Crossroads Summer 2024

CROSSROADS

CROSSROADS

SUMMER 2024 / VOL. 105

Crossroads (USPS 174-860) is published once a year by Eastern Mennonite University for distribution to 14,000 alumni, students, parents and friends.

A leader among faith-based universities, Eastern Mennonite University values academic excellence, peace and justice, and an active faith as a community of learning. Founded in 1917, in Harrisonburg, Virginia, EMU offers undergraduate, graduate and seminary degrees that prepare students to serve and lead in a global context.

EMU’s mission statement is posted in its entirety at: emu.edu/president/mission

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

MANUEL NUÑEZ ‘94, CHAIR / Collegeville, Pa.

DIANN BAILEY / Granby, Conn.

GLORIA DIENER ‘76 / Harrisonburg, Va.

JAMES DILLER / Poolesville, Md.

ELIZABETH HEAVENER ‘07 / Doylestown, Pa.

LOUISE OTTO HOSTETTER ‘79 / Harrisonburg, Va.

MATHEW KOSHY / San Mateo, Calif.

BENY KRISBIANTO MDIV ‘15 / Philadelphia, Pa.

STEPHEN KRISS ‘94 / Philadelphia, Pa.

JANET LIND / Strasburg, Pa.

MARGIE MEJIA-CARABALLO ‘84 / Rock Island, Ill.

GORDON K. MERIWETHER MA ‘14, MDIV ’15 / Harrisonburg, Va.

J.B. MILLER ‘70 / Sarasota, Fla.

CEDRIC MOORE JR. ‘97 / Henrico, Va.

RAL OBIOHA ‘08 / Houston, Texas

JANE HOOBER PEIFER ‘74, MDIV ‘97 / Harrisonburg, Va.

GLENNA RAMER ‘77 / Graysville, Tenn.

JAMES ROSENBERGER ‘68 / State College, Pa.

RAJARSHI ROY / Takoma Park, Md.

SUSAN TAYLOR / Louisville, Ky.

CROSSROADS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

SUSAN SCHULTZ HUXMAN / President

KIRK L. SHISLER / VP for advancement

JEN KULJU / Director of marketing and communications

STAFF

JEN KULJU / editor

RYAN CORNELL / writer

MARGAUX G. JACKS / Senior graphic designer

RANDI B. HAGI / Mileposts writer

JOSETTE KEELOR / Alumni awards writer

All EMU personnel can be reached during regular business hours. Call 540-432-4000 or visit emu.edu for contact details.

POSTMASTER: Submit address changes to: Crossroads Eastern Mennonite University 1200 Park Road Harrisonburg VA 22802

FROM THE PRESIDENT

OUR ‘CUP RUNNETH OVER’ WITH GRATITUDE!

SUSAN SCHULTZ HUXMAN

Greetings, fine friends of EMU!

Early in my presidency and before the pandemic and all of the cascading economic, political and relational crises that health emergency spawned, I was often asked: “What brings you joy in your role?” One of the most beautiful aspects of my job was—and is—to offer heartfelt messages of appreciation to so many generous, bold, and compassionate EMU supporters. It is absolutely stunning the sheer number of investors who give to our students and our future!

It has been said that generosity is twice blessed. The saying applies to EMU, as many student recipients of financial assistance are blessed by your outsized generosity. EMU’s bold vision is to “open pathways of access and achievement to students who aspire to be unifying leaders.” And many of you are helping to forge new, wide pathways. Where there was once a small path, there is now a four-lane highway directed to 1200 Park Road! Scripture tells us that “the Lord loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7) and that we are “the salt of the Earth” (Matthew 5:13). Giving to people and programs you are passionate about is not only biblical, but it transforms lives and makes the world a better place!

In these pages of Crossroads, you will read about Samuel and Helen Weaver, staunch supporters of EMU students and its programs. Their “remarkable and beautiful” legacy of service and generosity will have a profound impact on CJP for many years to come, especially as it continues to adapt to the changing landscape of justice and peacebuilding needs across the globe.

You will also read about Vira Hershberger, who spent 26 years ensuring the salad bar “was immaculate and always fresh” as a dining hall employee who “loved working at EMU.” Her legacy of humble service and love lives on through a memorial endowment in her honor.

This year, thanks to all of you, we are up 30 percent in total giving to EMU! Hallelujah—and so amazing and countercultural. A spate of news sources has reported that America is in a “generosity crisis.” For the second year in a row, the philanthropy research foundation Giving USA reported a decline in the number of Americans donating to nonprofits and in the total amount of giving. I pray that we may continue to buck this trend.

Recently, I heard from an EMU student who is struggling economically—a student who has been assisted greatly by your financial assistance. She said, “I’m so grateful to the donors whose scholarship I received. By investing in me, you have invested in my community. You have invested in lifting up the marginalized to restore them. You have invested in the hope of bringing about real change of transforming our world.”

Thanks to all of you who give cheerfully and often sacrificially year after year, preparing our students “to serve and lead in a global context” in the spirit of Micah 6:8. Our cup runneth over with gratitude!

FEATURES

Professor stars in feature film, and DEI journey shines in TV spotlight.

Hear from honorees Lee Roy Berry Jr. '66; Kendra Conrad Bailey '03, MA '05; and Seth Crissman '09, MDiv '15.

HOMECOMING AND FAMILY WEEKEND

Plan your visit to campus Oct. 11-13! 8 EMU GOES TO HOLLYWOOD

ROYAL FILES 35 ALUMNI AWARDS

FIELD HOCKEY EMU's turf field and the field hockey athletes who call it home have a rich history of success.

EMU at Lancaster held its commencement ceremony on Friday, May 10, 2024, at Forest Hills Mennonite Church in Leola, Pennsylvania.

BY CHRISTY KAUFFMAN

PHOTO COMMENCEMENT 2024

Graduates and their families and friends gathered on the Front Lawn after EMU’s Commencement ceremony in May.

More than 3,000 guests attended the event.

BY

AND JON

PHOTOS

MACSON MCGUIGAN '17/EMU

STYER '07

PHOTOS

Eastern Mennonite University awarded 366 degrees at its 106th annual Commencement on Sunday, May 5, 2024. The total included 207 undergraduate degrees, 88 master’s degrees, 62 graduate certificates, five Eastern Mennonite Seminary degrees and four doctorates.

ON CAMPUS

THE ARTS

1. The EMU Chamber Singers and orchestra strings performed with the Virginia Union University (VUU) Gospel Choir and Grammy Award-winning gospel singer Hezekiah Walker for a live recording of “I Need You to Survive” at a joint concert at United Nations Church in Richmond in October. The two choirs reunited to sing “I Need You to Survive” in a Convocation concert featuring the VUU Gospel Choir during EMU’s MLK Jr. Celebration in January. The 2023-2024 school year marked the first of this musical partnership.

2. Conservation photographer Steven Johnson, professor and program director of Visual and Communication Arts (VACA) at EMU, was honored at the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2023 exhibition in London in October. His photo of a cluster of salamander eggs in a vernal pool, titled “Pool of Wonder” and shot in Virginia’s Augusta County, was one of 100 winning images chosen for inclusion in the exhibition out of roughly 50,000 entries from 95 countries. National Geographic picked his photo as one of its 13 favorites from the juried competition.

3. EMU’s 32nd annual Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, held June 9-16, featured 16 pay-whatyou-can and free on- and off-campus concerts and talks by more than 60 national and international professional orchestral musicians and soloists, including artists from EMU, JMU, Shenandoah Conservatory, and the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, as well as rising star performers from the Shenandoah Valley. Deanna Tham of the Oregon Symphony served as guest conductor and EMU’s Benjamin Bergey served as assistant conductor of the festival, which centered around the theme of “Unity.” Works ranged from J.S. Bach’s Wedding Cantata to Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony to Dohnányi’s Sextet in C Major, Op. 37 featuring prominent pianist David Berry, Bach Festival artistic director and EMU Music program director.

3.

4. The EMU Chamber Singers performed 16 concerts in eight days during its spring break tour from March 2-9 in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Stops included eight high schools in the Shenandoah Valley, six churches— including the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the largest Roman Catholic church in North America and one of the 10 largest churches in the world—the Lincoln Memorial Plaza, and The Music Hall in Orange, Virginia, for a joint concert with The Rapidan Orchestra. The Chamber Singers performed the program “Chorus of Peace: Songs of Lament and Hope,” featuring selections sung in languages including Sesotho (spoken in Lesotho and South Africa), German, Latin and Italian.

5. EMU Theatre presented a fresh twist on a classic tale in the musical theatre production of “The Little Mermaid” from April 5-14 in EMU’s MainStage Theater. Based on Disney’s beloved 1989 animated classic, the Broadway-esque show featured crowd-pleasing hits like “Under the Sea,” “Part of Your World” and “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” as well as a number of new songs found only in the musical. Directed by EMU Theatre program director Justin Poole, this KCACTF Region 2-awardwinning production featured a multigenerational cast and crew of students, alumni, faculty/staff, and community members aged elementary through high school.

6. EMU welcomed Lady Jess, Grammy Awardwinning violinist and soloing member of Beyoncé’s band, to campus in March for a master class with EMU music students and a performance in Martin Chapel celebrating music and community with faculty pianist Dr. David Berry and friends. Berry and Lady Jess, who have performed together in New York City with the Harlem Chamber Players, shared the stage at EMU with other esteemed musicians for a concert featuring jazz and popular works to classical pieces like Dvořák’s Piano Trio in F Minor, Op. 65. Lady Jess gave students “invaluable” advice about launching their careers in music, emphasizing the importance of being prepared artists and kind people, said Berry.

EMU WELCOMES NEW BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS

Two new members, James Diller and Mathew Koshy, began their terms July 1, 2024.

JAMES DILLER is a strategic advisor to investors, corporate and nonprofit boards, senior executives, and entrepreneurs. His 30-year career spans corporate finance, governance, mergers and acquisitions, real estate transactions, and workouts; it includes 12 years at a Fortune 500 company where he led corporate financial strategy teams and navigation of the global financial crisis. Diller founded Long View Capital Advisors, LLC in 2020.

His professional career began at an international economic development consulting firm where he provided financial guidance and managerial support to agribusiness development projects in Africa and Asia. Diller also served with Eastern Mennonite Missions in France, Sweden, and Hong Kong. He grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, attending Mennonite and Church of the Brethren congregations.

A Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter holder, Diller is a graduate of American University and Hesston College. He is married to Jolene Houser ‘81.

MATHEW KOSHY is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite High School (’74) and holds a PhD in applied mathematics (’83) from Stony Brook University with an emphasis in numerical analysis. He taught mathematics at the undergraduate and graduate levels in the California State University system for five years. Since then, he has worked as a research mathematician, computer scientist and engineer specializing in imaging, statistical signal processing, and semiconductor design and analysis at the University of California San Francisco and at several companies in California’s Bay Area.

Koshy and his wife, Rebecca, live in San Mateo, California, and are active members of the Burlingame Presbyterian Church where he has served as a member of the Session and Board of Trustees. The couple has two adult sons, who live in California and Texas.

LEGACY SPOTLIGHT

DONORS GIVE GENEROUSLY TO EMU

HELEN AND SAMUEL WEAVER died in July 2012 and February 2023, respectively, but their legacy of service and generosity lives on through a $1.54 million bequest to establish the Samuel H. and Helen W. Weaver Family Peacebuilding Endowment to support the vision and mission of the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP). It ranks among the top five largest endowment gifts to EMU in its 106year history.

The Weavers were staunch supporters of EMU students and its programs. They were members of Park View Mennonite Church and had close friends in the EMU community, including Wendy Lederach and Don and Margaret Foth. Don, an administrator emeritus at EMU who died on March 27, volunteered at CJP in his retirement. “The Weavers would have heard many stories from the Foths of CJP students, especially those coming from other parts of the world,” said CJP Advancement Director Lindsay Martin. “I think Sam connected with those stories and CJP’s global emphasis, particularly because of his own experiences working in other countries.”

Samuel Weaver started working for the U.S. Foreign Service in 1955 and was stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador from 1958 to 1960 and in Brazil from 1961 to 1963. He then worked in the Latin American section of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research at the U.S. State Department. She worked for Mennonite Central Committee in Akron, Pennsylvania, and for the National Service Board for Religious Objectors in D.C. where the two met and married in 1967. They moved to St. Clairsville, Ohio, and retired in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Samuel Weaver continued to support CJP after his wife’s death. In 2019, he established a $50,000 endowed scholarship fund that provides need-based financial support to students in CJP’s graduate program. In April 2022, he and his sons finalized the endowment funding plan to include CJP in his estate plans.

VIRA HERSHBERGER

dedicated herself each day to arranging the salad bar and greeting everyone she met with warmth and friendliness during her 26 years as a dining hall employee at Eastern Mennonite College from 1970 to 1996. Hershberger passed away at age 100 in November 2022, but her legacy of humble service and love lives on through the Vira Miller Hershberger Memorial Endowment to Support Food Service.

The endowment provides annual support for EMU dining services, helping to fund the maintenance of dining facilities, replacement of kitchen equipment, and staffing support. “I love that we get to honor her and her work, as well as the work of all those people behind the scenes who often don’t get recognition,” said her daughter, Joann Henderson MA ‘07 (counseling). Her son, Larry Hershberger, and his three siblings established the endowment on behalf of the family.

Vira Hershberger grew up during the Great Depression in Wellman, Iowa, helping to support her family of five brothers and two sisters. She left home at 17 to work as a housekeeper for the superintendent of Lancaster County Schools in Pennsylvania, and excelled at various roles including as a clerk in the general store in Frytown, Iowa, where she met her husband, Reaford Hershberger. Upon relocating to Harrisonburg, Virginia, he took a job heading the building and grounds at EMU, and she was hired as a salad cook in the dining hall. Henderson recalls her mother having “a great deal of pride in her salad bar.” “It was immaculate and always fresh.”

Kirk Shisler ‘81, vice president for advancement, highlighted the significance of the Hershberger family’s gift. “What’s special is that it illuminates the life and legacy of their beloved mother. And, because it’s an endowment, it will have a sustained impact in supporting EMU food services, especially kitchen operations, for many years to come.”

When acclaimed filmmaker Ava DuVernay (pictured top left) was searching for someone to portray Indian scholar and social reformer Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in her movie, “Origin,” she wanted someone who could inhabit the part.

That someone turned out to be Dr. Gaurav J. Pathania, assistant professor of sociology and peacebuilding at EMU, an anti-caste activist and lifelong Ambedkarite. Pathania, who worked to help Seattle become the first U.S. city to ban caste-based discrimination last year, made his acting debut when “Origin” released in theaters on Jan. 19.

The drama, written and directed by DuVernay and starring Aunjanue EllisTaylor, follows journalist Isabel Wilkerson on her journey in writing her 2020 New York Times bestseller “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.” As Wilkerson, portrayed by Ellis-Taylor (“King Richard”), endures personal losses and dives into her writing, she travels abroad and digs deep into historical examples of caste systems.

From a review in The New York Times: “One is set in Nazi Germany in the 1930s, another in Depression-era Mississippi and a third in India over different time periods. This last interlude focuses on Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar (Gaurav J. Pathania) who helped to draft India’s Constitution and championed the rights of Dalits, people once deemed ‘untouchables.’”

Ambedkar “is the most important figure in politics in India,” said Pathania, who is originally from India. “He’s like the MLK of India… Every day of his life was spent bringing some social change and structural change.”

The EMU professor appears in Ambedkar’s trademark three-piece suit and tie, his hair

'Origin' EMU PROFESSOR STARS IN EMU HOLLYWOOD Film

slicked back and his eyes behind a pair of thick-rimmed round glasses. If he appears stouter on the screen, it’s because he donned a fat suit for the role. Researchers for the movie spent two years learning all they could about the historic figure, including which books he carried and what types of pens he used.

Before the cameras started rolling on the “first Hollywood movie that offers an introductory portrayal of Ambedkar,” DuVernay offered some tips to the acting newbie: “You’ve studied this man your whole life, so just think about him when you’re on set. You don’t need any training. You have him in your heart,” recalled Pathania, who traveled to Savannah, Georgia, on three separate occasions to film his non-speaking role that totals a handful of minutes.

Pathania, who mentors emerging scholars through the Ambedkar International Center Authors’ Lab, landed the role by answering an open casting call submitted to the online Ambedkarite community in October 2022. He said he went through a lengthy audition process and was selected from a coupledozen others.

“I asked Ava, ‘How did you choose me?’” said Pathania. “And, she said, ‘We weren’t just looking for the facial resemblance, but also looking for the scholarly resemblance, because you are a professor and you are an Ambedkarite who has been teaching for a long time and your scholarship is around caste.’”

“Origin” has a runtime of two hours and 15 minutes. It is rated PG-13 for thematic material involving racism, violence, some disturbing images, language and smoking.

GOES HOLLYWOOD

'Viewpoint’ Premiere

CELEBRATES

DEI ON CAMPUS

The world premiere of EMU’s “Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid” video at the Campus Center on March 21 was glitzy, glamorous and grand. It had all the star power of a Hollywood awards show; actors Dennis Quaid and Billy Porter made video appearances. It had the high-energy feel of a rockin’ club thanks to bachata lessons from the Latinx Student Alliance and a DJ-led dance party. And, those who attended the premiere said it showed how far EMU has come in its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

The nationally-syndicated, short-form documentary focuses on EMU and its approach to advancing DEI as a peace and justice university. The “Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid” crew filmed footage on the Harrisonburg, Virginia, campus in late October. The four-and-a-half-minute episode was distributed to public television affiliates nationwide in April and aired in all 50 states for an estimated reach of more than 60-million households. The video features shots of students on campus and interviews with EMU President Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman, Dr. Jackie Font-Guzmán, inaugural vice president for DEI and Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce 2023 Diversity Business Leadership Award recipient, as well as alumnus DeVantae Dews ‘19.

“It is the first time in university history that EMU has been showcased on such a grand national scale,” said Harrisonburg Mayor and then-EMU Regional Advancement Director Deanna Reed, who served as a host for the event along with Braydon Hoover, then-associate vice president for advancement at EMU.

