2006 02 19

Vol. 94, No. 38 2 section, 18 pages

SUNDAY

February 19, 2006

www.acuoptimist.com

On the line

Whole new world

A class act

Junior sprinter set to defend 200-meter title, page 1B

Summer travels take students overseas, page 4B

Student groups shine on Sing Song stage, pages 4A-5A

Money to open lectures n Dr. Don Jeanes, president of Milligan College, will join Dr. Royce Money for the opening ceremonies at 7 p.m. Sunday in Moody Coliseum.

By JACI SCHNEIDER Copy Editor

Dr. Royce Money, president of the university, will share the Lectureship stage Sunday night as he delivers his opening address with Dr. Don Jeanes, president of Milligan College in Johnson City, Tenn.

Ruth Stevens dies at age 80

The lecture, entitled “The Word Became Flesh and Dwelt Among Us,” will focus on unity, said Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events.

“Don Jeanes is a friend of Dr. Money, and Dr. Money felt it was important to share the podium with a Christian Church leader,” Love said.

As part of the university’s ongoing goal to open discussion with Restoration-era churches, Love and administrators invited several Christian Church leaders to speak

at Bible Lectureship this year.

Christian Churches developed out of the same spiritual movement as Churches of Christ; however, they have been considered a separate group because of their use of musical instruments in worship and support of missionary societies.

Love decides who to invite as theme speakers with the advice and consultation of a committee made up of See

Theme Speakers • Sunday 7 p.m. Dr. Royce Money, Abilene; and Dr. Don Jeanes, Johnson City, Tenn.

• Monday 11 a.m. Samuel Twumasi-Ankrah, Ghana • Monday 7 p.m. David Fleer, Rochester, Mich.

• Tuesday 11 a.m. Rick Marrs, Thousand Oaks, Calif.

• Tuesday 7 p.m. Mike Cope, Abilene • Wednesday 11 a.m.

Lawrence Murray, Edmond, Okla.

• Wednesday 7 p.m.

Dwight Robarts, Dallas

SPEAKERS page 3A

Organizers plan September event n Although he has five less months to plan the next Lectureship, Dr. Mark Love said he believes organization for next semester’s event is going well.

By JONATHAN SMITH Editor in Chief

When the Bible Lectureship ends each February, Dr. Mark Love, director of Minis-

try Events, usually can go a couple months before having to begin planning the next year’s event.

This year, however, with Lectureship moving to the third weekend in September, planning already has begun for next year’s event, which is only seven months away.

See

DATE page 8A

Show sends emotions spiraling

n Faculty, staff, administrators and students mourn Ruth Stevens, who died in her home Saturday; she was the wife of former ACU president Dr. John Stevens.

By MALLORY SHERWOOD Managing Editor

Ruth Stevens, wife of pastpresident and chancellor emeritus, Dr. John Stevens, died Saturday afternoon in her home at the age of 80.

Ruth had been in Hospice care at her home at Christian Village.

The former first lady of the university spent most of her adult life dedicated to the school, said Dr. Royce Money, president of the university.

“It’s a sad day when a person like Ruth dies,” he said. “She gave her life to the university from the time she was Stevens a student until now, a period that spans six decades.

She was utterly devoted to ACU — just a remarkable woman.”

Ruth continued her family tradition when she began attending Abilene Christian College in 1941. Both of her parents graduated from ACC, and her father served on the board of trustees for several years. In 1945 she graduated with a degree in business administration, and in 1956 she graduated with a master’s degree in education.

She taught business administration at the university in 1946-48 and worked partSee

STEVENS page 8A

Brian Schmidt/Chief Photographer

Past and present members of Gamma Sigma Phi celebrate their fifth consecutive win in Sing Song on Saturday night in Moody Coliseum on center stage.

Siggies, GSP capture 5th win

By JONATHAN SMITH Editor

Gary Rhodes/Contributing Photographer

Alpha Kai Omega director Mandy Nelson hugs Sigma Theta Chi director Kara Wilson after the vote recount Saturday night.

in

Chief

Final Sing Song results

What began as a shocking end to the 50th Sing Song on Saturday ended up causing confusion and a full range of emotions for Sigma Theta Chi and Alpha Kai Omega as students and spectators waited almost an hour after the official ending of the show for results to be recounted.

