Over a 44-year career at Eastern Mennonite College and then 草莓社区, Horst gained a reputation as a 鈥渄edicated and valued colleague in the Science Center鈥� with an excellent knowledge of his field, said Professor Emeritus Joseph Mast ’64.

Equally known for his deft expertise in wider subjects, Horst was a 鈥淩ennaissance man,鈥� Mast said. 

鈥淎s a faculty member able to teach courses across a wide range of disciplines, John was an invaluable asset to EMU,鈥� said Professor Emeritus Millard Showalter ’62. 鈥淲ithout a doubt, John L. Horst will be remembered as a 鈥楳an for all Seasons.鈥欌��  

Horst鈥檚 wide-ranging intellectual interests — from physics and mathematics to music and history — challenged, amazed and entertained in many venues, from classrooms to faculty lounges and in later years, at Sabbath evening Bible studies and other events at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community. 

In later years, he shared his love of music as the host of WEMC鈥檚 鈥淢ostly Mennonite, Mostly A Capella鈥� and in compiling and writing liner notes for nine CDs from the 鈥淢ennonite Hour鈥� music archives.

Horst also contributed to the conceptualization of pictorial histories in prominent locations that have served to educate campus visitors, and regular denizens, too. (An athlete throughout his life, Horst appears in one photo, wearing No. 77 on the Smith Literary Society basketball team.) Take a tour with John in this article.

鈥淚 am forever grateful for his initiative and leadership in the creation of the athletic history display on the first floor of the Commons, which would not have happened if he had not brought the idea and did most of the research,鈥� said Director of Athletics Dave King ’76, who also has vivid memories of sitting in an interdisciplinary studies course (better known as IDS) as an undergraduate and watching Horst鈥檚 visible delight as he taught about baroque music. 

In retirement, Horst and his wife, Joan Graybill ’66, lived adjacent to EMU. He was an almost daily presence on campus, where he鈥檇 power walk and do wall push-ups in the University Commons (at certain times of the morning, one knew to take a wide turn around the corners), then stop by the Athletic Department (and other places, too) for a visit. King says he鈥檒l miss those chats, as will many of us.

Park View Mennonite Church will host a live-streamed memorial service Saturday, Sept. 26, at 2  p.m. Visit for the link. His family will be present but the service will not be open to the public.

Horst is survived by his wife, Joan; his son, Michael Horst and wife, Stephanie, of Dover, Pa.; daughter Grete Horst Johnson and husband, Christopher, of Newport News; five grandchildren, Caleb, Luke and Daniel Horst, Emily and Sarah Johnson; and by a sister, Rachel Witmer and husband, James, of Alliance, Ohio.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Valley Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center, PO Box 1653, Harrisonburg, VA 22803 or to WEMC FM radio station, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA 22802.

Memories and condolences shared below in the comments will appear publicly. They will also be shared with the family. 

***

Born in Connellsville, Pa., to the late John L. Sr. and Emma Zimmerman Horst, John Horst Jr. grew up in Scottdale. His lifelong love of music began early: at Scottdale High School, he sang in a male quartet that reached state-level competition. Horst鈥檚 reputation as a vocalist preceded him: Wilmer Lehman ’57, who is four years older than John, remembers attending Music Week at Laurelville and hearing J. Mark Stauffer ’38, who led EMC鈥檚 choirs, 鈥渞ave鈥� about the teenager鈥檚 wonderful deep bass voice. The two would meet again at EMC in 1956, when Lehman was a senior and Horst a freshman — and then become colleagues. Lehman, professor emeritus of mathematics, retired in 2000.

At EMC, Horst earned a degree in mathematics and music. He then completed graduate work in physics education at the University of Virginia, as well as additional graduate work in music. He taught at Eastern Mennonite High School for three years and then moved to the college, where he spent 37 years as an associate professor of physics and mathematics. Among other responsibilities, he was the planetarium鈥檚 director. [Read more about the Astral Society and the planetarium.]

He was passionate about teaching. EMU records capture a few examples of his professional development activities. In 1969, he was selected to participate in a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded six-week summer institute for professors teaching nuclear physics at Vanderbilt University. The next summer, he represented EMC among 19 colleges and universities at a selective summer institute focused on making physics courses meaningful to non-physics majors. Three weekend conferences were also part of the commitment; in return, Horst secured a $1,000 NSF grant for laboratory equipment.

Showalter remembers that Horst developed and often taught a special course for biology and business majors who needed to take physics but were lacking in 鈥渢he knowledge of the essential concepts of differential and integral calculus, concepts which are very helpful in the study of physics,鈥� Showalter said. 鈥淗is class, titled 鈥楨lements of Calculus,鈥� aimed to 鈥渄ispel the phobia of calculus as an 鈥榠mpossible鈥� course.鈥� 

Roman J. Miller鈥檚 first memory of Horst is one of gracious hospitality. The new faculty member arrived to teach at EMC in the summer of 1985 with plans to stay in an inexpensive hotel room as he located a more permanent residence. Horst offered him use of his family鈥檚 summer cabin out in the county.

鈥淚n our trans-departmental discussions and debates in the faculty lounge over the years, I was often stimulated by John Horst’s broad interests in life far beyond physics and math, which he very capably taught,鈥� said Miller, who after retiring in 2016 as emeritus professor of biology, often saw Horst at VMRC events. 鈥淗is love of music and reflections on a wide range of historic and religious happenings enlarged my world.  I appreciated so much his warm friendship and his openness to conversation about the state of the world.鈥�

Horst鈥檚 love of learning, teaching and science was present in the classroom even after retirement.  鈥淎 few times, John was a substitute teacher in my physics classes and I keenly remember that he was fond of examples over lectures,鈥� said Braydon Hoover 鈥�11, director of development and annual giving. 鈥淣o matter how often he conducted a physics experiment, his face would light up like he was an undergrad experiencing it for the first time, himself.鈥�

Hoover also remembers singing next to Horst and his clear joy in sharing music together at the doctoral defense of Ben Bergey 鈥�11 (now a music professor at EMU).  