In addition to the documentary episode, a 30-second promo for EMU aired on news networks including CNN, CNN Headline News, MSNBC, CNBC, Fox News, Fox Business Network, TLC, Travel, and Discovery. The promo video had an estimated reach of more than 85-million households.

About 200 students, faculty, staff and community members packed Martin Greeting Hall inside the Campus Center for the watch party. They snacked on food from Korean restaurant Mashita, noshed from a mac ’n’ cheese bar, sipped mocktails from Merge Coffee Roasters, and indulged in treats from BMC Bakes, Pioneer Catering, and PrePOPsterous Gourmet Popcorn.

Huxman shared in her remarks the progress the university has made in its DEI journey. In 2017, 25 percent of first-year students at EMU identified as persons of color. In 2024, that figure rose to 44 percent of first-year students. Other steps forward include: the hiring of an inaugural vice president of DEI in 2021, making DEI an essential part of onboarding for EMU faculty and staff, and putting inclusivity at the center of EMU’s five-year strategic plan “Pathways of Promise.”

Huxman said the producers of the “Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid” series were motivated to “find the gems” where DEI has taken root in positive ways and chose EMU as a shining example.

PHOTOS BY MACSON MCGUIGAN

EMU VOICES JOIN FOR PEACE IN GAZA

In a stirring display of solidarity, a group of about 200 protesters gathered outside City Hall in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in February calling for an end to the violence in Gaza.

A large contingent of passionate EMU students, faculty and staff were among the protesters who held signs and banners with demands such as: “Ceasefire Now,” “Let Gaza Live,” “Stop Genocide in Gaza” and “Free All Hostages and Prisoners.”

They joined together in nearly an hour of hymns led by Benjamin Bergey, assistant professor of music at EMU, and Dorothy Jean Weaver ‘72, emeritus professor at Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

While the protesters lifted their voices in song and prayed for peace, Tim Seidel, associate professor of peacebuilding, development and global studies at EMU, and Emily Hershberger MA ‘12 hand-delivered a petition to Harrisonburg City Manager Ande Banks ‘97 inside City Hall.

More than 500 local signatures were attached to the petition, which urged Harrisonburg City Council to pass a resolution supporting a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. (City Council passed a resolution a week later.)

Seidel organized the protest along with the local committee of Mennonite Action. The primary goals of the Mennonite Action grassroots movement are a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, a release of all hostages, and an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

In March, EMU students, faculty and staff continued to organize peaceful actions to call on support for a cease-fire. For three days, students rang the campus bell every four seconds for the more than 33,000 people killed in Palestine and Israel since Oct. 7. Prior to these actions, the EMU Student Government Association had sent a letter to the administration and Board of Trustees asking for a statement in support of a cease-fire in Gaza.

EMU urges Congress, President to call for a cease-fire in Gaza

The EMU President’s Office released a statement on March 19 condemning the violence in Israel and Palestine and calling for policymakers to take measures to prevent the further loss of civilian life.

The statement was sent to all EMU faculty, staff and students at the Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, campuses. The full text of the statement, titled “A Path Forward: EMU’s Statement on Peace and Justice in Israel-Palestine,” was posted online at: emu.edu/president

In the statement, EMU President Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman, with support from the EMU Board of Trustees, urged Congress and the presidential administration to:

• Call for a significant humanitarian pause—including a cease-fire in Gaza—to save lives

• Prioritize and protect all civilians, securing humanitarian aid into Gaza and working to secure the release of all hostages

• Urge all parties to fully respect international humanitarian law

Excerpts from the statement were sent to members of the U.S. Congress who represent Virginia, as well as the Biden administration.

The statement affirmed that EMU will continue providing a safe, supportive and inclusive teaching and learning environment for a diversity of views. It also clarified that EMU’s investment portfolio does not hold any shares in companies doing business in Israel-Palestine or any other war-torn countries.

EMU’s commitments to peace and justice in Israel and Palestine were first outlined on Dec. 6, 2023, in a “Reaffirmation of EMU as a Peace and Justice University” message that followed its “Prayer for Peace in Israel and Palestine” in October.

In February, protesters marched to City Hall in Harrisonburg, Virginia, where they sang hymns and demanded a permanent cease-fire to the fighting in Gaza.

PHOTO BY MACSON MCGUIGAN

BY

FIRST MUSIC AND PEACEBUILDING GRAD

After her first two semesters at EMU, Maggie Garber McClary ‘24 had an idea for a major that would combine the two areas she loved studying most: music and peacebuilding. "I approached EMU Music Professor Benjamin Bergey and asked him, ‘What would it look like to pair them?’ He told me, ‘This is crazy, but there’s this major I’ve been working on.' It was this moment of total serendipity.”

In 2019, Bergey began developing an undergraduate music and peacebuilding major following his dissertation work on the topic. He had been seeking approval to add the major when McClary approached him with her idea. The first-ofits-kind major, available only at EMU, trains students to creatively transform conflict by using music to build common ground, facilitate healing and create a space of storytelling. It was formally added to EMU’s list of majors in 2021.

McClary became the first graduate of the major in May. Three other EMU students, senior Reah Clymer and juniors Eli Stoll and Miriam Rhodes, will follow. Bergey said McClary is “a wonderful first graduate as she exemplifies the ethos of the major.” “Maggie is deeply empathetic, seeking to listen and care well for others. She cares about justice at any level of life and infuses music into all she does.”

McClary grew up in Broadway, Virginia, with music all around her. She learned to play the piano at a young age, performing hymn melodies at Grace Mennonite Fellowship Church, and then mastered the guitar. At Broadway High

School, she was part of the auditioned choirs, participated in musicals during each of her four years, and competed in the marching band and color guard. As she sharpened her musical abilities, she became more active in peace and justice causes. McClary participated in the March for Our Lives (2018) in D.C. to oppose gun violence, attended Mennonite Convention, and was one of the first members of the Virginia Mennonite Youth Council.

As a student at EMU, McClary was active in events with Mennonite Action, a grassroots movement committed to public actions to bring a lasting peace in Israel and Palestine. This past winter, she took part in a march and hymn-sing outside City Hall in Harrisonburg, calling on city leaders to support a cease-fire. McClary was also a member of the Chamber Singers, an auditioned touring choir that uses music to build connection and community.

For her senior capstone project, McClary hosted a “Musical Haven” space in the Student Union where anyone could join her in playing instruments that included singing bowls, gourd rattles, a mandolin, two guitars and a cajon drum.

“Music is a powerful tool for emotional, social and even physical healing,” said McClary.

Learn more about the music and peacebuilding major at: emu.edu/music/peacebuilding

SPOTLIGHT

Maggie Garber McClary, left, performs with the EMU Chamber Singers at The Music Room in Orange, Virginia, during the group's spring break tour. McClary is the first graduate of the music and peacebuilding program at EMU.

PHOTO

MACSON MCGUIGAN

PARTNERS IN PERFORMANCE CROSSTOWN CONNECTION

EMU ATHLETES SHARPEN THEIR MENTAL PERFORMANCE THROUGH PARTNERSHIP WITH JMU

Anew partnership between Eastern Mennonite University and James Madison University provides EMU Athletics with sports psychology services at no cost. JMU doctoral students from the Challace J. McMillin Center for Sports Psychology work with athletes, teams and coaches in counseling sessions and mental performance workshops at EMU while earning hours of valuable practicum experience for their graduate studies.

The McMillin Center, led by Director Dr. Bob Harmison, offers programs on how mental skills can increase performance both on and off the field.

Some of its workshops teach athletes how to prepare for competitions, manage performance anxiety, enhance focus and maintain motivation.

Casey Steinbrecher, head coach of women’s volleyball at EMU, lauded Harmison as “one of the most prominent people in the nation for what he does.”

“To have him and the McMillin Center just down the road as a resource, we are super lucky to have that, and we’re grateful,” he said.

Steinbrecher, former associate head volleyball coach at JMU, left the Dukes to join EMU in 2020. He said his EMU volleyball players worked with

JMU doctoral student Tahlia WilsonNealy every other week during the 2023 season on building confidence and being relentless as well as on in-match strategies for performing better.

“They just love having someone to talk to,” he said. “Having someone teach us and work with us on mental performance is huge. And it was exciting to watch how we were performing better in bigger matches.”

For the past several years, graduate students (like Wilson-Nealy) from the McMillin Center have offered sports psychology services to EMU Athletics through a team-by-team partnership.

The EMU women's volleyball team huddles around head coach Casey Steinbrecher. Players worked with a JMU doctoral student on confidence and strategy every other week during the 2023 season.

PHOTO BY DBE PHOTOGRAPHY

This year marked the first that a student from the program was fully embedded on campus in EMU Counseling Services and was available to all student-athletes.

JMU doctoral student Lauren Shoss met with athletes and teams for 10 hours each week. She conducted workshops for teams—including baseball, men’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s volleyball, field hockey, lacrosse, and softball—on topics such as bouncing back quickly from mistakes, setting goals, and preparing for performance. Some of her work with individual athletes focused on achieving their performance-related goals or tackling their stress, anxiety, or mood fluctuations.

"If an athlete is feeling like they can't focus when they're in a game, we do a lot of work around attentional control," Shoss said.

During the fall semester, Shoss worked with EMU softball players to help them process their grief after the loss of teammate Sara Monger, a first-year student from Elkton, Virginia, who died in a car accident in October.

The partnership with JMU and the McMillin Center officially began in October and ran through the end of the academic year. The McMillin Center has worked with other colleges but not to the same degree as EMU.

“I know that, at least within our ODAC colleagues, having free access to sports psychology services does not seem to be the norm,” said EMU Director of Athletics Carrie Bert. “It’s an extra resource for us to make sure that we’re doing everything we can for studentathletes here to find success in a variety of ways.”

#5

Sara Monger remembered

Sara Monger, a first-year EMU student and softball player from Elkton, Virginia, lost her life in a car accident on Oct. 28 in Harrisonburg. Monger was known by many for her unwavering kindness and adventuresome spirit and was described by her Northlawn hallmates as “the life of the floor.” Friends were quick to remember Sara’s infectious smile and how she lit up a room.

Throughout the 2024 softball season, Monger’s teammates honored her in a variety of ways:

• The team had a #5 patch (Monger’s jersey number) sewn onto all their jerseys for the season.

• Players wore practice shirts with her name and number on the back.

• A memorial banner in right field displayed her picture and nickname (“Shmong”).

• In their team photo for the website, players held her #5 jersey. The jersey was taken to every game and displayed in the dugout.

• A tree was planted in her memory above the softball field prior to the final home game of the season.

• Multiple games during the season featured moments of silence to remember her.

Players on the EMU men’s soccer team walk out onto the field during the ODAC quarterfinals against Shenandoah University in Winchester in October. The team worked with a JMU doctoral student on topics such as bouncing back quickly from mistakes, setting goals, and preparing for performance.

PHOTO BY ANDREW

Healing HARM

CJP ALUMNA LEADS CHARLOTTESVILLE RESTORATIVE JUSTICE PROGRAM

ERIN CAMPBELL MA ‘22 (CONFLICT TRANSFORMATION) is using the skills she acquired from EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) to heal harms in her community.

Campbell is co-director of Central Virginia Community Justice (CVCJ).

One of CVCJ’s programs is a partnership with the Commonwealth’s Attorneys’ offices in Charlottesville and Albemarle County and public defender’s office to divert criminal cases away from the courts and into a restorative justice process. CVCJ offers a way for people to make amends directly to those they have harmed as an alternative to prosecution.

Rather than focus on punishment, restorative justice (RJ) programs like CVCJ emphasize healing and safety.

participants—those responsible for harm, those who were harmed, and anyone else affected—to share their experiences, acknowledge the harm done, and agree on a resolution to repair it. Proponents of RJ say the process encourages trust and accountability, supports the needs of those who were harmed, and results in lower recidivism rates than the traditional legal system.

“Instead of isolating people in jail or through a sterile criminal legal process, we’re connecting people to empathetic facilitators who treat everyone with dignity and who center the needs of the harmed person and the safety of the community,” Campbell said.

Since its start in 2022, CVCJ has successfully resolved about 35 incidents of harm. These include assault and battery, embezzlement, racialized

vandalism, hit-and-run, and a DUI, among other felony and misdemeanor charges.

During her third year at EMU, as she searched for a practicum, Campbell learned about an RJ pilot program beginning to take shape in nearby Charlottesville. The pilot, which would later become CVCJ, sprung from a collaboration between Albemarle County Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Neal MA ‘11, Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney Joe Platania, and the Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice at CJP. Tarek Maassarani, an RJ practitioner and visiting professor at CJP, served as an adviser to the project.

Campbell started her practicum with the program in January 2022, just as it launched. The first cohort of facilitators received training in RJ practices over the next two months, guided by the

experts at CJP, and began taking their first cases that spring.

Campbell said CVCJ is different from other diversion programs in ensuring that its services are offered at no cost and that its facilitators reflect the gender, race and age of participants whenever they can. The facilitators are also paid more than a living wage, she added.

“Many diversion programs only use volunteer facilitators, which typically means a select demographic of people… generally older, white, retired folks,” Campbell said. “Plenty of those folks make great facilitators, but the demographic doesn’t represent the diversity of participants we actually service.”

Each month, CVCJ adds one to two new cases, including noncriminal situations such as a conflict between teachers in a school or a harm that those

PHOTO BY MACSON MCGUIGAN

involved in would rather not report to police. CVCJ is also starting to offer training in restorative practices to schools, organizations, and individuals.

“As we know, restorative justice moves at the speed of trust,” Campbell said. “We’re lucky to have the partners we have in the public defender’s office and in both Commonwealth’s Attorneys’ offices. Even with that, turning around a criminal legal system that’s existed for a couple hundred years is like turning around an ocean liner. Luckily, we’re patient people.”

Learn more about CVCJ at: communityjusticeva.org

EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding is internationally known for its focus and expertise in restorative justice. CJP is home to the nation’s first graduatelevel program related to RJ and attracts students from all over the world. The Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice is a program of CJP that hosts conferences, webinars and courses to facilitate conversations and cultivate connections around RJ. Its inaugural RJ Day was held in April and brought together participants to connect, build relationships, and share ideas and practices with one another.

Participants at the inaugural Zehr Institute RJ Day in April share ideas with one another during a conversation circle. The Zehr Institute collaborated with the Commonwealth’s Attorneys’ offices in Charlottesville and Albemarle County to form the pilot program that would later become Central Virginia Community Justice.

WMillportRoad

EMU at L ancaster

Stauffers of Kissel Hill Sheetz

ON THE MOVE

EMU at L ancaster

Buckwalter Road

Millport Road

L ancaster Airpor t

To PA Turnpik

EMU AT LANCASTER RELOCATES TO NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART BUILDING

Neffsville

To Harrisburg

EMU at Lancaster relocated its campus from the Greenfield Corporate Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to the Listrak building in Lititz, Pennsylvania, earlier this summer.

The university occupies a 15,000-square-foot space on the second floor of 100 West Millport Road in Warwick Township, which is owned and occupied by eCommerce tech company Listrak Inc. EMU at Lancaster executed a multi-year lease and performed some minor upgrades to property infrastructure, information technology and communications capabilities.

The new location provides state-of-theart facilities for learning with classrooms, a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) training laboratory, designated student advisory areas, a cafeteria and coffee bar, ample parking, and outdoor space.

In addition to Listrak, EMU joined building tenants Foundry 48, an event venue, and pediatric physical therapy facility Now I Can.

According to Listrak CEO Ross Kramer, the company embraced a hybrid work model, prompting the decision to bring in outside tenants.

“Like many commercial landlords, we reevaluated our physical properties and determined that we did not need the entire 93,000 square feet of our headquarters building,” said Kramer. “As strong supporters of STEM education, we felt that EMU at Lancaster would be a great fit and believe the new space will provide a learning environment

conducive to students’ academic and professional growth.”

EMU at Lancaster was at its former location for almost 28 years. The new home offers convenient access to Lancaster Airport; flight training partner Aero-Tech Services, Inc.; and a growing network of partnerships with long-term care facilities in the region. The school offers a CNA program and a bachelor of science in leadership and organizational management (LOM) with an aviation concentration. Drone technology education will be added to the program this year.

L ancaster

EMU at Lancaster provides a range of online degree and certificate programs, including a master of arts in education degree with a nationally-recognized

certificate in trauma and resilience and several other areas of specialization. Additionally, students who have taken courses from a technical, community, or four-year college can transfer those credits into the LOM bachelor of science degree completion program.

“The needs of today’s workforce are constantly changing,” said Dr. Christine A. Sharp, executive director at EMU at Lancaster. “EMU is committed to providing post-secondary education and professional development training that offers students a competitive advantage. Our mission is to ensure that those who complete our programs are well-prepared to make valuable contributions to the workforce and communities.”

FIELD HOCKEY

TALES FROM THE

TURF

EMU’s field hockey coaches, players share stories and successes through the years

BY RYAN CORNELL

WWhen Eastern Mennonite University built a turf field in 1989, it became the first school in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) to do so. EMU’s field hockey athletes, who began playing on the field that fall, welcomed the switch from grass to artificial turf. The new surface complemented the speedy and skilled set of players; they could move the ball up the pitch faster and with more control and pass and shoot with more accuracy and power. The other schools in the ODAC were less than thrilled with the change, recounts Sandy Brownscombe, coach of the EMU team from 1978-1993.

“Everybody was upset,” she said. “They thought we had an unfair advantage. There was even discussion that we shouldn’t be allowed to host the conference tournament if we were the No. 1 seed.”

Fortunately, for EMU and for the future of field hockey, those discussions soon ground to a halt. Eventually, the other ODAC schools, as well as countless high schools and colleges across the country, installed turf fields for their own field hockey programs.

“It’s the way the game was meant to be played,” Brownscombe said.

A SPORT WITH SUCCESS

EMU’s turf field, along Park Road north of Suter Science Center, has witnessed the school’s leading scorers and legendary

goalkeepers play on its pitch. Field hockey has more athletes inducted in EMU’s Hall of Honor (18 players) and more teams in the hall (two: the 1980 and 1995 squads) than any other sport at the school. By comparison, men’s soccer, which has the second-most inductees, has 12 players and one team in the hall. Two coaches who led the field hockey program, Brownscombe and Miriam “Mim” Mumaw ‘61, are also in the hall.