In the end, Sigma Theta Chi, Gamma Sigma Phi and the freshman class were named winners for “The 50th Show,” but not before Sing Song officials re-tallied every score by hand and changed the results for the women’s category.

Alpha Kai Omega, Gamma Sigma Phi and freshmen were first announced as overall winners. Although excited about her club’s supposed victory, Alpha Kai director Mandy Nelson, senior youth and family ministry major from Alvin, admitted the results were unexpected.

Mixed voices

Men’s social clubs

1 - Freshmen 2 - Seniors

1 - Gamma Sigma Phi 2 - Galaxy

3 - Sophomores

3 - Frater Sodalis

By JONATHAN SMITH Editor in Chief

“There is a distinct people taking the word of God as their only and sufficient rule of faith, calling their churches ‘churches of Christ’ or ‘churches of God,’ distinct

and separate in name, work and rule of faith from all other bodies of people.”

Shortly after David Lipscomb penned these words about 100 years ago, the U.S. government recognized a split among churches — the Churches of Christ and Christian Churches — creating a division that continues today.

A century later, leaders from the Churches of Christ and Christian Churches have teamed with university ad-

Department of Journalism and Mass Communication

“Unity gains momentum when we move past stereotypes and start talking to real people.”

Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events

ministrators and Bible Lectureship organizers to continue dialogues between the two streams of faith.

ACU and Lectureship will feature the Restoration Unity Forum as a central part of its schedule. With 12 discussions planned during the

four-day event, the forum will attempt to foster unity between churches of Christ and Christian churches by bringing their members together for conversation, said Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events.

“Unity gains momentum

See

SING SONG page 3A

when we move past stereotypes and start talking to real people,” Love said.

Understanding the stereotypes churches of Christ and Christian churches have made about each other for a century, however, requires an understanding of the events that led up to the division of the churches and the differences between two religious groups born out of the same

Abilene Christian University

See

1 - Sigma Theta Chi 2 - Alpha Kai Omega 3 - Ko Jo Kai

After winning the first three judging categories — originality, costumes and presentation — the initial tally showed Sigma Theta Chi not placing in vocals, which gave them third place overall.

Forum aims to restore unity among churches n After a century since their split was recognized, leaders from the Church of Christ and Christian Church meet at Lectureship for the Restoration Unity Forum.

Women’s social clubs

Special Section Extended coverage of Lectureship can be found in section B. Coverage includes articles about various classes and events for attendees and students.

A complete schedule through Tuesday morning, are on pages 8B-9B. The Optimist will publish again Tuesday for continuing coverage of Lectureship.

UNITY page 8A Serving the ACU community since 1912

Chapel Checkup Credited Chapels to date: Credited Chapels remaining:

Sunday, February 19, 2006

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Calendar & Events Sunday

88th annual Bible Lectureship Opening Ceremony, 7 p.m., Moody Coliseum.

20

Monday

88th annual Bible Lectureship, 8 a.m., campuswide.

21

Tuesday

88th annual Bible Lectureship, 8 a.m., campuswide.

22

23

Thursday

Chai Cafe, 9-10:45 p.m., Campus Center Living Room.

IJM Awareness Week, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., Campus Center ticket window.

Wednesday

24

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About This Page

Friday

Winter Dinner Theater Jane Eyre, 8 p.m., William Performance Arts Center Fulks Theater.

SO Percussion Ensemble Concert, 8 p.m., William Performance Arts Center Recital Hall.

88th annual Bible Lectureship, 8 a.m., campuswide.

The Optimist maintains this calendar for the ACU community to keep track of local social, academic and service opportunities.

Groups may send announcements directly to optimist@acu.edu or to the Page 2 Editor, ACU Box 27892, Abilene, TX 79699.

To ensure that an item will appear on time, the announcement should be sent at least 10 days before. The Optimist may edit items for space and style.

Corrections and clarifications of published news articles will be printed in this space in a timely manner.

Announcements The Medical Clinic has a limited number of flu vaccines available for $15 that will be given on a first come/first serve basis.

