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Fostering community The life of Dr. John R. Foster northwestern state university’s student-run newspaper
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Photo by Gary Hardamon
Dr. Foster (right) visited Baton Rouge with a group of students to strip houses after the Photo Caleb New recent flooding. He passed away on Nov. 24, 2016.
KASI PATTEN Contributing Reporter Communications professor, Dr. John Robert Foster passed away on Thursday, Nov. 24 at age 68. He spent 25 years at Northwestern State University before leaving behind a loving wife, four children and eight grandchildren. Foster’s funeral was on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at First United Methodist Church in Natchitoches. Young Army cadets lined the entrance to the sanctuary where a flag-draped coffin sat at the front. Family and friends lined the pews to remember his life and pay their respects. Foster served in the military for 20 years, pastored numerous congregations in the community and touched countless lives as an educator at NSU. As a professor, he challenged every one of his students to rebuild a caring and connected society. Beau Voinche, a senior general studies major, enrolled in Foster’s group dynamics course and expected it to be like any other speech class. “Group dynamics threw you for a loop,” Voinche said. “Not just the project you were working on, but getting to know the people you were in a group with.” Voinche explained how each individual person was integral to the group’s success. Voinche and Dr. Foster were a part of a group that stripped
houses in Baton Rouge after the summer with a vision that gave us a true purpose flooding. “All of the sudden he turned in life that was bigger than ourselves.” into Superman,” Voinche said. “He SGA President and senior outworked the five of us, and we’re all in communications major John Pearce was our twenties.” one of Foster’s advisees, and Foster was Mack McCarter, founder of integral in Pearce’s decision to become a Community Renewal in Shreveport, communications major. Louisiana, met Dr. Foster when they were During his sophomore year, Pearce teenagers and McCarter was a counselor emailed a random communications at the church camp Foster attended. professor to guide him his decision They later renewed their friendship to change majors. Dr. Foster was that while at Brite Divinity School at Texas random professor. Pearce went on to take Christian University, the seminary where courses with Dr. Foster for three years. Foster earned “His work his Master’s had a habit in Religious of making Education. you bond You never know where “ J o h n you would be if you with other was very tudents,” take one person out of sPearce interested to said. your life. - SGA President John Pearce “…You never solve basic problems know where in society,” you would be McCarter said when asked about his if you take one person out of your life.” relationship with Foster. “[He] saw the While on this Earth, Dr. John rebuilding of relational foundation that’s Robert Foster lived a life of service necessary for society, where we can come to his community, not only with his together under our capacity to care for commitment to the armed forces and one another.” education, but with helping individuals When McCarter was asked about the in any way he could. Not every NSU one thing he wanted to tell NSU students, student had the opportunity to meet Dr. he said, “If you ever wanted an effective Foster, but NSU and the surrounding role model, you don’t need to look any communities will remember him further than Dr. John Foster...He was a forever. Thank you, Dr. Foster, for man who understood that we were to live your service.