EMU field hockey teams have won 11 ODAC titles and appeared at 11 national tournaments (two Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women [AIAW] and nine National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA] tournaments). The 1995 team, which advanced further than any other in school history, competed in the final four of the NCAA Division III field hockey tournament and placed third in the country.

From 1979 to 2003, Royals field hockey celebrated an unparalleled streak of success with teams advancing every year during those 25 seasons to the final four of their conference—the Virginia Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (VAIAW) from 1979-1981 and the ODAC from 1982-2003. For six straight seasons, from 1995 to 2000,

“In my many years at EMU, I’ve experienced both the joy of new turf fields and the agony of seeing them in desperate need of replacement. A quality field provides consistency, allowing players to focus on the game and perform at their highest level. I am delighted that EMU is investing in a new turf field and am committing $10,000 toward the project. I invite my former players and all EMU alumni who have been blessed through their collegiate athletic experience to join me in supporting this important effort.”

— Sandy Brownscombe, EMU Women’s Field Hockey Head Coach (1978-1993), 2004 Hall of Honor inductee

In celebration of Coach Browncombe’s legacy and generous support of the turf field project, we have established the Sandy Brownscombe Circle of Champions. Please join Sandy’s Circle with your gift of $1,000 or more. Give today at emu.edu/campaign, or contact Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement, at kirk.shisler@emu.edu for details. Multi-year commitments are also welcome!

EMU field hockey went undefeated in ODAC play. (The 1987 and 2007 teams were also undefeated in the ODAC.)

AN ERA BEGINS

Field hockey’s start in America is credited to Constance Applebee who played the sport in England and introduced it while on a tour of northeastern U.S. women’s colleges in 1901. She served as athletic director of Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania from 1904-1928 and co-founded the American Field Hockey Association.

It began as a club sport at EMU in 1970 under Mumaw, a trailblazing athletic director who coached the women’s basketball (1966-1975) and women’s volleyball (1968-1979) teams.

Before that, students interested in field hockey like Fannie Bomberger Miller ‘71 played on area club teams composed of coaches from nearby schools and colleges.

“When I would tell kids from Virginia that I played hockey, they were like, ‘What’s that?’” said Miller, who came to EMU from Manheim, Pennsylvania. She played on the Shenandoah Valley club team from 1967-1968. By the time EMU fielded its own team, Miller said, she was too busy with her nursing coursework to join.

A group of students from the Lancaster, Pennsylvania, area had played field hockey in high school and wanted to start a team at EMU, Mumaw said. So, she volunteered to get them started, serving as inaugural coach for that first season. Field hockey became a varsity sport at EMU in 1971, with coach Dianne Gates taking the helm for four years.

“I was more of a faculty adviser than a coach,” Mumaw said. “Dianne’s the one who developed the program.”

The Title IX Act of 1972 mandated equal funding for women’s sports. “A lot of the expansion in women’s athletics came from that,” Mumaw said. “We were fortunate to have Madison College (now JMU) and Bridgewater College close by because we could play them in almost any sport.”

In those days, EMU’s women athletes competed in the AIAW. EMU became

one of the founding members of the ODAC in 1976, beginning with men’s sports. ODAC added women’s sports in 1982.

When Mumaw left EMU in 1979 for a sabbatical-turned-permanent residency in Washington, D.C, she rented out her basement to Brownscombe for a year. Brownscombe, who also coached the women’s basketball (1978-1989) and men’s volleyball (1991-1998) teams, led the field hockey program for 16 seasons.

THE 1980 TEAM

For as long as EMU has fielded a team— and even longer, Pennsylvania and the Lancaster region has been a hotbed of field hockey talent. As a coach, Brownscombe ran a field hockey camp at Camp Hebron (Pennsylvania) during the summers that helped to recruit players to EMU. In fact, a majority of the players throughout EMU’s history began playing the sport in high schools around Pennsylvania.

“The rest of the hockey world had not figured out, until we started getting really good, how great these Lancaster County girls were,” Brownscombe said. “Then they began to realize, ‘Oh, these kids are great players, they’re great people, and they’re great students.’”

For an example of their integrity, look no further than the 1980 AIAW regional tournament match between EMU and Mary Washington. That game ended in a 0-0 tie, and both teams headed to a separate practice field for penalty strokes. When a Mary Washington player took her first penalty stroke, the ball slipped past EMU goalkeeper Shirley Yoder

Faust and through a hole in the net. The umpire, unaware of the hole, signaled a missed shot. It was then, Brownscombe said, that Faust approached the umpire and pointed out the hole.

“They came up to me, and the umpire asked, ‘Why would your goalie tell me it was a goal when I said it wasn’t?’” Brownscombe said. “Shirley looked at me and said, ‘Because it’s the truth,’ and the official just shook her head.”

That 1980 team, which went on to win those penalty strokes, finished third at the state tournament and second at the regional tournament. That year marked the first time Royals field hockey, or any sports team at the school, would qualify for a national tournament. It finished 13th and was inducted in the Hall of Honor in 2012.

“The players on that team saw the transition of field hockey at EMU from just another team to one that had to be reckoned with,” Brownscombe said.

THE ‘HAY’ DAYS OF HOCKEY

Before the turf field arrived on campus, the field hockey players practiced and played on a grass field that ran from the top of the tennis courts to the physical plant, through what is now the softball field.

Brownscombe recalled regularly painting lines on the field with the soccer coach, whose field was next to them, where the new track complex is. One year, she said, her players arrived at the field and found the grass so long it looked like hay.

“Fortunately, one of the captains had worked at the physical plant all summer

EMU ATHLETICS

HALL OF HONOR

PLAYERS (YEARS GRADUATED)

MELANIE GEHRET BAKER (1983)

CHERYL BERGEY DERSTINE (1985)

LINDA BURKHART MYERS (1986)

ANN WENGER WHIPPLE (1988)

TINA BOOK (1991)

RADELLA TODD VROLIJK (1992)

JEANÉ HORNING HERSHEY (1994)

JEN KOOKER PEIFER (1996)

CANDANCE SAUDER KING (1996)

KRISTA EBERSOLE SENSENIG (1997)

KIRSTEN (BRUBAKER) FUHR (1998)

SHERRI ALLEBACH VASS (1999)

LAURA HESS (2000)

SARA NISSLEY (2000)

KRISTIN MOYER VASEY (2003)

JONALYN DENLINGER (2005)

KRISTINA LANDIS YODER (2008)

ALYSSA DERSTINE LANDIS (2010)

COACHES (YEARS INDUCTED)

MIRIAM MUMAW (2002)

SANDRA BROWNSCOMBE (2004)

TEAMS (YEARS INDUCTED)

1980 FIELD HOCKEY TEAM (2012)

1995 FIELD HOCKEY TEAM (2008)

The 1980 Royals field hockey team finished third at the state tournament and second at the regional tournament. That year marked the first time Royals field hockey, or any sports team at the school, would qualify for a national tournament. It finished 13th and was inducted in the Hall of Honor in 2012.

PHOTO BY SCOTT EYRE PHOTOGRAPHY

and was allowed to drive a truck, so the other players could throw the grass in it,” she said. “Sure, it was frustrating, but that’s what we did.”

Field hockey and soccer players often had to stop practices for cross-country meets, which ran right across the 50-yard line of our grass fields. When they did get to play, it was in front of a passionate group of fans: the boys in the three-story Oakwood dormitory.

“They were rowdy,” Brownscombe said. “They would be watching out their windows and be shouting at the players.”

THE ‘90S TEAMS

Tina Book ‘91 played on the field hockey team for four seasons in the late 1980s and returned to coach the team in 1994 after Brownscombe left. She remembered playing on the turf field the first year it was installed.

“It made the game faster, and it also allowed us to score more,” the 1989 ODAC Player of the Year said. “I feel like we were so adaptive to the turf.”

Indeed, all of the top scorers in the EMU record books—players like Jeané Horning Hershey ‘94—made their mark on the turf. Hershey, once the career record leader in goals and points scored, now ranks sixth in career goals and eighth in career points at EMU.

In 1992 and 1993, the Royals defeated rival and perennial ODAC powerhouse Lynchburg College in back-to-back conference finals matches to advance to the first round of the national tournament. It was the start of seven national tournament appearances that decade. (The Royals returned to the national tournament in 2000 and 2003.)

“We had a good camaraderie, and I don’t remember any drama,” said Hershey, whose jersey number (No. 21) is retired by EMU Athletics. “I just remember working hard and doing the best we could.”

Former goalkeeper Jen Kooker Peifer ’96, who played on the team from 1992-1995, held the career saves record for 23 years before it was broken in 2018 by Kelsey Troyer. Peifer’s career save percentage record (89.8 percent) remains intact. She was inducted in the Hall of Honor as an athlete and as a member of the 1995 team.

That ‘95 squad posted a remarkable 21-2 overall record, an 8-0 conference record and a historic run to the final four at nationals. “I think that’s one of the best teams that EMU has ever had in any sport,” Peifer said.

When Kristina Landis Yoder ’09 joined the field hockey team in 2006, she had heard all about its history of success. “There was definitely a sense of honor in carrying on those traditions,” she said. “We always had pride in being a small but mighty team.”

Yoder recounted starting each morning of preseason practice with a three-mile run, followed by three practices held throughout the day. During her playing career, from 2006-2008, the team led by coach Brenda Bechler made it to the ODAC finals every year only to be defeated by Lynchburg each time. Their first meeting, in 2006, ended in a tie and went into a second overtime before Lynchburg prevailed in penalty strokes. “I don’t think there was any other game in my career that all of us played so hard and ran so hard,” she said. “That year, they didn’t expect us to make it that far, and we did. It was exhilarating and fun and by far the most memorable game I’ve ever played.”

A BRIGHT FUTURE

In February 2024, Chardonnay “Char” Hope took the reins as the new field hockey coach. She succeeds Ashley “Stick” Kishorn, who had coached the team since 2017.

Prior to coming to EMU, Hope was the head field hockey coach at ODAC school Ferrum College. She said she had researched the Royals’ success, and it was what drew her to taking the job.

“A championship history and a winning mindset is embedded in the roots of this program,” Hope said. “There are many athletes and coaches who have paved the way for our current team and me.”

TURF AS OLD AS TIME

The EMU turf field has a rich history. Its playing surface, which was last replaced in 2006, is now used by the men’s and women’s soccer teams and women’s lacrosse team, in addition to the field hockey team. But, after 18 years of dutiful service, it’s showing its age. The turf no longer has the same bounce or cushion it once had. Sections of the surface are peeling away, presenting a safety hazard to the athletes who use it.

“Replacing the turf field is absolutely necessary to avoid injuries and attract the level of players that will build a winning team,” Hershey said.

Peifer agreed with her former teammate: “If you want athletes to come to EMU, having top-tier athletic facilities is paramount. When they’re touring schools, the facilities that impress them play a big part in where they want to go.”

The turf field, one of the oldest in the ODAC, has lived nearly two industrystandard lives. The school is set to install new carpet and a top-of-the-line pad this summer. EMU Athletics Director Carrie Bert said the new and improved field will be “visually appealing and, more importantly, provide more consistent ball play and a significantly safer experience for athletes and officials.”

Support our student-athletes and a new turf field through an immediate gift or multi-year commitment. Give today at emu.edu/turf-field, or contact kirk.shisler@emu.edu for more details.

Jeané Horning Hershey prepares to take a shot. “To this day, whenever I hear the thump of a ball hitting the back of a goal, it takes me right back to the EMU turf,” Hershey said.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JEANÉ HORNING HERSHEY

NOBEL PEACE LAUREATE LEYMAH GBOWEE MA’07 SELECTED FOR $20M GRANT

2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Leymah Gbowee MA ‘07, Accra, Ghana, is one of 12 global leaders selected by Melinda French Gates to receive a $20 million grant to support women’s health and well-being around the world. The Liberian peace activist, trained social worker and women’s rights advocate is the founder and president of Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa and executive director of the Institute on Gender, Law, and Transformative Peace. Gbowee earned a master’s degree in conflict transformation from EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding in 2007. In 2018, she was the speaker for EMU’s Commencement and awardee of EMU’s first honorary doctorate.

MILEPOSTS

UNDERGRADUATE

1960-69

Richard A. (Rick) Yoder ‘69, Harrisonburg, Va., came out of retirement to join an international team providing technical support to the government of Lesotho in restructuring and strengthening the country’s Ministry of Health. The team contracted with the Millennium Challenge Corporation in collaboration with the World Health Organization. Yoder is professor emeritus of business and economics at EMU.

1970-79

Norma June Shantz ‘71, Dundas, Ontario, Canada, is retired. She has documented her family’s genealogy going back to 1369 in Switzerland, with over 100,000 individuals recorded. One of her earliest ancestors in America compiled a de Vos family tree with more than 500 names to send back to Holland.

Dale L. Brubaker ‘73, Ellensburg, Wash., is retired from an information services career in libraries, holding positions in Monaca and Pittsburgh (PA) and in Ellensburg (Central Washington University Libraries). He has a master’s degree in library science from the University of Pittsburgh.

William (Bill) Yoder ‘73, Kaliningrad, Russia, is a retired church journalist. He holds master’s

and doctoral degrees in political science from Free University of Berlin.

Kathy Moshier Leichty ‘74, Louisville, Ky., retired in 2015 after 40 years in nursing. Recently, she has served as deacon and chair of the missions committee at Buechel Park Baptist Church where she is also involved with the garden ministry, which yielded more than 5,000 pounds of tomatoes in 2023. She holds a master’s degree from the University of South Alabama and an MSN from Bellarmine University.

1980-89

Melanie Delagrange Haas ‘83, Newport News, Va., has retired from Newport News Public Schools after 38 years of coaching and teaching physical education and health.

Shawn Ramer ‘83, Lancaster, Pa., is the COO and VP of finance at EMU. He has held various leadership roles at Hoffman-LaRoche and Bristol Myers Squibb, including senior VP of IT at BMS. Ramer holds a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Alberta and was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Harvard Medical School.

Dale Ressler ‘84, Camp Hill, Pa., served for 18 years as the unpaid executive director of Friends of Shirati, a Pennsylvania-based

nonprofit that funds medical, education, and development projects at Shirati KMT Hospital in Tanzania.

Amy Rosenberger ‘85, Philadelphia, Pa., was selected by her peers at the Pennsylvania labor, employment and workers’ compensation law firm Willig, Williams & Davidson for inclusion in the 2024 edition of “The Best Lawyers in America,” one of the legal profession’s most esteemed peer review publications. Rosenberger has been named among “Best Lawyers” since 2016.

Tina Renee Shifflett ‘88, Elkton, Va., is a certified pharmacy tech at Martin’s. She serves as a volunteer with the American Cancer Society (ACS), a lobbyist for the ACS Cancer Action Network, and the mission lead on the event leadership team of Relay for Life of Harrisonburg/Rockingham.

Linda A. Wenger ‘88, Charlottesville, Va., is a registered nurse in the outpatient obstetrics clinic at UVA. She holds a master’s degree from Frontier Nursing University and is a graduate of its community-based nursemidwifery program.

1990-99

Jean-Paul Benowitz ‘91, Harrisburg, Pa., is the director of prestigious scholarships and fellowships and public heritage studies at

Elizabethtown College where he has served in various capacities for 31 years. He holds a master’s degree in American history from Millersville University.

Janelle Yoder ‘92, Surprise, Ariz., is a library supervisor with Maricopa County Library District. She holds a master’s degree in library & information science from The University of Arizona.

Jennifer Litwiller ‘95, Rockingham, Va., is the chief experience officer at CT Assist, a cardiac surgery staffing team.

Charles Maines ‘95, Leola, Pa., is the VP of Kairos Health Systems where he previously served as senior director of contracting and network development. He holds an MBA from Eastern University.

Jennie Lynn Behney ‘96, Fredericksburg, Pa., teaches 10th grade English and AP English literature at ELCO High School in Myerstown (PA).

Tina Campbell ‘99, Lancaster, Pa., was promoted to director of administrative services of the City of Lancaster in September 2023. She previously served as the City’s community development fund manager and CEO of ASSETS Lancaster, a nonprofit that works with entrepreneurs and startups to form a more ethical economy.

BIKES FOR NEIGHBORS

Ben Wyse ‘99, Harrisonburg, Va., has joined the Shenandoah Valley Bicycle Coalition (SVBC) to lead its Bikes for Neighbors program, which provides refurbished bicycles to underserved residents of the Shenandoah Valley. The program began as Bikes for Refugees in 2015, and Wyse has been involved since the onset. “Helping people discover the freedom, environmental benefits, and pure joy that comes with riding a bike has always been a driving force in my life,” said Wyse, who owned and operated Wyse Cycles in Harrisonburg from 2009-2024. Wyse closed his mobile bicycle repair shop in May to make time for his new post at SVBC. Donated bicycles can be dropped off at Harrisonburg’s Gift & Thrift during its regular hours with a note designating “Bikes for Neighbors.”

ALUMNA COACH-OF-THE-YEAR HONORS

Hannah Chappell-Dick ‘16, Amherst, Mass., has been named the Mideast Region Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA). Chappell-Dick is the head men’s and women’s crosscountry coach and assistant track & field coach at Amherst College in Massachusetts. In Chappell-Dick’s first year at Amherst, her distance and middle-distance runners helped to secure a secondplace finish at the NESCAC Championships, and two of her athletes were ranked in the NCAA Top 20.

Chappell-Dick had previously been promoted to head women’s cross-country coach and assistant track & field coach at Brown University in February 2023 after overseeing the women’s crosscountry team and distance runners for two seasons. She was a graduate assistant cross-country and track & field coach for two years (2019–2021) at the University of Florida, a volunteer assistant coach at Georgia Tech from 2018–2019, and interim head coach of men’s and women’s cross-country at EMU in 2017. As a studentathlete at EMU, Chappell-Dick was one of 30 NCAA Women of the Year Honorees, a five-time NCAA DIII All-American and held school records in seven events.

Jessica Stauffer Kline ‘99, Newmanstown, Pa., is a dialysis nurse at Reading Hospital and Medical Center. She also volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for children in foster care.