No appointment is necessary.

Office hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. through 4:30 p.m. Call 6742625 for more information.

Third Day and the David Crowder Band will be in concert March 5 at Taylor County Coliseum.

Special student

rate tickets are available in the Campus Activities Board office from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Contact 674-2772 to ask questions.

Male students that struggle with sexual purity can join Brothers In Battle: The Struggle for Sexual Purity, a group of students who are involved in the same battle. The group will meet on Thursdays. Time and location are confidential. For

more information, contact the Counseling Center at 674-2626.

Individuals who struggle with same sex attractions can join Strugglers with Same Sex Attraction: And Those Who Care About Us for help and support on Mondays. The time and location are confidential. Contact the Counseling Center at 674-2626 for more information.

Volunteer Opportunities The City of Abilene Emergency Management needs 20 volunteers to act as victims in a simulated airport crash for a city/county wide exercise 8 a.m.noon April 5. A professional will add injuries to the volunteers with makeup, the fire departments will rescue them and transport them to the hospital and then back to ACU. Contact the director of emergency management by March 15 to volunteer. For more information contact the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center.

The Day Nursery of Abilene needs volunteers to set up,

prepare, serve, and clean up during Day Nursery’s 14th annual Mexican Dinner fundraising event from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday, March 25.

There is an urgent need for a student who needs special assistance during class in the Journalism and Mass Communications Deptartment.

Ideally the volunteer would sit with the student during class and lab to provide assistance with handson projects. Classes meet at 8 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and at noon on Mondays. It is preferable that the volunteer have

completed JMC 201 Intro to Visual Communication.

However, a student who is otherwise proficient in PhotoShop and iMovie would also be a strong candidate. For more information contact Dr. Cheryl Bacon or Jessica Smith at 674-2812 or 674-6767.

The Volunteer Center has received a request for someone with artistic abilities to paint drawings in a classroom. The drawings are already in place, they just need to be painted. Contact the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center for more information.

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Page 3A

CAMPUS NEWS

Sing Song: Final votes recounted Continued from page 1A results before they were announced, but he trusted the judging system. When a judge later pulled him aside and suggested a recount needed to be made, Massey and a handful of show organizers and administrators recounted all the scores by hand.

“There were only a few changes that had to be made, but they were major changes,” Massey said.

After the recount, Siggies placed first in vocals instead

of fourth, a change drastic enough to push them ahead of Alpha Kai Omega in the overall category.

A minor change in the men’s voting moved GSP into first for vocals and Galaxy into second — a change not significant enough to affect the overall outcome.

Siggies and GSP have now won the competition five years in a row.

Alpha Kai and Siggie members alike hugged and cried after Massey announced the change, and Nelson and Siggie director Kara Wilson, se-

Speakers: Worldwide guests to come Sunday Continued from page 1A faculty members in the Bible, Missions and Ministry Department. The committee discusses the broad Lectureship theme, which this year is “Ye Shall Know the Truth and the Truth Shall Make You Free” from the book of John, and considers church teachers who could come speak.

The speakers commit to Lectureship by April, Love said.

Love then sends each theme speaker a packet of information relating to the given title of the lecture.

“I give them a title that pushes them in a certain direction,” Love said. “That just keeps them from overlapping too much.”

Mike Cope, the preaching minister at Highland Church of Christ and adjunct Bible, missions and ministry instructor, will give the theme lecture at 7 p.m. Tuesday with the title “I am the Bread of Life.”

“I’m speaking from John 6,” Cope said in an e-mail, “and I’m calling my message ‘Disciplus Carnivorus,’ since in the text Jesus asks us to eat his flesh and drink his blood.”

Cope said he used several methods to prepare his lecture, including prayer, conversation and imagination. He also reads the New Testament texts in Greek and Spanish. “… not to give some mystical insight but to help familiarize me with what’s there,” Cope said. “When you have to work slower than usual, you see things you might not otherwise see.”

Cope said he is thankful to be included in Lectureship this year, especially with its focus on unity.

Love said he is also looking forward to the emphasis on unity.

“This is the Lectureship during the Centennial year,” Love said. “We thought, ‘What word would be connected significantly to the history of the campus?’”

