A Trek through Montana's Beartooth Wilderness

SPRING FALL 2015 2012

THE MAGAZINE OF GORDON COLLEGE

STILLPOINT

Learning

by Doing A Place for Invention 14

12 A Trek through Montana’s Beartooth Wilderness Mark Sargent:

18 Structure and Serendipity: On the “Living Ground” of How Experiential Learning Gordon College 17 Adds Up

“One of the questions we continually asked was, ‘Are you choosing to live by faith or fear?’ In the wilderness, where we are quite literally out of control, choosing faith over fear is a daily necessity.”

Also Also in This in Issue This Issue 28 Indwelling 4 Anvil by Urban Spring (+ Rural) 24 Scots’ Landscapes Study Spots 30 Living 30 Alumni the History: NewsPeople, 36 Faithful Places and Leadership Connections

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12 STILLPOINT | FALL 2015

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LEARNING BY DOING

A Trek through Montana’s Beartooth Wilderness

Story Heather Korpi Photos Mark Spooner ’14

FALL 2015 | STILLPOINT 13

Pictured Peter Nawoichik ’17

LEARNING BY DOING

Pictured Scott Barnett, W.I.L.D. Semester director

Pictured Richelle Joseph ’18

You learn a lot about yourself on a zero degree night under a tarp in the Montana wilderness. You learn to plan as you pack for your daily 11-mile hikes as high as 12,500 feet. You learn how to manage blisters, filter stream water and ration your food. And you silently hope you won’t need to access that can of bear spray you just learned to operate.

To seven Gordon students who spent 17 days in September in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness at the start of their W.I.L.D. Semester (Wilderness Immersion Leadership Development), those lessons are as fresh as the brisk Montana air.

Gordon College photographer Mark Spooner ’14 traveled with them for a week to document their excursion. He slept with camera batteries tucked into his sleeping bag to keep them charged, and slung three cameras, four lenses and a tripod onto his already-50-pound pack.

“Not only did it bring us to our knees in worship of God, but it also motivated us to care deeply about preserving God’s world that we now know more intimately.”

—Scott Barnett, Ph.D., W.I.L.D. Semester Director

Armchair adventurers, sit back and enjoy the view.

FALL 2015 | STILLPOINT 15

Theories of problem solving and teamwork came into a whole new light when these students exchanged their four-walled classrooms for miles of expansive forest and epic peaks, school supplies for bushwhacking tools, roommates for bison, and the ring of cell phones for bird calls.

They took turns as Leader of the Day, putting their training into action by orienteering, teaching one-hour lessons (on topics ranging from first aid to camp cooking), coordinating tasks for their fellow travelers, and facilitating debriefs under the light of their head-lamps.

More than survival, students learned about life. More than learning about the wilderness, they learned through the wilderness. The duress of grueling hikes and aching muscles shaped character and built endurance. Empowered to make

critical decisions, they developed a deeper grasp of responsibility and service. Together they accomplished great challenges, rising to the occasion as leaders, and learning the art of following well.

One hundred and seventeen miles later, the group is back on flat land, finishing their W.I.L.D. semester and outdoor education minor in Rockport, Massachusetts, with several shorter excursions that include kayaking, rock climbing and mountain biking.

Mark Spooner ’14 is the staff photographer at Gordon. In addition to his work for the College, Mark has his own photography business. When he’s not behind the camera, you can find him in the Adirondacks, working to complete all 46 high peaks. He has eight to go. mark.spooner@gordon.edu www.markspoonerphoto.com

See more of the trip at experience.gordon.edu/wild-semester or follow along on Instagram (@gc_wild) and Facebook (Gordon College WILD Semester). www.gordon.edu/wild

LEARNING BY DOING

At lower right, the entire W.I.L.D. group: left to right, in back row, Stefan Anthos ’18, Peter Nawoichik ’17, Nate McReynolds ’18, Evan Reppert ’18, Blake Denman ’18 and W.I.L.D. Director Scott Barnett; in front, resident advisor Abby Jones Coster, Jess Pankratz ’16, Grove City College student Jess Allen, and Richelle Joseph ’18.

FALL 2015 | STILLPOINT 17