2000-09

Deborah Good ‘02, Corvallis, Ore., is a research, evaluation, and assessment coordinator at Oregon State University. She holds a master’s degree in social work from Temple University.

Margaret Brandt ‘03, Lebanon, Pa., is a board-certified family nurse practitioner with Lebanon Internal Medicine Associates. She was previously the clinic director of the Lebanon Free Clinic for more than 12 years.

Steve Hinckley Gibbs Jr. ‘04, Rockingham, Va., is the associate director of user services in IT at EMU.

April Elizabeth Gonzol Sachs ‘04, Rockingham, Va., teaches family and consumer science at Eastern Mennonite School. She holds a master’s degree in linguistics from the University of North Dakota.

Trinda Burkhalter ‘05, Broadway, Va., is a branch office administrator with the financial services firm Edward Jones.

Amanda K. Gross ‘06, MA ‘13 (conflict transformation), Harrisonburg, Va., is completing her doctoral research in expressive arts at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland. She has written a chapter in the forthcoming publication “Bodies and Beliefs: Purity Culture and the Rhetoric of Religious Trauma.”

Mike Miller ‘06, Tacoma, Wash., is the communications manager at Stanford University. He holds a master’s degree in global marketing communication and advertising from Emerson College.

Joel Shank ‘06, Rockingham, Va., is the vice president of HR at Bridgewater Retirement Community.

Aerlande Wontamo ‘06, Silver Spring, Md., is the senior vice president of U.S. programs at World Relief, a Christian international humanitarian organization.

Rachel B. Zehr ‘06, Lowville, N.Y., is a board-certified surgeon with Lewis County Health System and Lewis County Surgical Associates. She is a graduate of SUNY Upstate Medical University and completed her general surgery residency at Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown (NY). She is an associate fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Maria Hoover Holsopple ‘07, Arlington, Va., is the director of communications and creative services at Plan International USA, a global girls’ rights organization. She holds a master’s degree in public relations and corporate communications from Georgetown University.

Dominick Porter ‘07, Harrisonburg, Va., is the school program manager: operations lead at UMFS (United Methodist Family Services), a nonprofit that provides children and families throughout Virginia with foster care, residential treatment, private day school, and other community-based programs.

Kevin Ressler ‘07, Lancaster, Pa., was appointed the president and CEO of The Alliance for Health Equity, starting his role in July 2023. He was previously CEO of the United Way of Lancaster County. Ressler holds an MDiv degree from Lancaster Theological Seminary.

Brian Vaughan GC ‘08, Fredericksburg, Va., is a licensed professional counselor and psychotherapist with Riverside Counseling. He

is certified through the International Institute for Trauma & Addiction Professionals to treat sex addiction and sex offender clients.

Emily N. Gingrich ‘09, Newport News, Va., earned a master’s degree in higher education administration from the College of William & Mary in 2023.

Kimberly Nissly Henderson ‘09, Harrisburg, Pa., is an experienced trial lawyer with Thomas, Thomas & Hafer, LLP focusing on worker’s compensation cases. Previously, she served as an assistant public defender for Dauphin County. She graduated from Mississippi College School of Law in 2015.

David Showalter ‘09, Salem, Ore., is the interim state initiatives grant coordinator for the Oregon Department of Forestry. He holds master’s and doctoral degrees in plant pathology from The Ohio State University.

2010-19

Niclette Kibibi ‘10, Palm Springs, Calif., earned a doctorate in epidemiology from the College of Public Health at the University of Iowa in 2023. She also holds a master’s degree in public health from Creighton University.

Andrew Derstine ‘11, Telford, Pa., is the associate director of investment operations at Ethic, an investment platform that enables users to create personalized, sustainable portfolios that align with their personal values.

Patrick Campbell ‘12, MA ’14 (conflict transformation), Frederick, Md., was appointed by the governor of Maryland to serve on the Police Standards and Training Commission. He was also promoted to Montgomery County’s deputy chief operating officer.

Andy Richter ‘12, Souderton, Pa., is the president of Richter Total Office, a supplier of drafting and engineering materials, printers, wide-format paper, and other office products. He began working in the warehouse at a young age and was promoted to president in 2022.

Nels Åkerson ‘13, Charlottesville, Va., is a policy analyst for Center for Early Learning Funding Equity, which guides states and communities in designing and sustaining early childhood education. He holds a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from UVA. Kelley Dauberman ‘13, Centreville, Va., is the assistant principal of Woodburn Elementary School in Annandale (VA). She previously served as a school-based technology specialist and music teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools.

Laura Glick Feiser ‘14, Smoketown, Pa., is a personal care home administrator at Meadow View, a nationally-recognized memory support building in New Holland (PA).

Bonnie Fisher ‘14, Staunton, Va., is a community relations manager at Hospice of the Piedmont in Charlottesville. She holds a master’s degree in college student counseling and personnel services from JMU.

Emily Hodges Nyce ‘14, Richmond, Va., is an associate pastor at First Mennonite Church of Richmond and the founder of Yaupon Place, an outdoor park with wellness and relationshipbuilding programs. She holds an MDiv degree from Union Presbyterian Seminary.

Jessica Goertzen Velásquez ‘14, Guatemala City, Guatemala, is a content specialist with Tutored by Teachers, a public benefit company that serves high-need students with virtual small groups and instruction.

BOOKSHELF

Carl E. Hansen ‘65, SEM ‘67 is self-publishing “The Odyssey of a Family,” a series of five biographies and autobiographies. The first four books are currently available through WestBow Press. The series starts with the story of Hansen’s grandparents who escaped a civil war in Russia to settle in Western Canada.

Heidi Hochstetler ‘93 authored a living legacy cookbook with more than 200 of her mother’s recipes. “Welcome to Our Table” (self, 2023) is a guide to the food, hospitality, and generosity of Ruth and Allen Zendt.

Milton W. Loyer ‘67 has published “Letters to Prison: A Fresh Look at the Gospel of Mark” (Masthof Press, 2023). Originally written to encourage friends who were incarcerated, it is presented in accessible, non-theological language.

Elaine C. Horst Shenk ‘87 co-authored “Leveling Up Adoptive Parents and the Adult Adoptee: Taking Your Relationship to the Next Level” (CrossLink Publishing, 2022) about the core issues of adoption, the impact of trauma on the brain, and how families can continue developing connection through the natural development states of maturing and independence.

Joni S. Sancken, professor of homiletics at United Theological Seminary and former assistant professor of preaching and practical theology at EMS, has published “All Our Griefs to Bear: Responding with Resilience after Collective Trauma” (Herald Press, 2022) about how Christians can use practices such as lament, storytelling, and blessing to process trauma.

Gary Smucker ‘67 has published “Botswana Buddies.” Based on letters written by Frances Smucker, this family memoir is about Dan and Frances Smucker’s two-year adventure in Botswana in Southern Africa as volunteers with Mennonite Central Committee in the 1970s (Masthof Press, 2023).

A SPECIAL SWEARING-IN

Elisabeth Wilder ‘17, Hesston, Kans., was sworn in as an attorney to the Kansas bar by her mother, Ninth Judicial District Court Chief Judge Marilyn Wilder, at the Harvey County Courthouse in Newton in October 2023. Kansas permits personal swearing-in ceremonies by a judge of record, and Marilyn Wilder became the first female judge in the Ninth Judicial District in 2015. “Watching my mom as a kid was one of my biggest inspirations for going to law school, and I can’t imagine anyone else launching my legal career,” said Elisabeth Wilder, who graduated with a bachelor’s in social work from EMU, a master’s in social work from the University of Kansas, and a JD degree from Washburn University School of Law. Elisabeth Wilder is now an attorney with Martin, Pringle, Oliver, Wallace, & Bauer, LLP in Wichita. “I have no doubt she will make a difference in her work. It was wonderful that she asked me [to swear her in] and to share that moment together,” her mom told KSNW.

'40 UNDER 40'

Kate Steury ‘14, Elkhart, Ind., (pictured right) captured a spot on the 2023 Michiana "40 under 40" list, presented by the South Bend Regional Chamber. Steury, the CEO/owner of Shirley’s Gourmet Popcorn Company of Goshen, was recognized as one of 40 young adults under age 40 in the Michiana region for her outstanding professional success and community engagement efforts. Steury opened Shirley’s in 2018 with the goal of adding a place to downtown Goshen where people of all ages could come and enjoy her favorite snack. Steury told the South Bend Tribune, “I try and take each day as it comes while ebulliently serving Christ in the ways he calls me to within my little pocket of the world.” Honorees were featured in a photo shoot, special publication and recognition video—and invited to attend an alumni bash celebrating the 680 recipients of the program’s 17-year history.

Parker Leap ‘15, Harrisonburg, Va., is a postdoctoral fellow in athletics psychology at Texas A&M University. He holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology with a concentration in sport psychology from Boston University and a doctorate in clinical and school psychology from JMU.

Melinda Norris Mdluli ‘15, Williamsburg, Va., is the executive director of HEART Ministries in West Point (VA). HEART supports the distribution of evangelical and humanitarian assistance throughout the world.

Brooke Lacock-Nisly ‘16, Baltimore, Md., is the marketing platform operations manager for Accenture, an IT services and consulting company.

Tyler Brenneman ‘17, Kalispell, Mont., is a fishing guide with State of Mind Fishing Charters, LLC on Flathead Lake, less than an hour’s drive from Glacier National Park.

Jordan Leaman ‘17, Harrisonburg, Va., is an IAM (Identity and Access Management) analyst for JMU.

Matthew Holden ‘18, Mount Sidney, Va., has started the business Barbell Union, LLC, which provides online coaching for competitive powerlifters. He is also the assistant strength and conditioning coach for Olympic sports at JMU.

Rose M. Persinger Holden ‘18, Mount Sidney, Va., is a children’s mental health case manager at Harrisonburg Rockingham Community Services Board.

Alison Zuercher ‘18, Phoenix, Ariz., a continuous improvement analyst at Maricopa County Department of Public Health, was recognized in D.C. with the 2023 Rising Star Award from the National Network of Public Health Institutes for her “incredible community engagement work.” She holds a master’s degree in public health from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

2020-

Melissa Kinkaid ‘20, Indianapolis, Ind., is a biochemist with a focus in RNA therapeutics at Eurofins PSS Insourcing Solutions.

L. Yasmiene Mabrouk MA ‘20 (conflict transformation), Minneapolis, Minn., is a career counselor at Avivo, an organization dedicated to ending homelessness through recovery and career advancement.

Adam Moyer ‘20, Washington, D.C., is a journalist for BBC News. He was previously a producer with DC News Now. Moyer holds a master’s degree in international journalism from City, University of London.

Samuel Thomas III ‘20, Houston, Texas, is the senior operations manager for Aramark Sports + Entertainment at NRG Stadium in Houston. He was previously the event operations manager for Aramark at Capital One Arena in D.C.

Taylor Longenecker ‘21, Harrisonburg, Va., is a senior accountant on the state and local government audit team at PBMares, LLP. He holds a master’s degree in accounting from JMU.

Douglas Nester ‘21, Harrisonburg, Va., is a developer II at Aspen Technology, a global software company.

Noah Dahllof ‘22, Bear, Del., is a provider contract analyst at Highmark Health. He is pursuing a master’s degree in healthcare administration from Bellevue University.

Troy Hodge ‘22, Charlottesville, Va., is an IT technician for Fluvanna County.

Katelyn Zuercher ‘22, Phoenix, Ariz., is a neurofeedback technician at the Claudia Black Young Adult Center where she interacts with patients struggling with various mental health issues and maintains and monitors brain center equipment.

Cindy Argueta-Rivas ‘23, Springfield, Va., is an education and community development advocate at FACETS, an organization that supports families and individuals experiencing homelessness, poverty, and hunger in Fairfax County.

Dallas Organek ‘23, Springfield, Va., is a strategic assessment analyst at TTM Technologies in the aerospace and defense sector.

Ashley B. Schoenhardt ‘23, Penn Laird, Va., is a third-grade teacher at Keister Elementary School with Harrisonburg City Public Schools.

Jane Weigel MSN ‘23, Lancaster, Pa., earned a level II educational specialist certificate for school nursing. She works for the School District of Lancaster.

Luke Wheeler ‘23, Harrisonburg, Va., is an associate process engineer at Merck.

GRADUATE

Tammy Briggs Fusilier MSN ‘06, Charlotte Hall, Md., is a nurse practitioner with Ahanna Health and Wellness.

Beth Dunham Toner MSN ‘17, Pottstown, Pa., is the director of program communications at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, an organization committed to improving health and health equity in the U.S. She holds a master of fine arts in narrative and poetic medicine from Dominican University of California.

Lyle Seger GC ‘18 (restorative justice), Lawrence, Kan., has co-founded Building Peace, Inc., a mediation and conflict resolution center in Lawrence. The organization employs five mediators and an attorney and sees a wide range of dispute resolution cases, including referrals from the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office and the local housing authority.

Kate Smucker MA ‘19 (organizational leadership), GC ‘19 (conflict transformation), San Diego, Calif., is a program manager at Robert Half, a talent solutions firm.

Anne Coyne MA ‘23 (conflict transformation), Harrisonburg, Va., is the Emerging Leaders Network program coordinator for Interfaith America.

Jill Kristine Heine MA ‘23 (restorative justice), New Holland, Pa., is a community volunteer with Advoz: Mediation & Restorative Practices in Lancaster. She also works on racial and gender equity issues with YWCA Lancaster.

BIRTHS AND ADOPTIONS

Meredith Wine and Jon Trotter ‘04, Harrisonburg, Va., Edmund James, Nov. 3, 2023.

Sarah Jones ‘08 and Ryan Drudge, New Hamburg, Ontario, Canada, Evelyn Rae, June 27, 2023.

Robert ‘09 and Alyssa Roy ‘11, Jeffersonton, Va., Madison Grace, Dec. 25, 2022.

Stuart and Ellie Barnhart Butsch ‘11, MSN ‘15, Keizer, Ore., William Jeffrey, Sept. 30, 2023.

Austin ‘13 and Sarah Showalter ‘12, Harrisonburg, Va., Milo Gabriel, Feb. 2, 2024.

Erin Nussbaum Beeker ‘13, Broadway, Va., Adalynn Mae, Jan. 13, 2024.

Lydia Stutzman ‘15 and Nicco Maddaluno, Berea, Ohio, Mila Josephine, Nov. 18, 2023.

Sarah Marie Longenecker ‘18 and Jordan Luther ‘15, Souderton, Pa., Flannery James, Sept. 30, 2023.

MARRIAGES

Tony Krabill ‘89 to Cyndi Holther, Sturgis, Mich., Oct. 22, 2022.

Briana Renee Gascho ‘09 to Justin Coffman, Harrisonburg, Va., May 28, 2023.

Jamila Witmer ‘12 to Obed Ayala, Lancaster, Pa., Aug. 20, 2022.

Laura Glick ‘14 to Samuel Feiser, Lancaster, Pa., Nov. 19, 2022.

Raleigh Wade ‘18 to Nathan Atkinson, Orange, Va., Sept. 4, 2021.

Taylor Allen ‘18 to Ethan Maggart, Buena Vista, Va., July 8, 2023.

Emma Burkhart ‘23 to Joshua Varner, Manheim, Pa., July 30, 2023.

DEATHS

Abraham Davis Jr., faculty, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 100 on Nov. 2, 2023. The first director of multicultural services at EMU, Davis Jr. previously taught at Houghton College, Messiah College, and Calvin College. He read “The Creation” by James Weldon Johnson and other African American rhetoric at Mennonite Central Committee events up and down the East Coast.

Joyce Elaine Eshleman, staff, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 77 on May 17, 2023. Married to David Merle Eshleman for 39 years, she was the first administrative assistant for EMC’s graduate counseling program and helped to start SONshine Ministries, a nonprofit that supported Christian programming on Shenandoah Valley radio stations WBTX and WLTK. She also worked for Mennonite Media in Harrisonburg and State Farm Insurance in Oregon.

Vira Gladys Miller Hershberger, staff, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 100 on Nov. 23, 2022. She and her husband, Reaford Hershberger, farmed in Iowa before moving to Virginia. She worked in food service at EMC for many years, retiring in 1996. She committed much of the Bible to memory and loved nature, reading, and writing letters to friends and family.

Beatrice Hershberger Hess, staff, Lancaster, Pa., died at age 98 on May 22, 2023. Her father taught at EMS; she worked in EMC’s administrative office where she met James R. Hess SEM ‘50. The couple served in Honduras with Eastern Mennonite Missions for 19 years before returning to the U.S. where they pastored East Chestnut Street Mennonite Church in Lancaster. She also worked as a bookkeeper at Locust Grove Mennonite School for 23 years and enjoyed sewing. In retirement, she and her husband were tour guides at Lancaster Mennonite Information Center and wintered in Florida.

Harold Eugene Huber, faculty, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 83 on June 28, 2023. Huber held degrees from Elizabethtown College, New York University, and UVA. His career spanned nearly 40 years at EMU where he taught sociology, directed an urban

seminar in New York City, and worked in the university library and archives. His wife, Vida Jane Swartzendruber Huber ‘61, passed away 18 years before him. Following her death, he enjoyed spending time with his fellow widowed friends, the ROMEOs - Retired Old Men Eating Out.

Miriam Lucille Kuhns Kauffman, staff, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 90 on Oct. 2, 2023. She worked as a nurse at EMC and Sunnyside Presbyterian Home and sang with the Shenandoah Valley Choral Society for more than 20 years; she and her husband, Elroy Kauffman, sang with three other couples as the Lindale Octet. She enjoyed knitting, birdwatching, and flower gardening.

Miriam Alberta Nissley ‘39, Sarasota, Fla., died at age 101 on Oct. 24, 2022. She and her husband, D. Lowell Nissley, pastored churches in Kansas and eventually moved to Sarasota where she was the administrative assistant at Tuttle Mennonite Church for many years. She then served as the assistant recreation director at Sunnyside Village, retiring in 2005. Until her death, she would pray for more than 120 relatives each night by memory.