The Lectureship theme this year is etched above the doorway of the Administration Building, something Love said is fitting for a Christian university.

“A Christian ought to be concerned about truth,” he said.

E-mail Schneider at: jrs02a@acu.edu

nior interdisciplinary Spanish and vocational missions major from San Antonio, talked for several minutes about the night’s events.

Both also talked to Massey, and he said he saw club rivalries take a back seat to cooperation and good will between the clubs.

Not all Massey heard and saw was positive, however.

“I had a lot of people say ugly things to me,” Massey said. “That’s all right. I just don’t want my students to be hurt.”

Although the controversy

Gospel Coffee Houses Each night of Lectureship, Sunday through Wednesday, the Bean Sprout in the basement of the Campus Center will play host to a different discussion at the Gospel and Culture Coffee House.

The coffee house will follow the main lecture each evening, beginning about 8:30 p.m.

Sunday “From Rage to Ectasy: U2 and the Psalms” Led by Gregory Stevenson, featuring U2 covers by Homer Hiccolm & the Rocket Boys Monday “Race in America: Reviewing the Movie Crash” Led by Steven Moore Tuesday “Tangled Up in Scripture: The Music of Bob Dylan” Led by Brad Fullerton, John Ogren and Mark Love Wednesday “Believe the Good News!”

Led by Mark Love and ACU students

was all most people could talk about after the show, Massey said he hopes it is not all that people remembered.

“I hope that people won’t remember [the show] for this,” Massey said. “I hope they remember the hard work the students put into it.”

Editor’s note: Complete information regarding Sing Song results — including the judges’ scores — will be available in Tuesday’s edition of the Optimist. brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

E-mail Smith at: jvs02a@acu.edu

Kendall Massey, director of Student Productions, talks with the Sing Song directors of Sigma Theta Chi and Alpha Kai Omega on Saturday in Moody.

Coffee House to spark discussion n Faculty, students will discuss topics regarding entertainment, such as the movie ‘Crash,’ reviewing Bob Dylan’s music and a songs by U2 this week.

By DENTON JOSEY Student Reporter

The first time he saw the movie Crash, Steven Moore was moved by the issues it brought up.

“It raised questions about race in a new, different, fresh way,” said Moore, assistant professor in the Department of English. “It really speaks to so many people.”

Discussions about Crash are only part of the forums called Gospel and Culture Coffee House that will take place at 8:30 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday in the Bean Sprout.

For four years the Gospel and Culture Coffee House has been “an attempt to bring the Gospel and our culture into dialogue,” said Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events.

Love said Gospel and Culture Coffee House discussion can be interesting and fascinating.

“I think we bring great content every year to campus. Students should be drawn to lec-

tureship in general,” Love said.

Each night, themes and aspects of popular culture will be discussed. Sunday’s line-up will feature the band Homer Hiccolm & the Rocket Boys covering six songs by rock legend U2, with a conversation to follow.

Monday, clips from the Academy-Award-nominated movie Crash will be shown, and Moore will lead a panel discussion with five students.

Bob Dylan will be the subject of conversation Moore Tuesday. Love will share his thoughts about Dylan’s music and his role as a modern prophet in society.

The last of the Gospel and Culture Coffee House events will be Wednesday night and will feature graduate students presenting a Gospel presentation of the Sabbath.

“The Gospel has something meaningful to say to our culture, and we understand the Gospel better when we pay attention to what is happening outside the world,” Love said.

Love said he expects the

Bean Sprout to be packed, especially when Homer Hiccolm plays and when Moore speaks.

“They won’t think this is boring or irrelevant,” Love said about students and Lectureship attendees.

Moore said he looks forward to leading the discussion about Crash.

“We live in a culture where people are fascinated with movies,” Moore said.

Crash was chosen, Moore said, because “it really got people talking. When a movie sparks discussion like that it is such a success.

“Especially at a Christian campus, it’s interesting to see how we deal with movies from the world,” Moore said.

Moore, who is working on his doctoral dissertation titled “The Cry of Black Rage,” said some of the themes of Crash deal with cultural rage and race issues.

