavarria (Spanish), Honduras
Rolando Urquizo (Spanish), Bolivia

The faculty and staff of 草莓社区 recognized two colleagues who are retiring and cited 49 others for years of service during the school’s annual recognition dinner held May 2.

Mamie M. Mellinger is retiring as director of health services after serving 20 years in this role. Before that, she was a member of the EMU nursing department faculty, 1970-76 and 1980-86, serving the university a total of 32 years.

Paul T. (P.T.) Guengerich is retiring a second time. He served in a variety of roles at EMU from 1964 to 1981