Throughout his life, Horst was a vocal performer and composer. He also composed works for piano, synthesizer and carillon. At Park View Mennnonite Church, where he was a member for nearly 55 years, Horst sang in the choir. He also sang in the Mennonite Hour Men鈥檚 Quartet for seven years; in the Men鈥檚 Chorus and Mixed Chorus in the 50鈥檚 and 60鈥檚; and with several community choirs, most recently the Valley Collegium Musicum. 

Around EMU鈥檚 Centennial year, Horst worked on a compilation  CD of EMC/EMU鈥檚 greatest choral and orchestral hits. Members of EMU鈥檚 marketing and communication department fondly remember his visits to the Anderson House office during those months, when he would work his way around to each and every desk, greeting everyone, sharing ideas for articles about campus history, handing over type-written or hand-written remembrances or attending to various to-do items related to the CD. 

With thanks to Wilmer Lehman, Joe Mast, Roman Miller and Millard Showalter for sharing memories and stories. You are most welcome to do the same in the comment box below. We’ll make sure they are passed along to his family.

鈥淲hen I first began working聽at Eastern Mennonite College,鈥� recalls professor emeritus Wilmer Lehman 鈥�57, 鈥渢eaching at EMC was seen as a kind of mission of the church.鈥� Back in the era of Sputnik, was a carefully calculated national priority, and teachers of mathematics were in high demand. This small private school struggled to compete with the demand for higher-level mathematicians generated by Cold War anxieties, especially given its status as a Christian-pacifist institution that garnered no funding for defense-related work.

But being a devout Anabaptist, Lehman opted to take the proverbial 鈥渞oad less traveled鈥� in U.S. academia and returned to teach at his alma mater two years after graduation. 鈥淲hen I came [for the 1959-60 school year], I did not know what my yearly salary would be,鈥� Lehman says. 鈥淚 found that it was about $2,500, spread over nine or ten months 鈥� all of which it took just to live. We had to scrape by in the summers.鈥� Later, Lehman would earn a with a math concentration from Cornell University and become a full professor at EMU.

Lehman became the foundation of what has grown into a thriving program in the mathematical sciences. Early in his 40-year career at EMU, he taught Millard Showalter 鈥�62 and then recruited him to be a fellow faculty member. Lehman鈥檚 education continued, even as he was educating another generation. In the early 1990s, Lehman earned a second master鈥檚 degree (this time an , focusing on counseling) at in order to prepare himself for leadership roles in his congregation, Mt. Clinton Mennonite Church, and the conference to which it belongs.

Like Lehman, Showalter earned his graduate degrees while working for minimal pay at EMU. Showalter holds two master鈥檚 degrees, one in math from the University of South Carolina and another master鈥檚 in arts (with a math major) from Vanderbilt, and an EdD from the University of Virginia.

鈥淢illard was quite popular,鈥� said Lehman, adding he was gifted at making math understandable and enjoyable. In fact, at one point Showalter鈥檚 students wore T-shirts that read 鈥淢illard鈥檚 Magnificent Mathematicians.鈥�

Lehman and Showalter taught in tandem for decades 鈥� serving under four presidents and seven academic deans 鈥� until Showalter retired in 1998, with Lehman following in 2000. Both were beloved for their willingness to work one-on-one with students having difficulty in math, acting as both tutor and encourager.

In the summer 2011 issue of , Lehman displayed his 鈥渕ission鈥� approach to teaching in an anecdote recounted by Wayne Lawton 鈥�71. Lawton had returned to college as an older adult and was struggling to catch up in math. Serving as a pastor in Waynesboro while taking classes, Lawton sheepishly approached Lehman, asking if more help might be possible. Lehman replied, 鈥淲hen you pastor a church, do you mind people coming to you for help?鈥� When Lawton said no, Lehman replied, 鈥淲ell, I don鈥檛 mind helping you!鈥�

Showalter recalls his years teaching with Lehman at EMU as 鈥渢he best years of my life.鈥� Although he struggled both to make math interesting to students and to integrate changes in technology and teaching methods, he credits his students for making his career memorable. 鈥淚 was very fortunate to have had excellent math majors. My students not only challenged me to be a better teacher, but also brought creativity and a desire to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.鈥� Perhaps because of his infectious enthusiasm 鈥� he once spent an entire sabbatical rewriting lesson plans to adjust to technological changes 鈥� it is no surprise that Showalter says: 鈥淚f I were to again be given the opportunity to choose a life career, I don鈥檛 doubt that teaching mathematics at EMU would be my first choice.鈥�

Reflecting on the 鈥渞ipple effects鈥� coming from his lengthy career, Lehman realizes that he鈥檚 internalized some aspects of teaching. 鈥淚鈥檓 always on my best behavior, no matter where I go,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 never know when I鈥檓 going to run into a former student. I鈥檝e run into them as far away as the Nairobi (Kenya) marketplace.鈥�

In addition to Lehman and Showalter, four other EMU alumni taught mathematical sciences for extended stints: two members of the class of 1962, Del Snyder and Donald C. Miller (who also attended the seminary in 1976-77); Roy E. Heatwole 鈥�64; and John L. Horst 鈥�60, who taught both physics and mathematics and coached award-winning teams in international math-modeling competitions.

When Joe Mast 鈥�64 was a student at EMU in the early 1960s his long-term goal was to be a high school math and physics teacher.聽聽鈥淎t the time, I did not aspire to teach at the college level,鈥� he says. 鈥淸But] I had a great interest in astronomy and electronics.鈥澛燞is physics professor, Robert Lehman, encouraged him to pursue astronomy and return to his alma mater.

As a student at EMU, Mast helped to manage the as chief engineer and station manager and was part of the Astral Society, which focused on astronomy. In the Cold War era, space-race money was available, and he received a special fellowship that allowed him to pursue a master鈥檚 degree and a PhD at the University of Virginia, both in astronomy. Upon returning to then-EMC as a faculty member, the college received its first computer under a grant to small colleges. Mast became EMU鈥檚 first professor.

On sabbatical in 1978, Mast went to JMU, where he studied computer science courses, and later received a second master鈥檚 degree in computer science. He returned to EMU, where he ushered in a two-year associate鈥檚 degree in computer processing, followed several years later by a major in computer science.