“I would love to see conversations about race continue on,” Moore said. “I would love for discussions to start about how the church should respond to the issues of race. We need things to challenge the way we think and talk about race.”

E-mail Josey at: optimist@acu.edu

SING SONG ACTS

Page 4A

Sunday, February 19, 2006

SING SONG ACTS

Page 5A

GATA | Alpha Kai Omega | Ko Jo Kai | Sigma Theta Chi | Pi Kappa | Galaxy | Gamma Sigma Phi | Frater Sodalis | Freshmen | Sophomores | Juniors | Se-

Present

u s r s v e i c v a e f 5 g 0 n t o h S year g n i S Photos by

Brian Schmidt chief photographer Design by

Jonathan Smith

editor in chief

“The Penguins” by Sigma Theta Chi, originally performed in 1988

“We Melt in Your Heart, Not in Your Hands” by Alpha Kai Omega, originally performed by Kappa Delian Shri in 1982

“The Tale of a Frog (and how it disappeared...)” by Gamma Sigma Phi, originally performed in 1975

“Pirate Kappa in Dead Men Tell No Tales” by Pi Kappa, originally performed in 2000.

“Just say Noah” by the junior class, originally performed in 1991

“Oompas Loompas Ain’t Got Nothin’ On Us” by the freshman class, originally performed in 1969

“Graduate, We Will?” by the senior class, originally performed in 1984

“Livin’ in Da Nile” by Ko Jo Kai, originally performed in 1993

“Embraceable Ewes” by GATA, originally performed in 1980

“The Heidelberg Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra: Eine Kleine Frat Musik” by Frater Sodalis, originally performed in 1974

“Holy ACU Centennial, Batman!” by Galaxy, originally performed in 1985

“We Need a Hero” by the sophomore class, originally performed in 1969

Page 6A

February 19, 2006

Unity in Christ is paramount The issue:

Churches of Christ and Christian Churches were once one group, but have been separated since 1906.

Our view:

We are one in Christ and should try to overcome the disunity of the past 100 years.

The solution:

The Restoration Unity Forum provides a unique opportunity to heal wounds and overcome stereotypes.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Those words from John 1:14 are the focus of the Restoration Unity Forum, a 12-discussion series at Bible Lectureship attempting to foster unity between members of Churches of Christ and those of Christian Churches — two distinct groups of people who once worshipped together but whose eventual split was officially recognized a century ago.

Coming together to recognize our differences but ultimate unity through Christ is an important step for Churches of Christ and Christian Churches.

This forum is especially beneficial for students and younger Lectureship attendees who are unaware of the past of

Editor salutes end of Lectureship era Sing Song’s first half a Odds are there even won’t century came to a close this be a need for stories about Lectureship weather — a biweekend.

The beginning of the zarre phenomenon stemend of an ming from the theory that era of Bible snow is most likely to fall in Lectureship Abilene during Lectureship, begins this even if temperatures have week. been in the 70s.

The ends That’s roughly 20 perof both also cent of this issue’s content bring to out the window. Maybe we close an era all could use a freak snowfor the Opti- storm this September to Ask the mist as well. help ease everyone into all Question For al- these changes. most every But for most of you, the Jonathan one of the change won’t bother you at Smith past 50 Feb- all. Quite the opposite. The ruarys, the Optimist has cov- change in schedule should ered Sing Song and Lecture- benefit the Lectureship ship during the course of crowd. one very busy week. As the You won’t be forced to technology and the staffs encounter students in their have grown, so too has our post-Sing-Song stupor. Outcoverage. Nowadays, Sing door events in the evening Song and Lectureship time actually might be pleasant on campus means the staff to attend. The change in will produce four newspa- date even might inspire a pers containing more than whole new crowd to attend 70 total pages the lectures. in the same You won’t amount of have to fear For almost each of time we regusnowstorms the last 50 Februarys, i n t e r f e r i n g larly produce the Optimist has two issues with travel covered Sing Song with just 20 plans. pages.