Orval Miller Shenk ‘48, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 93 on Mar. 22, 2023. Shenk worked at Rockingham Construction Company for 37 years, first as a bookkeeper and later starting and managing a special fleet service. He pastored at Elkton Mennonite Church for 14 years. He and his wife, Dorothy Shenk, taught ministry for Mennonite Church USA and on two trips to Trinidad.

W. Neil Turner ‘48, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 93 on Oct. 12, 2022. He and his wife, Margaret Yoder Turner, farmed near Cootes Store (VA). He went on to build houses and apartments and was active in the National Association of Home Builders. He also founded Black Diamond Bank with his friends, flew planes, served with Mennonite Disaster Service, hiked the Grand Canyon five times, and enjoyed whitewater rafting.

Aaron Donald Augsburger ‘49, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 96 on Nov. 27, 2022. Augsburger taught in several K-12 Christian schools and taught Christian education at EMU and at several seminaries. He served as assistant to the dean at Goshen College Biblical Seminary and was an ordained minister, pastoring in at least 12 settings. He was also a moderator of the General Assembly of the Mennonite Church and a member of the Mennonite Commission for Christian Education. He was married to Martha Louise Kling Augsburger for 68 years until her death in 2016. He authored several books, wrote poetry, and enjoyed pranking his children.

Paul W. Herr, class of ‘50, East Petersburg, Pa., died at age 99 at Aug. 28, 2023. Herr graduated from Goshen College and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. For three decades, he practiced family medicine in Quarryville (PA) where he saw 16,000 patients and delivered 2,500 babies. He opened a satellite clinic of Planned Parenthood, was an active member of Menno Housing and the Community Action Program of Lancaster, and served as a coroner, president of the staff of the Lancaster Osteopathic Hospital and acting dean at the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine.

Helen Layman, class of ‘50, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 93 on Nov. 8, 2022. Married for 73 years to Wilbur Layman, who died on Jan. 24, 2022, she was a full-time homemaker

FRESH VEGGIE SERIES

Kathy Yoder ‘95, Harrisonburg, Va., director of Vine & Fig Educational Outreach Program in Harrisonburg, coordinates the Fresh Veggie Series—a grant-funded collaboration that gets fresh produce on the tables of families in need and benefits the Shenandoah Valley farmers who grow it. With grants funded by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Vine & Fig buys organically-grown, sustainable produce from local farms and distributes it to schools, food pantries, health clinics, and other organizations that serve people facing food and financial insecurity; they also create weekly recipes and videos in English and Spanish.

Farm partners include Radical Roots, a certified organic vegetable farm in Keezletown, and St. Isidore Homestead & Permaculture, a family farm in Grottoes that uses sustainable methods and agriculture practices in line with Catholic social teachings. “We choose farms that are aware of environmental sustainability,” Yoder told WMRA News. “They’re building the soil health, therefore— more research is showing that—if you have healthy soil, then your vegetables will be able to absorb those nutrients and use those nutrients to grow a healthier plant!”

ALUMNA RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AWARD

Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz ‘81, Ephrata, Pa., the denomination minister for peace and justice for Mennonite Church USA, was presented with the VictimOffender Reconciliation Program (VORP) Founding Partner Award by the Center for Community Justice in October 2023. She was honored for her outstanding work as a coordinator of VORP in the 1980s and for her ongoing contributions to restorative justice. Stutzman Amstutz gave the keynote address at the ceremony in Elkhart, Indiana, where she shared about VORP’s beginnings, working with probation officers, volunteers, and victims—many of whom were unwilling to engage with mediators or offenders. She served as the coordinator of Mennonite Central Committee’s Restorative Justice program for more than 25 years and is the co-author of “The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools” (Good Books, 2005) and “What Will Happen to Me?” (Good Books, 2010).

JUST DO IT (WHAT BRINGS YOU JOY)

Nora Osei ’15, Fairfax, Va., spoke to hundreds of EMU students, faculty and staff on LovEMU Giving Day on April 10, 2024, sharing four tips for finding individual success: (1) Find what brings you joy; (2) Try different jobs to find what aligns best with your happiness; (3) Find someone to pay you for doing what you love; (4) Give back. As the director of growth & partnerships for Nike Sports Camps/US Sports Camps since January 2023, Osei supports the organization’s thousands of camp directors and is helping to grow the soccer and multi-sport/recreation camps. Osei has more than 15 years of experience running youth summer camps and holds a master’s degree in kinesiology from JMU. She was named to the ODAC All-Academic Team for soccer and basketball as a student-athlete at EMU.

ROYAL WOMEN FOR EMU

Royal Women for EMU, a women’s philanthropy and networking initiative, launched in September 2023 with a party attended by 100 women leaders at White Oak Lavender Farm in Harrisonburg. Royal Women continued its historic events with a reception during Homecoming & Family Weekend. The vision of Deanna Reed, mayor of Harrisonburg and EMU director of alumni engagement & community connections, Royal Women inspires visible leadership, bold investments and empowering networks to impact EMU's future. For its first year, Royal Women set out to raise $20,000 for an immediate impact grant and $50,000 for an endowed scholarship. Royal Women surpassed its fundraising goal of $20,000 and will award its first immediate impact grant in 2024-2025: one student will receive $5,000 each year for the next four years. For more information and to give, visit: emu.edu/royal-women

while their children were young before going to work part-time at Red Front Supermarket, So-Fro Fabrics, and Wampler Meat Market. She enjoyed camping, sewing, arranging flowers, and playing the accordion.

John W. Weaver ‘50, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 94 on Oct. 5, 2023. Married to the late Margaret Rose Martin Weaver for 67 years, Weaver held a master’s degree from the University of Delaware (UD) and a doctorate from Johns Hopkins University where he was awarded a National Science Foundation Faculty Fellowship. He worked as a math teacher, accountant, scientific programmer, and economic analyst before joining the faculty of UD. He went on to become a professor of mathematical and computer science and department chair at West Chester University.

Daniel L. Hertzler ‘51, Scottdale, Pa., died at age 97 on June 14, 2023. Hertzler held five degrees, including two from EMC. He had a 38-year career as an editor with the Mennonite Publishing House and wrote two memoirs: “A Little Left of Center” and “On My Way: The View from the Ninth Decade.” Hertzler enjoyed traveling the world, grafting trees, gardening, and beekeeping. He was married to Mary Yoder Hertzler ‘49 for 35 years before her death in 2017.

Eugene Kraybill Souder ‘51, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 95 on June 3, 2023. After graduating from EMC, Souder attended Goshen Biblical Seminary for a year. He helped to start—and served as a pastor at—Mt. Vernon Mennonite Church in Grottoes. He also built affordable houses for local families and was employed in public relations for 15 years with “The Mennonite Hour” and “Heart to Heart” broadcast programs. He was married to Alice Byler Souder, class of ‘52 for 70 years; in 2014, the couple retired to Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community where they led gospel sing-alongs.

Herbert G. Weaver Sr. ‘52, Bradenton, Fla., died at age 93 on May 19, 2023. Weaver earned a master’s degree in chemistry from the University of Delaware and was a clinical chemist for numerous hospitals before co-founding Valley Medical Laboratory in Harrisonburg. He received an MDiv and doctorate from Andersonville Baptist Seminary. After becoming ordained in 2000, he served as minister at several Church of the Brethren congregations in Florida.

Blanche Horst ‘53, Lititz, Pa., died at age 94 on July 11, 2023. She taught art, music and English at schools in Ethiopia and taught in Lancaster County at Manheim Christian Day School and Locust Grove Mennonite School. In retirement, she and her husband, Nevin L. Horst, served as missionaries in Enemasi, Kenya. She was committed to hospitality and enjoyed making Ethiopian food for family.

Arlene Ruth Martin Mark, class of ‘53, Goshen, Ind., died at age 91 on Oct. 29, 2022. After earning a degree in teaching from Goshen College, she and her husband, George Mark, moved to Elkhart (IN) where they lived for more than 50 years. She was active in local, conference, and national church leadership; she was the first woman to preach a sermon in many congregations and compiled the first Mennonite book of worship liturgy, “Words for Worship.” She served on many nonprofit boards and was the first female chair of the Board of Overseers of Goshen College.

Lois J. Martin ‘53, Lititz, Pa., died at age 95 on Nov. 18, 2023. Martin went on to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania where she earned the Florence Nightingale Award. She

served as the school nurse for a year at EMC, worked at various hospitals and as a private duty nurse, and ended her 50-year nursing career as an RN at Hospice of Lancaster County. For 10 years, she flew as a private pilot and traveled around the world.

Helen E. Burkholder ‘54, Lititz, Pa., died at age 89 on Jan. 6, 2024. She and her husband, Roy Burkholder ‘54, worked early in their married life at the summer camp program at Tel Hai Camp in Honey Brook (PA). She taught piano to numerous students throughout her life. For 40 years, she also taught Bible lessons to school children.

John A. Lapp ‘54, Goshen, Ind., died at age 90 on Dec. 5, 2023. Lapp taught at EMC from 1956 to 1969, earned a master’s degree at Case Western Reserve University, and a doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania. He directed the peace section at Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Akron (PA) in the 1960s, served at Goshen College for 12 years as a provost and academic dean, and then returned to MCC as executive secretary until 1997. Lapp also directed Mennonite World Conference’s Global Mennonite History Project for 16 years.

Paul L. Peachey ‘54, Sarasota, Fla, died at age 91 on Feb. 12, 2023. Peachey worked with International Voluntary Services in Asyut, Egypt, for two years and had a 30-year career with the U.S. Postal Service. He enjoyed fishing, boating, and tending tropical fruit trees. He spent summers in Franklin (NC) where he tended gardens and cows and hosted visitors with his wife, Shirley Jean Troyer Peachey.

Pearl Patricia Schrack ‘54, Lansdale, Pa., died at age 96 on Sept. 13, 2023. Schrack earned a master’s degree in English from the University of Pennsylvania. She taught high school English and literature at Christopher Dock Mennonite High School (1954-1963) and at North Penn High School (1964-1992) where she became a supervising instructor. She enjoyed hosting guests at her summer home in Maine.

Irvin David Weaver ‘54, Linville, Va., died at age 94 on Jan. 3, 2024. He and his brother Levi farmed in Bath (NY) where they founded the Pleasant Valley Mennonite Church. Over the years, he worked in trucking, prison ministry, and marriage counseling. He also served as the Allegheny Conference minister and VP of home missions in Elkhart (IN).

Jan Gleysteen, class of ‘55, Aurora, Ill., died at age 92 on Dec. 25, 2023. Gleysteen worked for the Mennonite Publishing House as an artist, author, illustrator, book designer, and history lecturer. He grew up in the occupied Netherlands during World War II and was a lifelong advocate for peace. Gleysteen was a founding partner of TourMagination, which led tour groups around Anabaptist heritage sites in Europe.

Lucille Mayer Wenger ‘55, Clinton, Miss., died at age 93 on Jan. 5, 2024. She began her teaching career at Warwick Christian School and with Newport News Public Schools in Virginia. In 1965, she and her husband, John Wenger, began serving with the Mennonite Mission Board in Israel. When they returned to the U.S., she taught in the Jackson (MS) Public Schools system until retiring in 1993. She participated in the Woman’s Missionary Union and taught Sunday school and ESL classes at First Baptist Church of Jackson.

Ruth Kling Alger ‘56, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 92 on March 6, 2023. She was a homemaker and registered nurse who worked in various hospitals, a dermatology center

in Lancaster, and a clinic in Harman (WV). She served on the care commission of Zion Mennonite Church.

Ruth Alderfer Wismer Cender ‘56, Goshen, Ind., died at age 95 on Feb. 7, 2024. Married to Milton Cender for 66 years, she taught at several elementary schools in Illinois for more than 25 years. She was a visual artist and a singer who was in a traveling quartet as a teenager and in choirs in college and at East Bend Mennonite Church where she also taught Sunday school and Bible school. She enjoyed sewing, baking, quilting, and hosting.

Elizabeth Bickel Hoover, class of ‘56, Goshen, Ind., died at age 92 on Oct. 4, 2023. She graduated at the top of her class from Grand View Hospital School of Nursing in Sellersville (PA) and worked in the medical practice run by her husband, family physician Joseph Hoover. She led worship at First Mennonite Church in Fort Wayne (IN) and sang in the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Choir. She enjoyed oil painting and reading the Bible and devotionals.

Earl L. Schrock ‘56, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 92 on April 17, 2023. Schrock served as the CEO of Virginia Mennonite Home for 22 years, then drove tractor trailers at IDM Trucking for 27 years—accumulating 1.6 million miles before retiring at age 85. Schrock taught Sunday school and sang baritone in the choir at Weavers Mennonite Church. He was married to Ruth Shank ‘84 for 40 years after his first wife, Janette Berkey ‘57, passed away in 1981.

Jane Trumbo Alderfer, class of ‘57, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 92 on Jan. 9, 2024. She graduated from Goshen College and studied typography at Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh and printmaking at the Art Institute of Chicago. She later earned a master’s degree in cultural studies from Governors State University. She worked in the editorial and design departments of the Mennonite Publishing House, was a graphics specialist with the University of Chicago Press’ “The Astrophysical Journal,” worked for an investment firm in Chicago, and taught art and design at Prairie State College.

Joan L. Nissley Gingrich ‘57, Landisville, Pa., died at age 89 on May 9, 2023. She and her husband, James M. Gingrich ‘57, served for four years in Honduras with Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) before returning to the U.S. to settle in Landisville. Dedicated to raising her family, she volunteered with church organizations and later worked as a receptionist for EMM. She was a skilled seamstress, cook, and baker whose potato buns were legendary. Classical and a cappella music touched her soul and became an outlet for expression in later years when spoken language was no longer possible.

Charles B. Longenecker ‘57, Lititz, Pa., died at age 91 on Aug. 21, 2023. Longenecker earned a master’s degree in biology from Cornell University and taught biology for 40 years at Lancaster Mennonite High School where he inspired many students to love science and pursue lifelong careers. He advocated for improved wastewater management in New Holland (PA) to restore the health of nearby Mill Creek (PA). He also taught Sunday school and led singing at New Holland Mennonite Church.

J. Stanley Yake, class of ‘57, Albany, N.Y. died at age 88 on Jan. 23, 2024. Yake earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Goshen College and master’s and doctoral degrees in philosophy from SUNY Buffalo. He taught philosophy at University of Wisconsin-Green

Bay and helped to turn the college into a fouryear campus. Upon relocating to Albany, Yake worked for the State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities and taught at Sage Junior College; he eventually went on to teach at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Yake loved ceramics, photography, and writing.

Robert Benjamin Wenger ‘58, Ephrata, Pa., died at age 87 on Dec. 19, 2022. Wenger, who was married to Lena Miller for 62 years, earned a master’s degree from Penn State and a doctor of philosophy degree in mathematics from the University of Pittsburgh. For 30 years, he taught mathematics at University of Wisconsin-Green Bay where he received the Barbara Hauxhurst Cofrin Professorship of Natural Sciences in 1997 and was a leader of the International Visiting Scholars Program. After retiring, Wenger mentored students and continued his work on water quality and other environmental issues.

Rhoda Thomas Dillon ‘59, Alexandria, Va., died at age 88 on June 19, 2023. She made her home in Richmond where she raised her four children.

Linford Kulp Gehman ‘59, Bergton, Va., died at age 90 on Aug. 9, 2023. Gehman graduated from Jefferson Medical School in 1963 and met his wife, Rebecca Roeder, while working at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem (PA). He served in medical clinics in Vietnam and Biafra (present-day Nigeria) with Mennonite Central Committee. He practiced as a family physician at the Green Valley Clinic in Bergton until 2015. After closing the clinic, he worked for the E. A. Hawse Health Center in Mathias (WV) and volunteered at the Harrisonburg Rockingham Free Clinic.

Phoebe Ruth Garber Hershey ‘59, Bridgewater, Va., died at age 86 on Nov. 20, 2022. She and her husband, John L. Hershey, lived in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. She taught elementary and high school. She was also a tax preparer, office manager, computer systems director, pastor, and chaplain—and a lifelong bird-watcher and gardener.

Ella Coffman Huber ‘59, Penn Laird, Va., died at age 89 on June 14, 2023. She had a career teaching at various church schools and working for Valley Books. She also volunteered with church organizations in several states and was active in Gospel Hill Mennonite Church. She loved American Sign Language and using it to communicate with deaf friends at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community.

Gloria J. Moranski ‘59, Winchester, Va., died at age 86 on Jan. 21, 2023. She earned a master’s degree from Madison College and was a dedicated teacher. She served for 35 years in the Winchester and Clarke County school systems and was a volunteer elementary school reader and tutor. She also taught private piano lessons and Bible history and prophecy classes.

Arthur J. Roth, class of ‘59, Julesburg, Colo., died at age 92 on June 26, 2023. Roth attended EMC before being drafted in 1956 to voluntary service, which he fulfilled at a hospital emergency room in Ohio. He and his wife, Marjorie Roth, moved to Iowa, where he worked at the Ropp Feed and Produce Store. After another move to Colorado, he was ordained and pastored Julesburg Mennonite Church for over five decades.

David Wilbur Augsburger ‘60, SEM ‘63, Claremont, Calif., died at age 85 on Oct. 30, 2023. Augsburger worked for Mennonite broadcasts from 1961 to 1974, hosting “The Mennonite Hour” radio program and speaking

on Anabaptist responses to global and interpersonal issues. He also served as pastor at Trissels Mennonite Church in Broadway (VA). He earned a doctorate from the Claremont School of Theology in 1974 and went on to teach pastoral counseling at North Baptist Seminary in Illinois, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Indiana, and Fuller Theological Seminary in California.

Ruby Yoder Esbenshade ‘60, Manheim, Pa., died at age 87 on Feb. 13, 2023. She was a homemaker and farmer with her husband, J. Harold Esbenshade ‘60. She volunteered at Mount Joy Gift and Thrift and was instrumental in founding the Manheim chapter of Farm Women. She enjoyed golf, tennis, gardening, and bird-watching.