In response to a need by fellow EMU employees for banking services, in 1969 Mast helped to found Park View Federal Credit Union, an idea originating with Dan Bender and developed by Robert Lehman. Three years later Mast began managing the credit union out of his office in the basement of the Suter Science Center, continuing for 10 years.

One of EMU鈥檚 best-known mathematical sons is Robert P. Hostetler 鈥�59, who retired from teaching in 1996 and only stopped writing textbooks in 2007. He now lives as a retiree within walking distance of EMU.

Hostetler holds a bachelor鈥檚 degree in secondary education (math certification) from EMU, a master鈥檚 degree in mathematics, and a doctorate in mathematics education, both graduate degrees from Penn State University.

Hostetler is perhaps one of the most successful authors of math education texts in any language; his books have been used widely by students and teachers for decades. About 300 titles with Hostetler鈥檚 name as author or co-author reside on the Barnes and Noble website. Google Books puts the total count of books, editions, study guides 鈥� anything with his name 鈥� at about 2,400. Some of Hostetler鈥檚 dozens of textbooks have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese; they range from college algebra, trigonometry and calculus to The Mathematics of Buying.

One of Hostetler鈥檚 challenges as a professor, he says, 鈥渨as how to share my Christian faith with students,鈥� given the constraints of teaching at a state-supported university, which necessarily is based on the separation of church and state. After consulting with his pastor, Hostetler decided that he would 鈥渟elf-identify鈥� with the faith when introducing himself to each new class. 鈥淚 simply stated that I am a Christian; I believe in a living God to whom I pray for guidance in my teaching and relationships with you students,鈥� he told them. 鈥淚 want to do my best for you.鈥� He says he sometimes learned the outcome of his 鈥渟haring of faith鈥� years later, when former students would get back in touch and tell him, 鈥淒r. Hostetler, guess what鈥擨鈥檝e become a Christian! What you shared in that first day of calculus class, I just couldn鈥檛 get out of my mind over the years, so I鈥檝e made that decision!鈥�

Outside of the university, Hostetler has shared his faith and enthusiasm for teaching and learning as a Sunday School teacher for more than 40 years.

In the spring 2006 issue of Crossroads, Hostetler spoke about an unusual sabbatical he took in 1997-98 during which he taught without pay at EMU as a way of 鈥済oing back to my roots.鈥�

In comparing his classes at EMU and those at Behrend College of Penn State University, Hostetler said the classes were similarly sized 鈥� about 30 to 32 students, with comparable academic abilities. He used the same textbooks (his own), the same curriculum and grading standards at both universities. Though the percentage of students at the high and low ends of the grading spectrum was the same, it was the middle group of students that surprised Hostetler. 鈥淎t EMU, the middle group of students went up in their performance [as the semesters progressed]; at Penn State, the middle group shifted downward.鈥�

Hostetler attributed the improved performance of the average student at EMU to 鈥渁 more caring faculty, the work ethic of students at EMU, the community spirit that helped each student to feel valued, and the fact that EMU students act with Christian charity toward one another and help each other out.鈥� Plus, he added, 鈥渁ttention was given to all students equally, rather than just to the excellent or the deficient.鈥�

At the University Park Campus of Penn State, James L. Rosenberger 鈥�68 is an internationally recognized statistician, with a master鈥檚 degree from Polytechnic Institute of New York and a doctorate from Cornell University. He says that EMU professor Roy Heatwole first sparked his interest in working with statistics. Graduating with a major in math, Rosenberger was able to secure 1-W conscientious objector status during the Vietnam War by working as an analyst and programmer in the Cardiovascular Research Center at New York University Medical Center.

Rosenberger, who is now vice-president of the 18,000-member American Statistical Association, believes statisticians are uniquely situated in positions where ethical decisions are amplified. 鈥淲e are constantly faced with real data which can easily be misrepresented for the benefit of proving a point. Understanding the importance of integrity informs much of my work,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 teach students and consult with researchers to honestly represent the uncertainty in the conclusions of a study or research experiment.鈥�

During the past decade, Rosenberger has guided the development of an online professional master of applied statistics program at Penn State, aimed at mid-career professionals who cannot return to graduate school full time. 鈥淢ore than 500 students enroll in our graduate courses each semester, allowing us to extend the reach of statistics education beyond the campus,鈥� he says.

To Rosenberger, statistics is 鈥渁 wonderful profession.鈥� Not only is it a challenge learning the language of scientific collaboration, but it is a quest for truth. 鈥淲e can get involved in so many interesting disciplines and issues, always facing uncertain information and mountains of data,鈥� he says, 鈥渢o which we apply our tools and skills to uncover the truth.鈥�

Rosenberger鈥檚 accomplishments include: a 2011 Distinguished Service Award from the National Institute of Statistical Sciences, election to Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, serving as program director at the National Science Foundation, and lecturing around the globe.

One of Millard Showalter鈥檚 students, Merle Reinford 鈥�72, has gone on to earn a graduate degree in math (where most of his courses were easier than those at EMU, he says) and to devote nearly 40 years to teaching math students at Lancaster (Pa.) Mennonite High School. Some semesters, he also teaches math as an adjunct at Millersville University.

Sharpening the minds of his high school students, he has spent 33 years coaching competitive chess, eventually getting elected president of the regional scholastic chess league.

Reinford鈥檚 coaching successes are dramatic. In 33 years his high school teams won 11 league titles, with runner-up success 13 more times. Reinford鈥檚 chess teams have accumulated a plethora of state competition titles, with a record of 315 wins to 90 losses and 23 ties. 鈥淚 have used my enjoyment of the game to play chess with homeless men,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 am not sure if you could call that a ministry or not,鈥� given how much fun he has.