The weathand Lectureship But as the almost during the course of er campus beplanned its one very busy week. own special gins its final February Lecgoodbye to tureship in Lectureship favor of the third week in this year, with temperatures September, this Optimist dropping from the high 80s editor can’t help but be- only a few days ago to the come somewhat sorrowfully low 20s Saturday with fronostalgic that future editors zen precipitation forecasted might not have this same to fall in the icy conditions. experience I now have had What a send off to February four times.

Lectureship it could have I remember all the major been. issues the Optimist has covBut as long as Lectureered in a span of one week ship remains in September, during the past four Febru- a part of us old Optimist arys: A new Sing Song di- staff members will rememrector, the furor about two ber the good ole days.

Sing Song reviews, the foWe have enjoyed bringing rums with the International you the news on the heels Churches of Christ, a snow- of Sing Song for the past 50 storm that canceled parts of years.

Lectureship, the announceI hope the Lectureship/ ment of the schedule change Homecoming month can to September, and now the one day become as exciting 50th Sing Song and the final and tiring as the Sing Song/ February Lectureship.

Lectureship week has been.

Just think how differThat’s a job for another ent the Sunday Lecture- editor and a different staff, ship Optimist issue will be but a little freak Lecturein September rather than ship weather — even in SepFebruary. No Sing Song re- tember — wouldn’t hurt. sults and news. No twopage spreads with pictures E-mail Smith at: of all the Sing Song acts. jvs02a@acu.edu, optimist@acu.edu

the ChurchComing together to recognize our differences but the past 100 es of Christ years. ultimate unity in Christ is an important step and their Students connecshould take adtion with Christian Churches and claim their viewpoints as vantage of this opportunity to and who have been raised on the only solution to scriptural learn more about the history stereotypes that are unfair to interpretation. Neither side of the Churches of Christ and both parties. will change their opinions, Christian Churches and underDifferences between the which have been formed for stand the importance of these two groups generally stem more than 100 years, by one unity forums. from different underlying simple forum.

For any group to move attitudes of how scripture Rather, the goal of these fo- forward, it must first look functions and therefore how rums should be for members of back and understand its hischurches function, said Dr. both groups to realize their sim- tory, including its mistakes and Douglas Foster, associate pro- ilarities and, as Dr. Royce Mon- achievements. Neither group fessor of church history. ey said, realize that “you can be should feel spiritually superior The first Restoration Unity different from one another and to the other or fear a doctrinal Forum in 1984 was the begin- still be one in Christ.” conspiracy that these forums ning of annual meetings from Considering both groups will lead to the groups concedmembers of both churches, developed out of a Christian ing their respective beliefs. but for many years, much of unity movement, the StoneIn a day where violent prothe conversations were debates Campbell Movement, desiring tests occur in European and over issues that didn’t lead to a church structure like the ex- Middle Eastern city streets any constructive conclusions. ample presented in the New because of different religious These discussions should Testament, it is only right beliefs, coming together as folnot be platforms for members that the two groups attempt lowers of Christ seeking peace of each church to take sides to overcome the disunity of and unity has never been more

Cole Williams

Let Loose

Lessons found in unlikely places Funny how we unconsciously put walls up around us. No, not real physical walls, but emotional ones we find almost as impenetrable.

I was standing in line at Super WalMart, and my emoSoapbox tional wall Central was clearly Dani up. I had a lot to do, Linthicum and was just grabbing some necessities through the “20 items or less” line before rushing on with my day.

I had pulled my hair into a hurried, wind-blown bun, and was munching a granola bar that I realized despairingly would probably be my dinner. I didn’t want bother.

Not that I mind talking, but when I’m in a hurry at Wal-Mart, I’m not exactly chatty.

The elderly man behind me, however, didn’t seem to notice my emotional wall.

“Has it been a rough day?” he asked.

Taken aback by the simple compassion of his question, I turned from People magazine to take a better look.

Somehow, he simply sensed that I was having a rough day and cared enough to try to make it better He was about 75 years old, with gray frowsy stubble from the bottom of his chin to the top of his head.

He had several teeth missing, and from the looks of his torn T-shirt and overalls, he didn’t have much cash to spare. Three loaves of white bread and a jar of creamy peanut butter rested in the basket of his wheelchair — probably his dinner, I thought.

“Um, yeah …” I said, collecting myself. “Just really busy, I guess.”