Samuel J. Lapp ‘60, Lansdale, Pa., died at age 83 on Dec. 23, 2022. Lapp met his wife, Helen Longenecker, while in college. He fulfilled his conscientious objector service in Honduras before returning to the Lansdale area to work as an electrician. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in industrial arts from Bethel College in Kansas and a master’s degree in industrial education from The College of New Jersey. He taught at Wissahickon High School in Ambler (PA) for 25 years. He and his wife served in Jamaica (Kingston) and Egypt (Cairo) with Mennonite Central Committee. He was a sculptor who worked with wood, metal, and stone.

Samuel H. Martin, class of ‘60, Lancaster, Pa., died at age 91 on Nov. 19, 2023. Martin graduated from Hahnemann University before serving in Haiti with Mennonite Central Committee. He then became the head of the chemistry laboratory at Lancaster General Hospital where he served for 26 years. He delivered wheelchairs to China and sang with a chorus in Russia in addition to other travels. Married to Georgia L. Lefever Martin for 68 years, he enjoyed golfing, vegetable gardening, and Philadelphia sports teams.

Marian Grace Longenecker Burkholder, class of ‘61, Mechanicsburg, Pa., died at age 83 on May 12, 2023. She and her husband, Jim Burkholder, met in a music room at EMC and raised a musical family, singing a cappella and playing guitar and German recorders with their daughters. She became a pastor’s wife at Perkasie Mennonite Church where she led the congregation in song and led the children’s choir. She taught piano and parenting classes and was a substitute teacher for various schools.

Martha N. Frey, class of ‘61, Chambersburg, Pa., died at age 93 on Nov. 12, 2023. Frey was a dedicated homemaker for most of her life and taught the Bible in various capacities at Chambersburg Mennonite Church. She was also active in the church sewing circle and volunteered at Menno Haven and the Cumberland Valley Relief Center.

Jane Peachy Lind ‘61, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, died at age 84 on Nov. 6, 2022. She was an artist, writer, and editor whose works include two biographies about Canadian artists: “Joyce Wieland: Artist on Fire” (James Lorimer Limited, 2001) and “Perfect Red: The Life of Paraskeva Clark” (Cormorant Books, 2009). She and her husband, Loren Lind ‘61, worked at the Mennonite Publishing House in Scottdale (PA) before moving to Toronto where she was a full-time mother and part-time editor and potter. She was an active member of the Guelph chapters of Canadian Voice of Women for Peace and Raging Grannies.

Leo Yoder, class of ‘62, Baton Rouge, La., died at age 89 on Oct. 12, 2023. Yoder

graduated from the UVA School of Medicine in 1965. He and his wife, Mary Schrock Yoder, served at mission hospitals in Tanzania and Ethiopia. In 1982, he began working with leprosy patients at the Hansen’s Disease Center in Carville (LA). He became an expert in the field and was promoted to chief of medicine, retiring in 1997. During his retirement, he became the president of Medical Centers of West Africa and served on the boards of American Leprosy Missions and Choice Books.

William J. Helmuth, class of ‘63, Dalton, Ohio, died at age 86 on Dec. 29, 2023. Helmuth did voluntary service at children’s homes in Ohio, Indiana, and Alberta, Canada. He held a master’s degree from Saint Louis University and was an elementary school teacher, special education teacher, and principal who worked at several schools. He loved singing with his wife, Corrine Helmuth, class of ‘63, at Sonnenberg Mennonite Church where he also taught Sunday school. He volunteered at MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) Connections Thrift Shop for 22 years.

Vernon Amos Mast ‘63, Hillsboro, N.M., died at age 85 on Jan. 16, 2024. Mast earned a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and taught biology and chemistry at Blue Ridge Community College. After earning a doctorate in civil engineering from The Ohio State University, he worked as a professor at Oklahoma State University for 20 years. He and his wife, Karen Miller Mast, raised prize llamas in Virginia and Oklahoma before moving to New Mexico.

Rose Weaver Rhodes ‘63, Dublin, Ga., died at age 81 on Nov. 10, 2022. She served as a middle school teacher in Baltimore before teaching English literature in Nigeria while her husband, R. Allen Rhodes, taught chemistry. After returning to the U.S., she focused on raising their children before spending 15 years with the Division of Family & Children Services where she started as a case worker and retired as a supervisor. She taught Sunday school at Henry Memorial Presbyterian Church and was a master gardener.

LaVerne Ruth Zehr Yoder ‘63, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 84 on Dec. 14, 2022. She was an early childhood educator who met her husband, Lee M. Yoder ‘63, while teaching at Belleville Mennonite Elementary School in Pennsylvania. She taught at several other elementary schools— in Rockingham County and Pennsylvania— and also supervised early childhood grades at schools in Egypt and Vietnam. She created two American kindergarten schools from scratch in Cairo, Egypt, and loved to travel and explore.

Naomi Doris Bechtold ‘64, Lancaster, Pa., died at age 87 on Dec. 4, 2022. After graduating from EMC, Bechtold earned an advanced degree from Emory University. She taught in the nursing department at Lancaster General Hospital and worked in that hospital’s newly-opened intensive care unit. In 1969, she moved to Georgia where she taught at a diploma nursing school and at a two-year nursing program. She also worked for a time in hospital management in South Carolina.

Carl L. Good ‘64, Lititz, Pa., died at age 83 on Dec. 29, 2023. Good, who was married to Lois M. Zimmerman Good ‘65 for 60 years, held an MDiv degree from New York Theological Seminary; he was ordained in the Mennonite Church and pastored a church in New York City. He earned a doctorate in psychology from the University of Tennessee and worked as a school psychologist for Capital Area Intermediate Unit, as a health care administrator for Mennonite

Health Services, as a counseling and consulting psychologist for Masonic Village, and as a private practice counselor.

Marvin S. Hilty, class of ‘64, Columbus, Ohio, died at age 93 on July 18, 2023. Hilty graduated from Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science in 1966. He worked as a funeral director and embalmer at Swope Funeral Home, Belle Center, which he bought in 1968; he started a second funeral home in Rushsylvania in 1970. Twenty-five years later, Hilty sold the funeral homes to Eichholtz Funeral Home, where he worked until his retirement in 2016. Hilty was married to the late Mary L. Richard for 67 years, was a 30-year member of the Belle Center Fire Department, and was involved with his local Masonic Lodge, Lions Club, and Kiwanis Club.

Elam K. Stauffer ‘64, Plain City, Ohio, died at age 82 on July 26, 2023. Stauffer was a church planter and missionary who worked in Belize, Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Ecuador with Eastern Mennonite Missions and Rosedale Mennonite Missions. He was an assistant pastor at Iglesia Cristiana Hispana and a skilled carpenter at Miller Cabinet.

Louretta Shenk Wilson ‘64, Newport News., Va., died at age 86 on Nov. 17, 2022. She worked as a nurse throughout her career, retiring from Eastern State Hospital. She was an active member of Warwick River Mennonite Church for many years and most recently lived among many dear friends at Mennowood Retirement Community.

Priscilla R. Ziegler ‘64, Akron, Pa., died at age 80 on March 25, 2023. She was married to Donald W. Ziegler ‘65 for 58 years and taught first and third grades at Bergstrasse and Akron Elementary Schools for 20 years.

Merle Cordell ‘65, Chambersburg, Pa., died at age 97 on June 4, 2023. After graduating from EMC, Cordell taught fifth grade in the Greencastle-Antrim School District while earning his master’s in education from Shippensburg State College. He was an ordained minister and bishop, serving Marion Mennonite Church and other congregations in the Franklin Mennonite Conference. As chair of the Mennonite Historical Association of the Cumberland Valley for 23 years, Cordell helped to publish two history tomes. He also served on the board of Menno Haven for 31 years. He and his wife, Beulah Cordell, traveled extensively and tended blueberry bushes, fruit and nut trees, and flower gardens.

Lois Shank Gerber ‘66, Lititz, Pa., died at age 80 on June 28, 2023. Fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a teacher shortly after graduating from EMC, she taught home economics and other subjects in West Virginia, Delaware, Virginia—and Kidron (OH) where she and her husband, Henry Shank ’66, raised their three children on a mini-farm with fresh food and flowers. After his death in 1983, she continued to work at Choice Books Ohio for 13 years before earning a master’s degree from The University of Akron and embarking on a 20-year career as a mental health counselor in Ohio and Pennsylvania. She married Lowell Gerber in 1997, and the two moved to Lititz where she was a worship leader at each church he pastored.

Ruth S. Westernberger Lentz ‘66, Lititz, Pa., died at age 91 on Aug. 8, 2023. She was a teacher at Kraybill Mennonite School for nearly 40 years, retiring as a librarian in 1999. She enjoyed reading and raising houseplants and was married to Wilbur A. Lentz ‘59 for five years before his passing in 2009.

Anna Yoder Miller ‘66, Walnut Creek, Ohio, died at age 88 on March 18, 2023. An elementary school teacher for many years in Maryland and Ohio, she held a master’s degree in education from Frostburg State College. She was married to Joe J Miller for 16 years until his death in 2015.

Richard S. Shank, class of ‘66, Charlottesville, Va., died at age 79 on July 14, 2023. Shank graduated from UVA and co-founded Shank & Gray Architects in Charlottesville where he worked with Bob Gray for more than 45 years on projects including the Charlottesville City Hall Annex and Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Crozet. Shank turned his passion for food and hospitality into a second career in the restaurant business, designing and operating Charley’s and Trio Restaurants in Charlotte (NC) for 35 years. He enjoyed attending the Santa Fe Opera with Linda Frey Shank, whom he married in 1966.

Marian Fay Martin Shantz ‘66, Duchess, Alberta, Canada, died at age 78 on July 11, 2023. She worked as a nurse for five years in Edmonton before returning to Duchess for the remainder of her life. She and her husband, Dale Shantz, spent winters in Mesa (AZ). She enjoyed sewing quilts and donating them to charities.

Geraldine Souder Bechtel Hardison Stiedle ‘66, Little Rock. Ark., died at age 89 on Jan. 5, 2023. She earned a nursing degree from Reading Hospital and a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Pennsylvania. She worked as a nurse at EMC, at the Philhaven Psychiatric Hospital in Lebanon (PA), and in Calico Rock (AR). She also taught psychiatric nursing at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She sang in her church choir and helped with Bible studies led by her husband, Paul Stiedle. Her first husband, Jim Hardison, died in 2003.

Ray K. Yoder ‘66, Souderton, Pa., died at age 82 on May 29, 2023. Yoder was a conscientious objector who taught children in Arizona for two years with Mennonite Voluntary Service. He and his future wife, Edna Mack Yoder, exchanged over 1,000 handwritten letters during that time. After graduating from EMC, he earned an MDiv degree from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. He pastored several churches in Pennsylvania, most recently as an interim pastor for churches transitioning between leadership. He led an Appalachian Trail backpack program at Spruce Lake Wilderness Camp and enjoyed hunting, gardening, painting, playing guitar, and singing.

Dorothy Leora Wissler Zehr ‘66, Goshen, Ind., died at age 84 on Feb. 10, 2024. She served as the dean of girls at Eastern Mennonite High School and resident director at EMC before moving to New York with her husband, Milton J. Zehr ‘66, to serve as his partner in ministry at Lowville Mennonite Church for 22 years and then with New York Mennonite Conference. Later in life, she became a credentialed spiritual director.

Pearl A. Zehr ‘66, Lowville, N.Y., died at age 94 on June 11, 2023. Zehr taught first grade at Beaver River Central School for more than 25 years and volunteered with the school for several years after her retirement in 1991. She was a member of Croghan Mennonite Church where she was active in the Dorcas Sisters sewing circle. She also served on the board— and volunteered—at The Agape Shoppe and Adirondack Mennonite Heritage Association. She enjoyed quilting, reading, bird-watching, and spending time with family.

R. Melvin Harnish ‘68, Waynesboro, Pa., died at age 79 on Nov. 19, 2022. Harnish was a licensed insurance agent and founded Cumberland Valley Insurance in Hagerstown (MD) where he and his wife, Nola M. Nofziger Harnish, were members of First Christian Church and several country clubs in the area. He was an avid golfer and traveler.

Christine Ann Showalter Ontiveros ‘68, Roanoke, Va., died at age 77 on Sept. 27, 2023. She worked as a Spanish and English teacher for many years prior to raising her three daughters with her husband, Efren Ontiveros. She later worked at Lewis Gale Pharmacy, for a local orthodontist, and at several local churches, including Williamson Road Church of the Brethren where she was a member for more than 20 years. She was an avid bowler, participating in church leagues in Roanoke, and loved crossword puzzles, knitting, reading, and taking part in the upbringing of her grandchildren.

Ruth Esther Baer ‘69, Greencastle, Pa., died at age 76 on March 25, 2023. Baer taught music in public schools on Maryland’s Eastern Shore for several years. She was a singer who especially enjoyed spiritual and gospel music. While selling life insurance later in her career, Baer developed an interest in health and medicine and went on to become a nursing assistant, working in home care and then at Ravenwood Nursing Home near Hagerstown (MD). She loved nature, flowers, and dogs.

Robert A. Mathias Jr., class of ‘71, Islamorada, Fla., died at age 75 on Jan. 8, 2023. Mathias Jr. worked with Hawes Lab in Harrisonburg before eventually moving to the Florida Keys where he taught people to dive and swim with the dolphins. He chartered diving and fishing trips on his boat, The Restless Two, for 47 years.

Emma Jane Burkholder ‘70, Rockingham, Va., died at age 82 on Dec. 21, 2022. Burkholder taught elementary classes at Mt. Pleasant Christian School in Chesapeake (VA) before returning to the Shenandoah Valley where she worked as a counselor and childcare provider. She valued people—and enjoyed art, literature, and music.

Ruth M. Harnish Shenk Hertzler ‘70, Lititz, Pa., died at age 81 on May 25, 2023. She and her husband, Gerald Landis Shenk, raised their daughter on a small farm while she worked part-time for 25 years as an RN at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon (PA). After his death, she moved to Ephrata (PA) where she volunteered at Landis Homes and Mennonite Central Committee. She and her second husband, Donald E. Hertzler ‘68, enjoyed bike riding and spending time with their grandchildren.

Kathryn T. Isett ‘70, Bechtelsville, Pa., died at age 77 on Aug. 26, 2023. She was a substitute teacher in Daniel Boone School District in 1979 when she and her husband, Robert C. (Pappy) Isett, took over the family business, Bittenbender’s Food Market, in Bechtelsville; they ran the store until their retirement in 2005. She was a lifelong member of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church where she sang in the choir and served on several committees.

Jenny R. Fitting ‘71, Allentown, Pa., died at age 73 on April 29, 2023. A graduate of EMC and Kutztown University, she taught elementary school at Sheridan Elementary School and Lehigh Christian Academy. She also taught Sunday school and ladies Bible study as a member of Bethel Bible Fellowship Church. She was married to David E. Fitting for 46 years.

Alvin Miller Huyard ‘71, Grottoes, Va., died at age 80 on Dec. 21, 2022. Huyard taught school in Warren County and Newport News (VA) for 15 years before changing his career and becoming a pastor for 25 years, most recently at Mt. Vernon Mennonite Church in Grottoes. Married to Rose Stoltzfus Huyard MA ‘96 for 38 years, he was known for sharing stories, jokes, and facts about history.

Margaret Gingerich Varner ‘71, McAlisterville, Pa., died at age 74 on Sept. 27, 2023. She taught in Botswana and in Pennsylvania at West Snyder High School and Juniata Mennonite School (JMS). She also taught Bible lessons at church and loved to read and quilt. She and her husband, Roger (Tim) Varner, co-chaired the JMS quilt committee for 25 years and created hundreds of quilts.

Jerry Shenk Breneman ‘72, Mount Joy, Pa., died at age 78 on March 2, 2023. Breneman worked as a truck driver for 45 years, delivering coal and fertilizer for F.H. Kreider. He had a deep love of music and enjoyed leading singing in church, where he also taught Sunday school. He lived out his Anabaptist faith with Mariam Metzler Breneman for 43 years.

John D. Sauder ‘72, Lititz, Pa., died at age 74 on Nov. 5, 2023. Sauder became the third-generation of General Motors’ dealers in his family in the 1970s when he opened Heritage Chevrolet in Lititz, later merging that location with New Holland (PA). In 2001, he opened John D. Sauder Auto Company in Ephrata (PA), acquiring the Chevrolet, Buick, and Pontiac franchises. Both dealerships received Chevrolet’s Mark of Excellence Award multiple times. Sauder served on the boards of Lancaster Bible College and Welsh Mountain Retreat.

Phil Mininger ‘73, Paoli, Ind., died at age 72 on April 26, 2023. He and his wife, Mary Kauffman Mininger ’74, led a voluntary service unit in Mississippi with Mennonite Board of Missions before studying for MDiv degrees at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary; the couple co-pastored at Paoli Mennonite Fellowship from 1998-2011. A carpenter who built houses, he served as president of Orange County Habitat for Humanity for many years. He was named Orange County Philanthropist of the Year in 2008 and grand marshal of the Paoli Fall Festival Parade in 2022.

William (Carlton) Banks, class of ‘74, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 70 on Oct. 20, 2022. After serving in the U.S. Army for 22 years, he and his wife, Sheila Washington Banks, returned to Harrisonburg where he worked at AMP Incorporated and owned and operated Banks Cleaning Service. He retired from the City of Harrisonburg with 20 years of service.

J. Dean Brubaker ‘75, Tucson, Ariz., died at age 68 on Nov. 5, 2022. A graduate of EMC and Millersville University, Brubaker taught mathematics at Lancaster High School and in Rhamu, Kenya, and Mussoorie, India; he enjoyed telling stories of his adventures abroad. He was married to Nancy Benner Brubaker for 44 years.

Timothy R. Detweiler ‘76, Washington, Iowa, died at age 71 on June 17, 2023. A graduate of EMC, Hesston College and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Detweiler found deep meaning in his work as a pastor in Colorado, Iowa, and Montana. He treasured his life together with Carol Bachman Detweiler ‘76 for nearly 46 years. He also held a private pilot license and enjoyed fishing and woodworking projects.

Joel Ernest Lehman ‘76, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 69 on Dec. 2, 2023. Lehman was employed by Blauch Brothers, Inc. for 37 years. He was an avid outdoorsman who loved hunting, fishing, and spending time with friends and family in the woods. He was married to Darlene Miller Lehman ‘81 for 40 years.