After graduating from EMU, Larry Lehman 鈥�79 got a fellowship at University of Virginia, where he earned his doctorate. He credits two of his math professors, Millard Showalter and Del Snyder, with preparing him for his own professorship at University of Mary Washington, where he spent six years as chair of the math department. 鈥淭hey [Snyder and Showalter] emphasized not just knowledge of facts, but consideration of why things are true, how different mathematical concepts fit together.鈥�

Larry Lehman emphasizes the role that EMU played in his upbringing from childhood: 鈥淚t was more than a school, but very much my home community.鈥� He has embraced the educational spirit he saw in his EMU instructors. 鈥淭eaching has its challenges, of course, particularly with finding new ways to interest and motivate students, but so far I am still enjoying the challenge.鈥�

Wendell Ressler 鈥�80 stayed in Harrisonburg to teach high school math and physics after he graduated from EMU, and then earned his master鈥檚 degree from James Madison University. Ressler, who now holds a PhD from Temple University, found himself thirsting for more knowledge. 鈥淚 loved studying analytic number theory,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n retrospect, it seems that I kept trying to get off the academic track, but curiosity kept pulling me back. Or, maybe I just liked being a student.鈥�

Now a math professor at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa., Ressler does research in the abstract stream of his field 鈥� automorphic integrals, Dirichlet series, and Hecke correspondence. He has an obvious affection for proofs and logic, which he says was nurtured by his EMU profs. 鈥淏y far the most important thing I learned from Millard Showalter and Del Snyder was how to prove things: how to think about proofs, and how to write them,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have as many fancy courses in my background as many other students in graduate school, but that did not matter because I knew how to prove things.鈥�

Ressler has also found himself living many of the core EMU values of peace and social justice. 鈥淢y with Ray Gingerich and Titus Bender influenced my thinking a lot. I volunteered with the Mediation Center and Christians for Peace when I lived in Harrisonburg, and with St. Vincent鈥檚 Peace Center in Germantown when I lived in Philadelphia. I did war tax resistance and eventually the IRS garnished my wages.鈥�

Ressler is now focused on pursuing environmental justice. He volunteers at Community Mennonite Church of Lancaster, where he pays a voluntary 鈥済as tax鈥� to discourage driving and fund green upgrades for the congregation. He is an avid bicyclist, another love with roots at EMU. 鈥淥ne of my housemates at EMC got me to buy a used bicycle. I loved riding around Harrisonburg and started commuting by bicycle to work. I estimate that I have ridden about 50,000 miles since I graduated from EMC.鈥� Ressler believes that bicycles may help save us from the problems of internal combustion.

Deirdre Smeltzer 鈥�87 returned to EMU in 1998 after graduating from the University of Virginia with an MS and a PhD in mathematics.

Recalling her undergraduate years at EMU, Smeltzer credits two professors, Millard Showalter in Calculus II and Del Snyder in Discrete Math, for nurturing her interest in higher-level mathematics.

鈥淢illard made class interesting, and I found myself doing his homework first,鈥� she says. 鈥淚n Discrete Math, I discovered that I really loved the abstract, logical thinking required 鈥� much more than the hands-on labs of chemistry, which was another major that I was considering.鈥�

As an EMU faculty member, Smeltzer has taught courses on more than two dozen topics in her field and is author or co-author of a number of peer-reviewed articles and a textbook. In the current academic year, she has directed EMU鈥檚 extensive cross-cultural programs on a part-time basis. In the late spring, she was named EMU鈥檚 vice president and undergraduate dean, effective July 1, 2013.

During his time as an undergrad at EMU, Mark D. Risser 鈥�07 was involved in student government, the student newspaper, and was recipient of a presidential scholarship award. After graduating, Risser worked for EMU in the admissions department before being pulled back to the discipline of rigorous academics. 鈥淲orking in admissions was a fantastic experience, and allowed me to sink my roots a little deeper into the greater Mennonite community,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut as I didn鈥檛 have an outlet for the mathematical side of my brain, I started feeling the draw of returning to school for something math-related.鈥�

After consulting with his former professors, Deirdre Smeltzer and Owen Byer, Risser was 鈥渉ooked鈥� on the idea of grad school, and decided to pursue a PhD in statistics. He is now a doctoral student at Ohio State University and recently received his MS (also at Ohio State), where he is also involved in research on HyFlex (hybrid, flexible) education methods. Risser says he hopes to have the kind of impact on a future generation of college students as his EMU teachers had on him.

A common characteristic of all of our alumni in higher-level, academic studies of numbers is a strong appreciation for, and commitment to, the EMU community. 鈥淥nce I joined the EMU faculty and took on its mission,鈥� Mast says, 鈥淚 was willing to sacrifice many things to advance the program to the best of my abilities.鈥�

The faculty鈥檚 sacrificial efforts seem to have borne fruit: 鈥淢y educational experiences grounded me in a distinctive Christian understanding where the things I believe impact my life style and goals,鈥� says Jim Rosenberger from his perch as the leading academic statistician at the University Park Campus of Penn State. 鈥淚n particular, integrity became a central core value from lessons learned at EMU.鈥� 鈥� Evan Knappenberger, class of 2014

And when, a decade later, that cornfield on the east side of campus sprouted a science building, capped with a prominent white dome to accommodate a then-state-of-the-art planetarium, those chemicals were carted down to the new laboratory supply closets, in the characteristic spirit of Mennonite thrift.

And when, many years later, Spicher returned to EMU to work as the chemical hygiene officer, he began a process of general inventory and cleanup of the no-longer-new laboratory supply closets, cluttered over the years by Mennonite thrift and other forces of entropy. And it was then with a sense of nostalgia that Spicher discovered some of those very bottles procured 50 years earlier when Spicher was an undergrad, and the Suter Science Center (where the bottles had sat just-in-case, like twist-ties in the kitchen drawer) was still a cornfield.

But it was alarm, not nostalgia, that arose when Spicher came across an old bottle of picric acid 鈥� a chemical useful for staining tissue when diluted with sufficient water concentration. When insufficiently diluted, however, picric acid forms explosive crystals. (A close chemical relative to TNT, picric acid played a major role in artillery science through World War I.) Spicher backed away, well aware that uncorking a crystallized bottle of old picric acid could cost him his fingers, or more. Mennonite thrift in the Suter Science Center had taken a potentially treacherous turn.

A Northern Virginia bomb squad was called in. The fire department sent personnel for some explosives training. A hole was dug behind the science center, a fuse was lit, and the picric acid bomb, unwittingly improvised in the chemical closet, was disarmed. In the end, says Spicher, the bang was small, but it pays to be careful with the stuff.

UNDERCOVER POET
Daniel B. Suter 鈥�40, for whom the science center was named, joined the science faculty at what was then Eastern Mennonite College (EMC) in 1948. By the time the new building opened 20 years later, his students in the program enjoyed medical school acceptance rates far above the national average. So valuable was Suter鈥檚 recommendation that, according to faculty legend, a medical school candidate who had never even attended EMU tried to finagle a letter from Suter.

Suter鈥檚 office was in the science center basement, adjacent to the secretary鈥檚 office and the lunchroom, where the faculty regularly ate together while skimming the newspapers, telling jokes, chattering and generally enjoying one another鈥檚 company. For years, on their birthdays, personalized poems would appear on the lunch table, written by a mysterious poet who published under Salvelinus fontinalis (鈥淏rook trout鈥� in the jargon of scientists).

From a poem on the 64th birthday of Wilmer Lehman 鈥�57, who joined the mathematics faculty in 1959:

Forty years teaching
Is that what he said
How many functions
Are left in his head?

A teacher of Math
And The Liberal Arts
With much dedication
Gave his students some smarts.

Eventually, it came out that Salvelinus fontinalis was the pen name of Bob Yoder 鈥�57, an enthusiastic fisher of S. fontinalis. Yoder, who taught in the biology department for more than 30 years, was the resident jokester of the science center lunch bunch; upon his death in 2005, a volume of his collected poems was distributed to his colleagues.

WOMEN NEED RESTROOMS TOO!
The Suter Science Center reflected its day and age when it opened in 1968. Science was mostly a man鈥檚 world then. There were no women on the permanent science faculty, and the college didn鈥檛 bother to put in a women鈥檚 restroom on the downstairs level; the secretary (always a woman, in those days) and female students had to go upstairs. Before long, agitation against the basic unfairness of this situation began and EMU kept pace with the changing world around it by establishing restroom equality throughout the building.

Because energy was cheap back when the building was built, insulation wasn鈥檛 much of a priority. When Lehman began to notice light streaming in large gaps that had opened up between the window frames and the block walls in his math classroom, physical plant staff came over to work at some retroactive solution. Still, the classrooms were a nice improvement over the 鈥淓 Building,鈥� a former egg processing plant on the south side of Mount Clinton Pike that housed the math department before the science center was built.

Over his four decades of teaching, Lehman taught just about every class that was offered by EMU. One of the memories that stands out was the time a student answered a test question with an unexplained Bible reference. Lehman was tickled when he looked up Psalm 139:6 鈥� Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

Another long-time mathematics professor, Millard Showalter 鈥�62 loved to encourage creative approaches to problem solving, and thus, routinely offered his Math in the Liberal Arts students an alternative and deceptively simple-sounding way to earn an A in the class: fold an 8 陆 x 11 sheet of paper in half eight times. The challenge was a fun illustration of exponents; making that eighth crease was like trying to fold 256 sheets of paper at once.

RESOURCEFUL GALEN LEHMAN
For years, Showalter鈥檚 students tried and failed, until Galen Lehman 鈥�73 marched triumphantly into class one morning, with a look in his eyes that told Showalter his game was up. It had been easy, really. Lehman was supporting his college habit with a job at the Kreider Machine Shop over the hill from campus, where he had access to a 200-ton hydraulic machine press entirely capable of folding 256 sheets of paper.

Lehman also earned an A honestly in the class and went on to become Dr. Galen Lehman, chair of the EMU department and the longest-serving member of today鈥檚 faculty. When Lehman joined the faculty, the department was inconveniently housed on the fringes of campus in the same E building that the mathematics folks had previously escaped. Looking for a more respectable location, Lehman settled on an unfinished, dirt-floored crawl space beneath the science center鈥檚 planetarium that had been presciently excavated to someday accommodate this very sort of future growth.

Around 1980, Lehman spearheaded the renovation of the space into what still serves as the psychology department. He personally poured the concrete floor, built a large table still in use in the seminar room, and, while breaking through a block wall to run some plumbing, discovered an empty whisky bottle in the wall cavity, likely hidden by a worker during the building鈥檚 original construction.

EARRING STUNTS & MORE WITH DEAD ANIMALS

But let鈥檚 return to Showalter鈥檚 paper-folding assignment. Outmaneuvered by Lehman and his machine press, Showalter learned a lesson that science center faculty have been learning over and over since the building opened: never underestimate the dedication and creativity undergraduates will apply to various capers, tricks and other antics. The famous 鈥淗ead Room鈥� 鈥� SC 104, its walls lined with the mounted heads of various mammals 鈥� has been the scene of repeated pranks, often involving the dandying-up of these animal heads with different eyewear, headwear, jewelry and other fashion accessories.

Some of the faculty found this amusing. D. Ralph Hostetter, a professor of biology from the very earliest days of the Eastern Mennonite School until his retirement in 1966, did not. After retiring from teaching, Hostetter curated the natural history museum, now housing more than 6,000 artifacts and specimens (and now bearing his name). With hardly any acquisitions budget to speak of, he paid for most of the stuffed heads out of his own pocket. A highly meticulous man, he simply didn鈥檛 find it funny to discover the dik-dik (a tiny African antelope) wearing glasses and earrings.

For years, the sheer size and weight of the 300-lb. American bison specimen on display at the Hostetter Museum of Natural History seemed sufficient to keep it in place in the science center, though this too was an underestimation of the undergraduate determination to prank. In 2007, a posse from Oakwood made off with the stuffed bison and attempted to hoist it up to the three-story residence hall鈥檚 roof. When things went awry mid-hoist, however, both the bison and a 19-year-old freshman fell from the roof. The student was airlifted to the University of Virginia medical center with a concussion and fractured hip.

The freshman healed and the bison was none the worse for the experience. Now he stands in his old position at the entrance to the science center on a thick concrete platform, anchored with tamper-resistant bolts.

MASKED PRANKSTERS
On another occasion, while lecturing in the Head Room, physics and mathematics professor John Horst ’60 raised one of the sliding blackboards to discover the one behind it had been covered by a high-resolution enlargement of a Playboy centerfold. After the class regained its composure, Horst made a mental note to check for sliding blackboard surprises thenceforth.

That was not the most memorable sliding blackboard surprise of his career, however. For years, Horst and several colleagues team-taught a general humanities class covering art, music and literature in history. The large classes were held in SC 106, the biggest classroom on campus; it also saw frequent use as a recital hall, theater and general performance space before other buildings specifically designed for those purposes were built.