Orpha B. Martin ‘77, Lancaster, Pa., died at age 72 on Nov. 30, 2022. A graduate of EMC and Lancaster General School of Nursing, Martin enjoyed her work as a nurse in longterm care and was a member of James Street Mennonite Church in Lancaster.

Harlan Lloyd Mast ‘77, Penn Laird, Va., died at age 73 on Oct. 29, 2023. Mast earned his doctor of medicine degree from Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk (VA) and became board-certified in internal medicine and emergency medicine. He practiced emergency medicine in Michigan for 27 years, retiring near family in Virginia in 2016. Married to Evelyn Yvonne Shank Mast ‘75 for 52 years, he enjoyed classical and sacred music, working with plants, and landscaping.

Elaine Yeackly Shenk Wampler ‘77, Sebring, Fla., died at age 84 on Feb. 24, 2023. After earning a teaching certificate from EMC, she taught special education, then became a hairstylist. She opened her own salon, Elaine’s Hair Styling, in downtown Harrisonburg. She enjoyed RV camping with her husband, Garland Wampler, making jewelry, and doing genealogy research.

Donald W. Good ‘78, Landisville, Pa., died at age 81 on Dec. 28, 2022. Good began his career as a farmer and was called to pastoral ministry at East Petersburg Mennonite Church in 1973. In 1985, he became director of pastoral services at Landis Homes; he retired in 2010 and volunteered for Hospice & Community Care, Lancaster General Hospital, and Mt. Hope Nazarene Retirement Community. He was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed grilling out and feeding loved ones with Phebe Martin Good, his wife of 58 years.

Margaret Kreider ‘78, Nottingham, Pa., died at age 81 on Sept. 8, 2023. Kreider held a master’s degree in nursing from UVA and practiced as an RN for 53 years. She taught nursing at Rockingham Memorial Hospital, EMU, and St. Joseph’s School of Nursing in Lancaster; she also worked as a nurse for the School District of Lancaster. Kreider enjoyed gardening, square dancing, and mountain and ocean trips with family and friends.

Sherry Amidon Peatross MA ‘80 (religion), Sun City Center, Fla., died at age 81 on Aug. 6, 2023. She dedicated her life to being a wife, mother, grandmother, and teacher. She was married to Elliott Reeke from 1964 until his passing in 1977. In 1983, she married Marine Corps officer Martin Peatross; the couple traveled the world, making lifelong friends along the way.

Twila Berg ‘81, Maysville, W.Va., died at age 66 on Aug. 6, 2023. Berg taught at Petersburg High School for 30 years, retiring in 2015. She was a member and treasurer at the Cabins Assembly of God church where she helped with back-to-school backpack drives. Berg was also active with Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child program, was a gospel music fan, and loved her many cats.

Laura Irene Kinsman Wanger ’81 (nursing), Shepherdstown, W.Va., died at age 92 on Oct. 26, 2022. She served as a lieutenant and nurse in the U.S. Navy before earning her bachelor’s degree from EMC. She went

on to earn an MSN with a concentration in gerontology from George Mason University. She finished her career as a clinical specialist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Martinsburg.

James Robert Bailey MA ‘82 (philosophy of religion), Lexington, Va., died at age 70 on Sept. 8, 2023. Throughout his life, Bailey served as director of adult literacy at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College, residence life director at Houghton College, dean of students at Tyndale College, director of doctoral programs at Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School, and online instructor for Purdue Global. He also owned and operated the Peace Creek Inn in Great Valley (NY).

Catherine Elizabeth Bomberger Custalow ‘84, Charlottesville, Va., died at age 61 on Oct. 29, 2022. She earned a doctorate in anatomy and a medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia, specializing in emergency medicine. She worked for 10 years as an emergency room physician and professor at UVA. After a severe spine injury, she dedicated herself to writing and editing medical books.

Kimberly Sue Weaver Martin ‘84, of New Castle, Colo., died at age 62 on Jan. 21, 2024. She was a nurse and board-certified lactation consultant specializing in neonatal intensive care and lactation support. She led the “Baby-Friendly” certification initiative for Valley View Hospital where she was affectionately called “the boob whisperer” by her coworkers. She shared two daughters with her husband, Lauren Martin, and had a passion for baking bread, pies, and dinner rolls.

Kathleen Louise Ballentine Wendland ‘84, Pratt, Kan., died at age 59 on Oct. 16, 2022. She was a homemaker, raising her four children with her husband, Brian Ernest Wendland, before becoming an ordained minister who served at Father’s House of Worship in Sun City (KS).

Curtis Allen Cupp ‘85, Staunton, Va., died at age 60 on July 4, 2023. Cupp served as a care coordinator at UVA Cancer Center where he used his innate ability to connect with patients to support them through their difficult journeys with cancer. He was devoted to his husband, Darryl Wayne Jones, and loved animals, especially dogs.

James Larry Foster MA ’85 (religion), Knoxville, Tenn., died at age 87 on Dec. 31, 2022. As a youth pastor, Foster founded and directed the Christian Counseling and Teaching Center, developed the World Peace Organization, and wrote the book “Holy Humanity: We Are All Made of God Stuff” (CreateSpace, 2014). Married to Sandra Stevenson Foster for 67 years, he loved the natural world, creative landscaping, and supporting others on their spiritual journeys.

Mark Ellrose Peachey ‘85, Belleville, Pa., died at age 64 on July 30, 2023. He served as a pastor in the Mennonite Church and Church of the Brethren and worked in maintenance at Laurelville Mennonite Church Center. He enjoyed having animals, reading the Bible, watching football, and painting.

Doris Jeanne Pitsenberger ‘88, Fishersville, Va., died at age 76 on Oct. 19, 2022. A graduate of Seton Hall College, EMC and JMU, she served as a biology teacher at Sweet Briar College and as a nurse in the emergency department, public health and family planning, occupational health, and Augusta Regional Free Clinic. In 1995, she was named the Virginia Occupational Health Nurse of the Year. She was a certified private pilot and

PROMISE GRANT UNVEILED

EMU is ensuring that a quality college education is within reach of more students, thanks to a new Promise Grant initiative announced at Admitted Student Day in February. The EMU Promise Grant, which takes effect during the fall 2024 semester, fully covers the tuition costs for Virginia residents whose adjusted gross incomes are under $65,000. The EMU Promise Grant creates access to education for first-time, full-time undergraduate students and shows college-bound students that an EMU education is more affordable than they may have thought; the average net cost for an EMU student in 2022-2023 was just $15,309. For details about eligibility and FAQs, visit: emu.edu/promise-grant

INFUSING INCLUSION THROUGH ART

The Washington Community Scholars’ Center (WCSC) was awarded a $1200 Inclusive Excellence Grant for fall 2023 by EMU’s Office of DEI, thanks to the generosity of Jose Koshy ’76 and Jean KoshyHertzler ’79. Over the spring semester, WCSC transformed its student-living quarters into a space where everyone feels welcome. Students, faculty and staff identified more than a dozen artists who represented the myriad of cultures of Washington, D.C., participated in a selection process, purchased artwork from five different artists, framed their prints, and hung them in the main common area of the house. The project was co-led by Ann Butwell, WCSC associate director of student life and program administration, and Ryan Good, associate professor of urban studies and WCSC program director.

BERGEY BATON AMONG THE BEST

Dr. Benjamin Bergey, EMU assistant professor of music and director of orchestra and choirs at EMU, has been named a 2024 “40 under 40” honoree by Yamaha Music USA. Launched in 2021, the annual awards recognize educators who “are making a difference in growing and strengthening their music programs.” Bergey established the music and peacebuilding major at EMU, “the first undergraduate major in the U.S. that combines the theories and practices of peacebuilding and conflict transformation with musical training.”

Bergey also placed second in The American Prize in Conducting college/university orchestra division for 2023. The American Prize national nonprofit competitions annually recognize the best performing artists in the U.S. based on submitted recordings. Bergey submitted a video of the EMU Orchestra and University Choir performing Ralph Vaughan Williams’ large-scale masterwork “Dona Nobis Pacem” (“Grant Us Peace”) at EMU’s 2021 gala concert. In addition to Bergey’s runner-up results, the EMU Orchestra and University Choir were finalists in their respective divisions.

air traffic control tower operator and later became a glider flight instructor. She loved traveling with her husband, Graham A. Pitsenberger Jr., visiting all 50 states and more than 80 countries.

Bertha Marie Hironimus MDiv ‘90, Ligonier, Pa., died at age 84 on May 17, 2023. She and her husband, Rev. Leon Francis Hironimus, raised their four children before she went back to school to earn her GED and study sociology. She later completed a Clinical Pastoral Education program at Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg (PA), obtained an MDiv degree from EMS, and then started a chaplaincy program at Palmerton (PA) Hospital. After retiring, she became an interim pastor for the Ligonier First Church of the Brethren. She enjoyed horseback riding, country line dancing, making greeting cards, and watching and photographing sunsets.

Ronald John Williams SEM ‘91, Orrville, Ohio, died at age 66 on June 25, 2023. A graduate of Bluffton College, Williams further studied trumpet at the University of Northern Colorado before performing in traveling groups and on a Caribbean cruise ship. He also worked at Towne and Country Theater in Norwalk (OH) and managed a building maintenance company in Cleveland before earning his MDiv degree from EMS and becoming a pastor. He was married to Benita Kornhaus Williams for 37 years.

Eric Eugene Horst ‘95, Birmingham, Ala., died at age 52 on Feb. 12, 2024. As an ordained pastor, Horst served Mennonite churches in Ohio, Illinois, and Pennsylvania. He worked as director of adult and family ministries at Spruce Lake Retreat in Pennsylvania, and was a speaker, worship leader, and concert artist for other camps and congregations. He moved to Birmingham (AL) where he worked as an operations manager for the Harbert Center and media director at Grace & Truth Church. Horst began a ministry called Cry 4 Freedom focused on helping people find freedom in Jesus.

James Jinks ‘96, Dyke, Va., died at age 82 on Dec. 26, 2022. Jinks devoted his life to sharing God’s word with others, serving for many years at multiple congregations. He worked in full-time ministry at Mt. Olivet Church of the Brethren in Timberville (VA) and as pastor of Mt. Grove Chapel Church of the Brethren in Fulks Run (VA) until his death. He was a dedicated caregiver to his wife, Merium Knight Jinks, during her battle with Pick’s disease.

Linda Shenk Gildner ‘98, Rockingham, Va., died at age 75 on Jan. 28, 2024. She taught for Rockingham County Public Schools and Harrisonburg City Public Schools and later taught homebound students. She served as a missionary in Ethiopia and India, was involved in local children’s ministry, and was married to Gerald (Jerry) J. Gildner for 27 years.

Sharon Wyse Miller SEM ‘98, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 79 on May 16, 2023. She and her husband, Duane K. Miller, raised their four children on a farm in Wellman (IA). A graduate of Kansas City General Hospital School of Nursing, she used her skills in a local doctor’s office and nursing home. Later, she served as a nursing home chaplain, on the Hesston College Board of Overseers, as director of development at Iowa Mennonite School, and with her husband and Mennonite Central Committee in Haiti. After earning her master’s in religion from EMS, she spent 12 years pastoring small churches in Iowa and Pennsylvania.

Lisa Anne Detwiler ‘99, New Castle, Colo., died at age 47 on Nov. 10, 2022. She worked

for Garfield County Libraries and previously for YouthZone in Glenwood Springs (CO) where she was an active member of Defiance Church. She was married to Merle Detweiler for 17 years and loved outdoor adventures, especially hikes through the wilds of Colorado.

Joyce Ann Wharton ‘04, Sperryville, Va., died at age 67 on Sept. 8, 2023. She worked as a seamstress at Aileen for 21 years before earning her bachelor’s degree from EMU and pursuing her true passion of teaching. She taught at Rappahannock County Elementary School for 20 years before retiring in 2019. Married to Albert Wharton for 47 years, she enjoyed playing cards, completing word searches, and reading the Bible.

Benjamin Hines Geiser, class of ‘05, Gordonsville, Va., died at age 40 on Jan. 1, 2023. Geiser, who loved the outdoors, worked for many years in landscaping design, stonework, and lawn care. He and his partner, Laura Mahan, enjoyed traveling and the beauty of nature. He loved music, at times composing and playing his own.

Daniel Eli Long MA ‘06 (counseling), Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 43 on May 31, 2023. Long was a school counselor at Stone Spring Elementary School for 17 years and a devoted member of Divine Unity Community Church. He coached JV soccer at Harrisonburg High School for several seasons. In addition to soccer, he was passionate about trail running, football, and spending time outdoors with his wife, Melissa Tepke Long, and three children.

Sunil Ravi Dick ‘08, Lancaster, Pa., died at age 38 on Jan. 9, 2024. Born in India, he lived in East Harlem in New York City for a year before moving to Lancaster. He had a customer service career in healthcare and hospitality support. He enjoyed the arts, Scrabble, global cuisine, and movies.

Gakunzi (Yves) Senzara MBA ‘08, Portland, Ore., died at age 49 on Jan. 7, 2023. Senzara immigrated to the U.S. in 2002 after fleeing the First Congo War and earning a bachelor’s degree in geoscience from the University of Burundi. He worked at the Ministry of Mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, U.S. Department of Defense, and OCTO, a Virginiabased technology firm. He shared three children with his wife, Pascasie Senzara.

Anastacio Basil Marin MDiv ‘10, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 62 on June 26, 2022. Marin was the lead pastor of New Song Anabaptist Fellowship Church and served on the Mennonite Board of Education, N.E. Community Board. He was also a youth pastor at several camps and a bus driver for Rockingham County and the City of Harrisonburg.

Michael Landon Moles II ‘11, Harrisonburg, Va., died at age 34 on July 22, 2023. Moles loved baseball and pitched for the Stuarts Draft High School Cougars, Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks, and EMU Royals. A man of strong faith, he inscribed in all of his baseball caps: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13) Moles married Melanie Zobell in 2020 and worked as an office manager for Aerotek, a talent recruiter for S&P Global, and most recently, in Amazon’s cloud division.

Alyssa Bane Owens ‘16, Toms Brook, Va., died at age 30 on June 10, 2024. She broke the EMU and ODAC record for throwing hammer. After graduating, she worked for Shenandoah County Public Schools as a paraprofessional, volleyball coach, and special education teacher. She shared two children with her husband, Shawn Lee Owens.

Y-SERVE? FOR JESUS

Ten EMU students and University Chaplain Brian Martin Burkholder spent Spring Break in Georgia for a Y-Serve service learning trip. The Y-Serve group partnered with Casa Alterna, a Georgia-based nonprofit that welcomes and hosts asylum seekers and immigrant families. Together, they attended multicultural worship services, shared meals with asylees from Latin America and Africa and listened to their stories and experiences. They also met with students at the International Community School, a public charter K-5 school that educates refugee, immigrant and local children; toured downtown Atlanta and the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Park; and visited Koinonia Farm, a raciallyintegrated Christian community and working communal farm founded in Americus (GA) in 1942.

Another Y-Serve group traveled to Kimball, West Virginia, in McDowell County, the third poorest county in the United States (2020 census). Three EMU students and an alumnus volunteered with Sharing With Appalachian People (SWAP), a ministry program through Mennonite Central Committee. They repaired houses, connected with local residents, and reflected on how to live out their Christian faith. Y-Serve is the longest-running student organization at EMU and aims to “serve others as the hands and feet of Jesus.”

Sara Monger, class of ‘27, Elkton, Va., died at age 18 on Oct. 28, 2023. Monger played softball at EMU and loved to hunt and fish. She was a 2023 graduate of East Rockingham High School where she played softball, basketball, and was a member of Future Farmers of America. She showed prize hogs at the Rockingham County Fair and won grand champion in 2023 and 2018.

CORRECTIONS

Harold F. Miller was, not is, a volunteer with Mennonite Central Committee and a country representative for Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, and Sudan.

David W. Shenk died on Jan. 31, 2023, not Jan. 3, 2023.

Degree Key

CLASS OF - attended as part of the class of a given graduation year

GC - graduate certificate MA - master of arts

MS - master of science

MSN - master of science in nursing MDiv - master of divinity

Entries about alumni with both their undergraduate and graduate degrees from EMU are listed in the undergraduate section.

Have an update?

Visit: emu.edu/alumni/update

Editorial Policy

Milepost entries are printed on the basis of submissions from alumni or on the basis of publicly-available information. We do not verify the accuracy of information that alumni provide. Nor do we make judgment calls on the desired information for publishing— beyond editing for clarity, conciseness and consistency of style. The information provided to us does not necessarily reflect the official policies of EMU or of its parent church, Mennonite Church USA.

AND THE WINNER IS…

Recent social work grad Brianna (Bri) Allen ‘24, Weyers Cave, Va., was presented with the 2024 Outstanding Bachelor Social Worker (BSW) Student of the Year Award by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Virginia chapter at its annual conference in Norfolk in March. The award is given each year to one BSW student in the state who demonstrates outstanding academic work, accomplishments and work in the field, and leadership qualities. Allen was nominated by the three faculty members in EMU’s social work program. A nomination letter written by Professor Carol Hurst, who attended the conference with Allen, noted Allen’s positive contributions in class, her direct work with children and their parents through Skyline Literacy and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, and her warmth and energy as an organizer of others.

SHATTERING RECORDRECORDEVENT EVENT GIVIN G DAY

LovEMU Giving Day 2024 on April 10 was another record-shattering event— with $340,512 raised from 873 gifts and 565 donors, a nearly $40,000 (13 percent) increase from last year’s total. Dollars raised are helping to shape the futures of EMU students by decreasing financial barriers, supporting faculty and staff, and improving facilities.

In addition to the smashing fundraising success, LovEMU merged with Admitted Student Day and SGA Day to bring prospective and current students together with faculty and staff for on-campus events from dawn until dark. Highlights of the day included an inaugural pep rally, first-ever student versus faculty/staff dodgeball game, Lunch & Lawn Party with egg toss, barbecue cookout, and karaoke sing-off contest.