Hidden all the way behind several layers of sliding blackboards in SC 106 was a chemical hood, a relatively large space where professors could safely demonstrate various experiments and reactions. For some time, Todd Weaver 鈥�87 had been aware that the chemical hood could also be accessed from behind, through a storage room, and early in the second semester of his senior-year humanities class, he and a classmate 鈥渉atched a brilliant plan,鈥� as he remembers it.

Wearing nothing but boxer shorts and monster masks, and armed with loaded super-soakers, Weaver and his accomplice climbed into the chemical hood from the storage room and waited for class to begin, hidden behind the blackboard. Horst was lecturing in front of the class when the two sprang into action. One by one, the sections of blackboard begin sliding up, eventually revealing the water gun bandits crammed in the chemical hood.

鈥淲e caused total chaos,鈥� says Weaver, now a dentist active in EMU鈥檚 alumni association. They sprayed at least two of the professors in the room, and unloaded their super-soakers on their classmates as they fled up the auditorium鈥檚 two aisles. 鈥淭he goal was to empty the water by the time we reached the back of SC 106 and sprint out the doors and run for the dorm,鈥� says Weaver, who lived in Oakwood and therefore stands proudly in a long and distinguished tradition of campus mischief.

In what turned out to be a serious lapse of judgment, however, Weaver had let a few other friends in on the plan. And when Weaver and his accomplice reached the back of the room, their prank complete except for the get-away, they found the doors barred with two-by-fours.

鈥淚 will never forget Doug Geib 鈥�87 with a big smile on his face unwilling to unbar the door. I was screaming [at him] to give in and let us out, but he only laughed,鈥� Weaver remembers.

Language and literature professor Carroll D. Yoder 鈥�62, one of Horst鈥檚 co-teachers in the room that morning, marched slowly up the steps and unmasked the pranksters, who could do nothing but stand with heads hanging, trapped with empty squirt guns at the back the room in their underwear. Ashamed, they walked back to Oakwood, changed clothes, and returned to catch the end of the humanities class. (Horst got one last hurrah. When Weaver approached Horst and asked humbly for one extra point to make a much-coveted 鈥淎鈥� for the term, which was needed to maximize his chance of dental school admission, Horst made him squirm in his office for some long moments and then declared he would receive one more point in recognition of his 鈥渆nergetic class participation.鈥�)

EXPERIMENTING, LIVING, BANKING IN THE CENTER
One damp Saturday morning an undergraduate chemistry major named Terry Jantzi 鈥�87 was running an experiment that sent a bunch of sulfur dioxide through the lab hood. Normally it would have drifted off into the blue Virginia sky. But the cool, humid weather caused the sulfur dioxide to condense into a heavy fog that spread across the intramural soccer field 鈥� think 鈥渁cid rain鈥� recalls professor emeritus Glenn M. Kauffman, class of 鈥�60, Janzti鈥檚 chemistry prof at the time. Folks at an auction near the dormitories thought the science center was on fire.

That same Terry Jantzi is now Dr. Jantzi, professor of practice associated with EMU鈥檚 peacebuilding and development program.

There was the time in 1976 that Millard Showalter鈥檚 Modern Geometry students got so jazzed about the non-Euclidian material he was teaching that they showed up to the final day of class wearing T-shirts that read 鈥淢illard鈥檚 Magnificent Mathematicians.鈥� They arranged for a photo, and after class, went up to chapel and set together at the front, as proud as a bunch of athletes after winning a tournament.

Kauffman recalls his department colleague Gary L. Stucky putting money into a satellite dish on the science center roof in the early 1990s. This enabled him to watch concurrently three different TV channels late into the night in a prep room near SC-106, where he liked to pass his time outside of regular work hours. In the early 1990s, too, a dietetics program headed by Janet Harder 鈥�73 moved into the science center and she also spent long hours at the workplace. By the late 1990s, Stucky and Harder were married, re-settling in his home state of Kansas.

The Park View Federal Credit Union began in 1969, in the Suter Science Center offices of professors Robert Lehman 鈥�50 (physical sciences) and Joe Mast 鈥�64 (math and computer science), offering financial services to members in the days before easy access to credit. Many of their science center colleagues were the very earliest members. John Horst still has a single-digit account number at the credit union, and says that the credit union鈥檚 assets were said to be approaching $1 million by 1980, when it moved off of campus. (Kauffman remains the proud holder of an account number in the low double digits.)

Kenton Brubaker鈥檚 two-digit account number 鈥撀燽etween Kauffman鈥檚 and Horst鈥檚 鈥� at the credit union gives him away as another early denizen of the science center. A 1954 grad of EMU, Brubaker returned as a horticulture and botany professor well before the science center was built. Up in the old science department, in the Ad Building basement, Brubaker secured grant funding to buy a gas flow analyzer capable of detecting Carbon-14 beta particles. With Brubaker鈥檚 help, another colleague, Merle Jacobs, used the tool to examine the low reproductive fitness of homozygous ebony Drosophila fruit flies. The resulting paper 鈥� 鈥淏eta-Alanine Utilization of Ebony and Non-ebony Drosophila melanogaster鈥� [Science 139 (1963): 1282-1283] 鈥� was likely the first science research published in a major journal by EMU faculty.

Jacobs soon left for a job at Goshen College, and Brubaker was in the first wave of professors to work and teach in the new science center. The greenhouse had an automatic ventilation system 鈥� a big deal at the time. The planetarium was another big-ticket item. The whole building was exciting and new and fantastic. No sooner had the science department moved in then did Kauffman begin writing grants for other exciting gadgetry. A gas chromatograph and a UV-visible spectrophotometer were among the early acquisitions, allowing for undergraduate chemistry research that has continued ever since. (Students now enjoy research opportunities in a variety of science fields, usually collaborating with faculty.)

AHHH, THE MEMORIES, THE LEGACIES!

By the time Todd Weaver, of SC 106 chemical hood ambush fame, arrived on campus to pursue pre-medical studies, Daniel Suter was approaching the very end of his years on the EMU faculty. On his first visit to Suter鈥檚 office for an advising appointment, Weaver learned that Suter had also been Weaver鈥檚 father鈥檚 pre-med adviser years earlier, and they had corresponded for years while Weaver鈥檚 father was in medical school.

Between his graduation and the start of dental school, Weaver got married to Anne Kaufman 鈥�88. Suter 鈥� then recently retired 鈥� and his wife, Grace were in attendance, and presented the Weavers with an end table.

Suter passed in away in 2006. The next year, Weaver was elected president of the Mennonite Medical Association; joining him in the leadership of the organization was Janice Showalter, the daughter of Daniel and Grace Suter.

鈥淟ife feels like it circles sometimes, especially in a community like EMU,鈥� says Weaver.

The end table that the Suters gave him has moved with the Weavers from house to house since dental school. It remains a treasured possession that has been relocated every time in the family car rather than the moving truck, and it largely owes its prominence to the many people and memories that have and continue to inhabit the Suter Science Center.

鈥� Andrew Jenner ’04

These alumni sought to be of service amid war, disease, poverty, challenging living conditions, no transportation beyond their feet, survival-level pay, and much else. Yet many refer to feeling blessed, learning more than they were able to offer to others. “I write this article with a grateful heart,” says聽Miriam E. Krantz, who has lived, worked and studied in Nepal for 50 years.

The class of 1962 defies stereotypes of farm-raised, narrowly religious, stay-put, ethnically Swiss-Germanic Mennonites from days gone by.

Belying narrow stereotypes

Multiracial families through marriage, adoptions and in-laws are fairly common. These alumni have shown career flexibility, with lots of moving, internationally and across North America. Some have jumped to other worship settings 鈥� Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, United Church of Christ, non-denominational. The majority, though, call themselves Mennonites.

There have been divorces, and there have been lots of second, even third, marriages, typically a couple of years after the death of a spouse. Yet one divorced couple remarried each other after seven years of separation.

Some dropped out of what was then called Eastern Mennonite College (EMC) and returned to finish their bachelor鈥檚 degrees much later, as did one 41-year-old woman, who lived in various African countries for 18 years. One 35-year-old father of two entered medical school after years of nursing, first as an RN, then as a nurse with a bachelor鈥檚 degree, then as a certified registered nurse anesthetist. (Supposedly retired, this physician is now involved with the training of anesthesiologists at the national medical school of Honduras.)

Breaking new ground

Some 鈥渇irsts鈥� 鈥� first EMC grad to attend law school, first women to be church leaders in certain locations, first alum to be a tennis pro (having mastered tennis growing up in his native Japan). The class of 鈥�62 may even boast the first alumnus to take a course to prepare for conversion to Judaism (not to convert, but to help him understand the Jewish clients with whom he was doing social work).

All of this can be found in a new book, Senior Moments: Reflections from the Class of 1962, issued in 2013 through .

The genesis of the book dates to October 2012, when the class of 1962 celebrated their 鈥淛ubilee Reunion鈥� at . In the months afterwards, 103 members of the class submitted essays 鈥� or, occasionally, diary-style entries 鈥� that classmates Millard E. Showalter, Anna Kathryn Eby, Reta Finger, Dorothy Jantzi and Carroll Yoder shaped into book chapters, with the support of alumni office staffer .

Almost half of the 103 writers mention having graduate degrees (11 at the doctoral level). The most common career field mentioned is teaching 鈥� 46 percent refer to years in the classroom 鈥� with perhaps half as many alumni working in healthcare and in the ministry. There鈥檚 one full-time artist, another who picked up art upon retirement.

Most of these alumni have racked up myriad work roles. David D. Yoder, for example, was (in this order) a pastor-missionary in Costa Rica and Mexico, mission business manager in Mexico, EMC student life administrator, writer of correspondence courses for prison ministries, EMC fundraiser, president of , and a Mennonite Church overseer for missions work in Trinidad and Tobago.

After retirement, these alumni typically continue with voluntary service 鈥� such as working at stores that raise money for Mennonite Central Committee and teaching Sunday School聽 鈥� plus do gardening for food and fun.

Fruits of Spirit-led lives, courageous choices

Amid the wealth of memories in the book:

• Having interesting courtships: (1) Helen Longenecker and her future husband, Sam Lapp, kept in touch entirely by letters for two years while he worked in Honduras and she taught in Lancaster, Pa. (A stand-out memory in their 50-year marriage is attending Bob Marley鈥檚 funeral while living in Jamaica.) (2) Sam Shertzer, the future husband of nurse Alma Longnecker, tracked her down in Tocoa, Honduras, by taking the weekly plane running from the capital city to Tocoa and surprising her. He had to depart in less than a week, though, and rode a horse 10 miles to catch a train out.
• Teaching as the only white in an African American school in Powhatan, Va., and insisting that his local Mennonite church welcome blacks, over the protests of his pastor. (Alum Eli Miller got his way about the integration of that church.)
• Living in a remote part of Botswana in the late 1970s (while digging wells to help the locals access water) in a galvanized grain bin, with grass on the roof, and a door and windows cut in the walls 鈥� yielding a 鈥渟tifling hot鈥� home during the 100-plus-degree days. (John W. Eby)
• Being foster parents to a total of 50 children over the years: 鈥淎t one time I had five children under the age of six, including my own.鈥� (Rachel Frey Frerichs)
• Learning Portuguese as a 50-year-old in order to be effective as a community health nurse in Brazil. (Sara Jane Peachey Lind)
• Living in Vietnam from 1962 until 1975 as an worker, when Luke Martin, his wife and three children suddenly found themselves 鈥渉omeless, bereft of friends, and uncertain what the future held for us,鈥� as a result of the Communist victory over that country.
• Hoping to avoid the U.S. bombs exploding around him in a race to get food for his suffering Vietnamese neighbors in a refugee camp. 鈥淚n the months ahead, I鈥檇 be literally measuring building plots between gravestones.鈥� (Jim Metzler)
• Being principal, teacher, cook and janitor for 13 students in a one-room school in eastern Kentucky, accessible by crossing a swinging bridge and walking a mile and a half. (Martha Maust)
• Residing and working as a married couple in Virginia, Tanzania, Sudan, Kenya, and Ontario (Canada), before retiring in Kenya. Visiting 50 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. (Annette Wenger Miller, married to Harold)
• Skiing every winter on slopes in western U.S.A. and Europe since age 40, despite needing in recent years oxygen around the clock for an autoimmune lung disease. 鈥淚 am able to ski with oxygen in a backpack,鈥� writes Marlene Collins Showalter.
• Wondering if her guards should be allowed to fire upon attackers, perhaps killing in violation of Mennonite pacifist beliefs, when faced with the prospect of her health compound being overrun by armed Somali men, who were ransacking nearby compounds. (Naomi Weaver, a nurse, prayed fervently, along with another Mennonite nurse; the attackers hurled stones into the compound but moved on.)
• Seeing the olive trees he and others planted in support of Palestinian farmers uprooted by Israeli soldiers threatening them with American-made M-16 assault rifles. (Robert Weaver)
• Being hired by the U.S. Public Health Service as an expert in Hansen’s Disease after spending four years as a physician in centers in Ethiopia that cared for people with that disease, commonly known as leprosy. (Leo Yoder)
• Living for five decades in Nepal, usually employed by NGOs as a nutrition expert, but remaining after age 65 as a student of Nepalese music and art. (Miriam E. Krantz)
• Being involved in the struggle over equality for sexual minorities 鈥� Richard Lichty, married to classmate Mary Mosemann, lost his credentials in the late 1990s as a pastor in the Mennonite Church as a result of welcoming gays and lesbians as lead pastor in the oldest Mennonite congregation in North America, .
• Hiking 700 miles on the Appalachian Trail after retirement in 2007, with the intention of completing 1,900 miles. (Michael Mast)
• Raising children who became multicultural themselves. Ramona Horst Hartzler and her husband of 45 years, for example, have two sons: a financial analyst who married a Chinese woman and who has children fluent in English and Chinese, and a physician who married a woman reared in Paraguay and whose children speak English and Spanish.
• Encouraging their children to attend their alma mater. Living in Gainesville, Fl., Mary Ellen Lehman and her scientist-husband Paul saw their three children graduate from EMU and embark on careers in medicine, clinical psychology, and occupational therapy.