EMU students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends also showed up online, unlocking all $125,000+ of challenge match funds for The University Fund, student scholarships, athletics, and Royal Women for EMU. The ‘80s-inspired “Stronger Together” theme helped to amp up the giving spirit. “I am blown away by the support from this community, and I am excited about LovEMU Giving Day 2025 on Wednesday, April 2,” said LovEMU organizer Nicole Litwiller ‘19, MA ‘20 (conflict transformation), annual giving and donor communications specialist at EMU.

Nora Osei ’15, a former EMU basketball and soccer player who now works as director of growth & partnerships for Nike Sports Camps/US Sports Camps, shared her tips for finding success at a morning pep rally. Kate Landis ‘24 and admitted student Megan Smith also spoke at the event.

EMU students participated in a karaoke sing-off at the Student Union where clubs competed for $100 in three categories. International Students Organization won "Most Engaging/Best All-Around," Asian-Pacific Islander Student Alliance won "Most EMU Love," and Queer Student Alliance and Latino Student Alliance tied for "Best Theme."

EMU Advancement team members celebrated a nearly $40,000 (or 13 percent) increase from last year’s LovEMU Giving Day total.

$340,512 RAISED!

Hundreds

faculty, staff, current

prospective

of

and

students, alumni, donors and families celebrated the funds rolling in at an evening barbecue cookout outside University Commons.

Pep rally emcee Braydon Hoover counted down as EMU President Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman prepared for a pie to the face. Herm pied Dr. Huxman after a challenge was met, unlocking $10,000.

An egg toss contest during the Lunch & Lawn Party on Thomas Plaza proved challenging for participants and entertaining for spectators.

A team of faculty and staff battled against students in a game of dodgeball at Yoder Arena. The faculty and staff team prevailed in the matchup.

PHOTOS BY MACSON MCGUIGAN, JON STYER AND CASSIDY WALKER

NEW TRACK & FIELD COMPLEX

Over $3.6 million has been given or pledged for the new $6-million track & field complex. Early in the campaign, the Rosenbergers provided a leadership gift of $600,000 for the project. They now have put forth an additional $400,000 challenge fund to encourage support for this important initiative. All new gifts and commitments made through October 12, 2024, will be matched dollar for dollar up to $400,000!

“EMU’s new state-of-the-art track & field complex will help to attract excellent students who are also motivated by competitive athletics. Athletic and academic pursuits encourage students to focus on setting and achieving personal goals, training with focus and discipline, and developing time management skills.”

— Jim ‘68 and Gloria Horst Rosenberger ’70

Join us in the race to the finish line as we support student-athletes and the dedicated coaches who mentor them through an immediate gift or multi-year commitment. Give today at emu.edu/track, or contact kirk.shisler@emu.edu for details.

DR. LEE ROY BERRY JR.

WHEN DR. LEE ROY BERRY JR. ’66 graduated from Eastern Mennonite College (now Eastern Mennonite University), several members of his Sarasota, Florida, church were there to celebrate his achievement.

“They were extraordinary people,” Berry recalled. “They played such an important role in helping to shape the

the migrant camp and invited him and others to church in Newtown, the predominantly Black section of Sarasota. Though he resisted numerous invitations, he had great respect for the Newtown Gospel Chapel congregation.

Following graduation, he applied for admission to the Mennonite Voluntary Service program in Elkhart, Indiana. In September 1966, he received a two-year assignment to the Voluntary Service Unit in Cleveland, Ohio, and became a public-school teacher. In June 1968, he returned to Elkhart and finished his Voluntary Service commitment by writing articles about the work of Mennonite volunteers in urban areas.

That fall, Berry enrolled as a graduate student at the University of Notre Dame where he received a master’s and PhD. In 1969, he became the first African American faculty member at Goshen College, teaching politics, Latin American studies and Black history parttime until his retirement in 2010.

While at Goshen, Berry took a sabbatical to pursue law school at Indiana University. In 1985, he was admitted to the Indiana bar and started his full-time law practice.

After graduating from high school in 1961 and taking months to search his soul, Berry decided to become a Christian. That winter, he was baptized and became a member at Newtown Gospel Chapel. He was still a migrant farm worker, but was thinking seriously about college.

In the early 1960s, colleges and universities in the South remained highly segregated, so Berry had his eye on either Morehouse College, a liberal arts college that taught Black men, or Gibbs Junior College, an all-Black school in nearby St. Petersburg. He shared his plans with his pastor, who encouraged him to apply to EMU.

Many of Berry’s law clients were migrants from Central America and Mexico who encountered legal problems in Indiana but were not fluent in English and sought legal assistance from lawyers who could communicate with them in Spanish.

Eventually more Hispanic lawyers came to the area, but in the 1980s, Berry was one of the few who could serve that community.

“My objective was to be effective by doing the best that I could for them,” he said.

– BY JOSETTE KEELOR

“They treated us as human beings,” he said. “Their actions seemed to coincide with the beliefs they professed.”

Berry later met more Mennonites in Florida after a white man came to

Berry was accepted to EMU and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history and secondary education. “EMU helped me prepare [for future career and educational endeavors],” he said. “You never stop learning.”

ALUM

OF THE YEAR AWARD

KENDRA CONRAD BAILEY

KENDRA CONRAD BAILEY ’03, MA ’05, a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) at her own private Iowa practice, was in a client session when her office received a call from Eastern Mennonite University. When she checked with members of her staff, they assured her the call wasn’t important. She later learned that while she was helping clients that day, her colleagues were dancing in the halls. They had heard that Bailey, whom they had nominated, had been selected by EMU’s Alumni Association and its Awards and Nominations Committee as the 2024 Alum of the Year.

she learned about EMU when college recruiters made a stop at the school she was attending. Upon visiting EMU, Bailey said she “just overwhelmingly felt it was where the Lord was calling me.”

The award is given annually to an alum who has been recognized for significant achievement in her/his/their profession, community or church. Given to honor the alum, it is also awarded to inspire EMU students and fellow alumni to live lives of service and vocational excellence.

“I felt honored and humbled [to receive the award],” said Bailey, who added that being viewed by her staff in a way that drove them to nominate her was “the greatest gift.”

Bailey, 43, lives on a farm in Riverside, Iowa, with her husband, Jace Bailey ’04, and their three children: Bryce (17), Kale (15), and Jalise (11). An Iowa native,

Bailey went on to attend both undergraduate and graduate school at EMU where she earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 2003 and a master’s degree in school and clinical counseling in 2005. She credits her EMU professors with noticing her strengths in the classroom—and recognizing how she might excel as a therapist, a career she decided to pursue after undergrad.

Bailey had no intention of starting her own business until some former clients, colleagues and her husband started asking, “Why not?” She told them she couldn’t imagine it. When her husband suggested it might be God’s will, Bailey confessed there was one place she could see God leading her: to downtown North Liberty, Iowa, in a particular neighborhood that, as far as she knew, had no suitable space.

The following day, a man approached her husband at the bank where he works as a commercial loan officer and asked if he knew anyone looking to rent a space in exactly the spot Bailey had named.

She recalled the space needing a lot of work but could “see the vision.” “It’s like the Lord opened my eyes and allowed me to see what could be.”

Bailey obtained a LMHC license in the state of Iowa and opened her business Imagine Therapy Solutions, which draws its mission statement from Ephesians 3:20: “And to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine, to Him be the glory.”

That was nearly 10 years ago. Now with two locations, the business provides in-person and telehealth services to children, adolescents, adults, and families with a variety of mental and behavioral healthcare needs. “From the day we opened, we’ve had a waiting list and never advertised,” said Bailey, who along with 10 other therapists and five office staffers help clients throughout Iowa to envision themselves achieving their goals so that they can take the necessary steps for self-improvement.

“I enjoy sitting with clients one-onone to be able to walk with them,”

Bailey said. “I am humbled that people allow me to journey with them in their life story.”

In addition to carrying a full-client caseload at Imagine, Bailey provides supervision to therapists in training who are working to acquire their mental health license. She wrote “Tower of Trust,” an interactive storybook for children teaching them the value of second chances, and also speaks publicly on the topic of mental health to surrounding organizations, churches and schools.

– BY JOSETTE KEELOR

OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUM AWARD

SETH CRISSMAN

HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA, RESIDENT SETH

CRISSMAN ‘09, MDIV ‘15, has been selected by Eastern Mennonite University’s Alumni Association and its Awards and Nominations Committee as the 2024 Outstanding Young Alum for his work through the collaborative faith-based ministry The Soil and The Seed Project. The effort seeks to nurture faith in Jesus through conversations, art, poetry, music and daily readings.

“I wanted to find ways of empowering the church to live out what we say we believe,” Crissman said, “… faith that doesn’t just live in our heads, but in how we live and move in the world.”

The award is given annually to an alum who, through professional achievement and/or Christlike compassionate service, is making a significant contribution to the local, national or global community.

Crissman, 38, founded his Christian-based faith formation project in 2021 in partnership with and as a ministry of Virginia Mennonite Missions (VMMissions). With dozens of other artists, his team produces liturgical daily readings and new music albums every three to four months to help families talk about their faith.

“It’s meant to be an intergenerational project,” Crissman said.

The project grew from a previous effort he worked on with his wife, Theresa Peachey Crissman ‘09, called Kids Club, which helped area churches combine efforts to provide resources for children.

“I love helping people build bridges between communities,” Crissman said.

The Soil and The Seed Project has drawn talent from North America, Northern Africa and Southeast Asia; streams music to more than 130 countries; and has been shipped to 30+ states, all given away free of charge. More than 20 denominations and nondenominational groups are represented among the project’s followers.

Married with four children, Crissman pursued special education and history at EMU before seeking a master of divinity from Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

This past year, he was awarded a $1.2 million grant through Lilly Endowment Inc. as part of its Christian Parenting and Caregiving Initiative. Awarded to VMMissions for the purpose of growing The Soil and The Seed Project, the grant will

Virginia, from Oct. 25-27, 2024.

Additionally, the project’s Ordinary Time Concert Series has free concerts scheduled through September in the outdoor amphitheater at Brethren & Mennonite Heritage Center in Harrisonburg. For more information, visit: thesoilandtheseedproject.org/events

“There’s a temptation to think that what happens is because we’re clever or we hustle,” Crissman said. “What’s come of this project isn’t because I’m clever or have hustled a lot. It’s something God has done, and I’ve just had the joy of being able to help get it started.”

– BY JOSETTE KEELOR

Seth and Theresa Peachey Crissman with children Eliana, Malachi, Maria, and Isaiah (left to right).

ATHLETIC AWARDS

HALL OF HONOR ROLAND LANDES

Roland Landes wore many hats over the course of three decades at EMU, serving as an exemplary employee and coach of five different sports: men’s cross country, baseball, men’s basketball, women’s cross country, and track and field. His longest coaching tenures were as head men’s cross-country coach for nine seasons in two separate stints from 1967-1971 and 1973-1976 and as head men’s baseball coach for five seasons from 1979-1983.

As head men’s cross-country coach, Landes oversaw teams that won four National Christian Colleges Athletic Association (NCCAA) championships and two ODAC championships, including the inaugural ODAC championship in 1976. Another coaching highlight came when Landes stepped in as head men’s basketball coach for the 1972-1973 season: “It was the first year Lou Campanelli was at James Madison. They had scholarship players, and we hadn’t recruited at all. We beat them 72-71.”

Landes finished his 16-year EMU coaching career in 1983 with a 223-141 record. He also served as assistant professor of physical education from 1968-1982 and as supervisor of auxiliary services from 1984 until his retirement in 1998. He has fond memories of his time working with students in the classroom and on the playing fields. “The kids were just a joy to teach and to coach, and they didn’t hold anything back. They always gave 100 percent, and I really appreciated that and EMU’s spiritual emphasis that I thought was important for the whole person.”

HALL OF HONOR MICHAEL ALLEN

Michael Allen ‘13, a liberal arts major with minors in Spanish and music, is a Fork Union, Virginia, native who leaped into EMU and its record books after having competed in track and field at Louisa County High School. A standout jumper and sprinter for the Royals between 2009 and 2013, Allen qualified for the NCAA Track & Field Championships three times and was an 11-time All-ODAC performer in the triple jump and long jump.

In 2009, Allen set EMU records for the indoor triple jump (14.43m) and indoor long jump (7m), and in 2010, he set the university record for the outdoor triple jump (14.85m) and tied the outdoor long jump record (7.26m) set by Jim Herr ‘79; those records still hold today. Allen also stands in the Top 10 in program history for the indoor high jump (1.92m), the indoor 55m dash (6.76s), and the outdoor 200m dash (22.3s).

Allen was twice named ODAC Rookie of the Year in 2009 (indoor and outdoor); he was also selected as Male Athlete of the Meet at the ODAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 2009 and 2011. Allen qualified for the NCAA Track & Field Championships (indoor and outdoor in triple jump and long jump in 2009 and outdoor in triple jump in 2010).

A 2013 Cords of Distinction recipient, Allen said he was able to reshape who he was at EMU through track, music, and meeting people. “It really brought me out of my shell.” Allen is currently the lead musician at Harvest Church of God in Charlottesville and continues to play bass at his home House of God church in Gordonsville, Virginia.

HALL OF HONOR

GINA CAMPBELL TROYER

Gina Troyer ‘93, a liberal arts major with a special education certification and a minor in coaching, was hesitant about playing sports in college after feeling a “little burned out” from playing volleyball, basketball and softball in high school. However, after initially enrolling at Lord Fairfax Community College in Middletown, Virginia, she transferred to Bridgewater College to play softball and then to Eastern Mennonite College where she played volleyball and basketball for four years and softball for three.

As a Royal, Troyer was a three-time All-ODAC First Team honoree and a two-time all-Region middle hitter. During her sophomore year, EMU women’s volleyball won the ODAC championship, defeating Bridgewater in a thrilling five-set championship match. At the time of her graduation in 1993, Troyer held EMU career records for kills (969) and blocks (347) and now sits third all-time on both of those lists. As an EMU basketball forward, Troyer graduated fourth all-time in career rebounds with 648. She played first base on the 1990 softball team that won the ODAC championship, is fourth all-time in the Royals’ record book for stolen bases in a season (1990) with 24, and earned a spot on the All-ODAC Second Team in 1992.

Troyer said she “had a great experience playing sports” at EMU with teammates that were her closest friends and a coaching staff that was “so supportive.” Troyer retired in June 2023 after teaching special education for 30 years at Turner Ashby High School (Bridgewater) where she coached girls’ varsity volleyball for 24 years and junior varsity softball for four years.

in my development as a person.”

At EMU, Ygarza developed into a versatile post player who became the only woman in program history to capture All-ODAC First Team honors three times, earning the distinction in 2012, 2013 and 2014; she received VaSID All-State Second Team honors those same three years. During her sophomore and senior years, Ygarza made the D3hoops.com All-South Region Third Team and won the EMU Female Athlete of the Year award. She still remembers pulling out an exciting win against rival Bridgewater in “the kind of moment athletes dream of” to spark a 22-4 record for the 2011-2012 season—a season she shot 58 percent from the field, an EMU record that stands today. Ygarza also ranks seventh all-time in scoring with 1,215 points and eighth in career rebounds with 671.

Ygarza played the last two of her four seasons with her sister. Ygarza currently works as a nurse at UPMC Lititz hospital, close to where the two grew up. She also serves as an adjutant general officer for human resources in the Army Reserve with her unit in Waldorf, Maryland. She still plays basketball regularly and looks forward to introducing her four-year-old son, Jace, to the game.

Friday, October 11

COMMON GROUNDS COFFEEHOUSE

7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. & 8 p.m.-midnight

REGISTRATION DESK

9 a.m.-2 p.m.

PROSPECTIVE STUDENT VISITATION

9 a.m.-5 p.m.

JUBILEE LUNCHEON* (REUNION CLASSES 1950-1974)

11:30 a.m-1 p.m.

CLASS OF ‘74 50TH REUNION*

2 p.m.

CAMPUS TOUR

Time TBD

ART GALLERY OPENING REBECCA SOUDER GISH ’09, RHODA MILLER ’03, JON STYER ‘07

4-5 p.m.

ROYAL APPRECIATION RECEPTION: ROYALS IN THE LAND OF OZ* (BY INVITE ONLY)

5-6:30 p.m.

MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTION "LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL"

7 p.m.

Saturday, October 12

REGISTRATION DESK

7:30 a.m.-noon

OPENING CELEBRATION BREAKFAST*

8:30-10 a.m.

PROSPECTIVE STUDENT VISITATION

9 a.m.-2 p.m.

COMMON GROUNDS COFFEEHOUSE

9 a.m.-2 p.m.

HALL OF HONOR CEREMONY

10-11 a.m.

EMU SWAG SHOP

10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

ROYAL CITY CELEBRATION*

Follow the yellow brick road to join EMU students, faculty and staff and friends old and new for food, fellowship and fun.

11 a.m.-1 p.m.

WOMEN’S FIELD HOCKEY VS. SWEET BRIAR Noon

EMU TENTALKS*

Prepare to be impacted, influenced and inspired in this TED Talk-modeled event featuring three alumni speaking for 10 minutes each with a Q&A at the end.

2-3 p.m.

*Registration required - Facebook livestream option

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL VS. LYNCHBURG

2 p.m.

WOMEN’S SOCCER VS. GUILFORD 3 p.m.

NEW TRACK & FIELD COMPLEX DEDICATION

3:30-4:30 p.m.

MEN’S SOCCER VS. LYNCHBURG

6 p.m.

MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTION "LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL"

7 p.m.

TURF FIELD BONFIRE (WEATHER AND CONDITIONS PERMITTING)

After field hockey game

Sunday, October 13

PARK VIEW MENNONITE CHURCH CONCERT

9:30 a.m.

MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTION "LIGHTNING THIEF: THE PERCY JACKSON MUSICAL"

7 p.m.

Schedule is subject to change. For an updated schedule with descriptions and registration instructions, visit: emu.edu/homecoming

October 11-13, 2024

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

Parents

ROARING into fall with two campus open house events where students can explore our majors, athletics, student life, as well as meet current students and alumni— and Herm the Lion.

ROAR SESSION 1

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2024

ROAR SESSION 2

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2024