Lessons learned, gently lived

Wisdom accrued from their lives:

• 鈥淭he only important things one can wish for in our 鈥榲alley of the shadows鈥� are a human hand to hold and shared shoulders on which our tears can fall. In my experience, nothing else has really mattered.鈥� 鈥� Norman Coffman
• 鈥淲e regularly read the scriptures in Portuguese [after learning it at age 50] and I play the flute 鈥� isn鈥檛 it said that continuing with a foreign language and playing a musical instrument are good mental gymnastics for folks in their 70s?鈥� 鈥� Sara Jane Peachey Lind
  
• The desirability and even necessity, after a move-about life, to settle closer to aging parents, adult children and grandchildren 鈥� which is why, for example, Mary Rosenberger Newcomer and her husband Art moved from California to Ohio in 1977.
• Gathering a scattered family at a place of mutual enjoyment every year or two: Dorothy Martin Keim鈥檚 family of 11 gathers in Maine for a week each summer; Donella M. Clemens鈥� extended family of 15 spends a week at the beach every other year.
• 鈥淕olden twilight years bring a subtle 鈥榯ransition鈥� with more focus on 鈥榯olerance鈥� and relationships than on education, career, and accomplishments. . . We simplify our lifestyle, allowing time to meditate and enjoy our walk with Jesus and others.鈥� 鈥� Mary Wenger Becker

鈥淐lass of 鈥�62,鈥� wrote Grace Hess Wolfgang at the end of her chapter. 鈥淚 have so many wonderful memories of you creative, friendly, world-changing, God-loving, inspiring people! Life is rich and full. I feel so blessed.鈥�

鈥淒eirdre brings a wealth of experience as an outstanding teacher, scholar, and department chair,鈥� said in an April 5 email announcing the appointment to the campus community. 鈥淪he knows EMU well, having served on the faculty since 1998. She has the skills and dispositions necessary for leading the undergraduate programs into their next stage of growth and development.鈥�

Since joining the EMU faculty, Smeltzer has held increasingly responsible positions, including chair of the , 2005-2012. During 2012-13, Smeltzer had dual roles as a faculty member and director of EMU鈥檚 extensive . Smeltzer has been a member of EMU鈥檚 strategic planning council, faculty senate and undergraduate council executive committee.

Prior to coming to EMU, she served for four years on the faculty of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. She has taught courses on more than two dozen topics in her field and is author or co-author of a number of peer-reviewed articles and a textbook.

鈥淒eirdre is known by her colleagues for her excellent problem-solving and strategic-thinking skills, and for her commitment to high academic standards,鈥� said Kniss. 鈥淚 am eagerly looking forward to working with her in the years ahead as we move into an exciting period of growth and development for undergraduate programs at EMU.鈥�

Smeltzer majored in mathematics and minored in at EMU, graduating in 1987. She earned her MS and PhD in mathematics at the University of Virginia.

Recalling her undergraduate years at EMU, Smeltzer credits two professors, Millard Showalter in Calculus II and Del Snyder in Discrete Math, for nurturing her interest in higher-level mathematics. 鈥淢illard made class interesting, and I found myself doing his homework first,鈥� she recalled in an interview with the EMU alumni magazine. 鈥淚n Discrete Math, I discovered that I really loved the abstract, logical thinking required 鈥� much more than the hands-on labs of chemistry, which was another major that I was considering.鈥�

As a scholar, Smeltzer has published articles on topics such as 鈥淓dge bounds in non-hamiltonian k-connected graphs鈥� and 鈥淓xploring Loci in Geometry鈥� (both with her EMU colleague , PhD) and has given presentations on 鈥渁pplications of circular and spherical inversions,鈥� among other topics. She, Byer and a third mathematician, Felix Lazebnik, are authors of a textbook on Euclidean geometry, published by the Mathematical Association of America in 2010. A second book is in the works.

Fulfilling commitments made before her new appointment, Smeltzer will be co-leading an in the fall of 2013. She did a sabbatical in China in 2006, where she taught and wrote.

Smeltzer and husband Sherwyn, a 1986 graduate in accounting, are the parents of Meg, a senior at EMU, and Claire, enrolled at Eastern Mennonite High School.