To anyone else, that would have been a hint to stop talking because I’m busy and hungry, and I want to go home.

But he didn’t stop. He still cared enough to talk to me.

“You’re young and all,” he said as I shoved the end of the granola bar in my mouth and loaded the conveyor belt with shampoo and Gala apples. “But you need to eat more than that for dinner.”

My surprised expression caused a wheezy laugh to come bubbling out of him.

“You kids think you’re invincible,” he said, shaking his head and smiling at

me. “My granddaughter is crazy and busy, too.”

“Really?” I asked as I slid my credit card, becoming more interested in spite of myself.

He proceeded to tell me how his son and daughter were both in the military and stationed on the East Coast. He told me how much fun his grandkids were and how proud he was of them. But, he added, he was lonely without them.

He told me how his wife of 51 years had passed away a little more than a year ago, but he still missed her every day.

His eyes got misty when he told me how a group from a local church brought him dinner last week, and he laughed again at the thought of his grandkids digging into the ice cream sandwiches that he dutifully saved for them.

I realized that I was still standing at the end of the lane with my bags in hand, just listening to him, completely drawn into his life by the power of his simple enthusiasm.

“You better go on and get you some real food,” he said, wagging his finger

Editorial and letter policy Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Optimist and may not necessarily reflect the views of the university or its administration.

Signed columns, cartoons and letters are the opinions of their creators and may not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the Optimist or the university.

The Optimist encourages reader response through letters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print letters containing personal

attacks, obscenity, defamation, erroneous information or invasion of privacy.

Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to: ACU Box 27892 Abilene, TX 79699 E-mail letters to: optimist@acu.edu

necessary.

We should be able to sit next to our Christian Church brothers and sisters at the forum and even on a pew on Sunday, not because we specifically agree on every minute doctrinal issue, but because we follow the same God and his son.

Eventually, the steps for unity we take now can lead to further steps of Church of Christ members reaching out to our fellow Baptist, Methodist, Lutherans and Presbyterian followers of Christ, to name a few, living out the words of the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:13: “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

at me. “You take care now, honey.”

I thanked him and walked out to my car, suddenly feeling very spoiled and ashamed of myself.

Here I was, blessed in so many ways, but if he had not blatantly ignored my emotional wall and talked to me anyway, I would have missed a rich lesson.

It didn’t matter to him that he didn’t know me, or that I was more than 50 years younger then him. It didn’t matter that I am a ACU student from Oregon, and he was born and raised in Texas.

Somehow, he simply sensed that I was having a rough day and cared enough to try to make it better.

Obviously a huge gap existed between our two worlds, but that didn’t matter.

I never even learned his name, but in our 10-minute talk at the check-out line, we made a connection.

Past all of the differences of age and background, he cared enough to talk to me and care about me — and I walked out of Wal-Mart refreshed.

E-mail Linthicum at: del01a@acu.edu, optimist@acu.edu

Editorial and Management Board Jonathan Smith Editor in Chief

Published by the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Newsroom: (325) 674-2439

Sports desk: (325) 674-2684

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Photo department: (325) 674-2499

Dani Linthicum Opinion Editor

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Arts Editor

Chief Photographer

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Jaci Schneider Copy Editor

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Online: www.acuoptimist.com

February 19, 2006

Page 7A

Seeking the

Truth Lectureship offers tradition, change Welcome to the campus Lectureship series this year of Abilene Christian Univer- focused on “The Truth Will sity as we celebrate our 50th Set You Free: Messages from Sing Song, our 88th annual the Book of John” when it Bible Lec- continues Sept. 17-20. tureship and In the coming days, we our 100th will hear great lessons on year! the Book of John and have I hope conversations about workyou’ll take life balance; discuss modern time to enjoy movies and culture; listen our Centen- to great music; and enjoy nial Histori- homemade pies and great Guest column cal Walking conversation in the Teague Tour while Center. you’re on Whether you’re in town Dr. Royce our campus, to cheer on your student in Money b e g i n n i n g Sing Song, to teach a class with the giant mural in the at Lectureship or to listen Hall of Servants in the On- to some talented, spiritual stead-Packer Biblical Studies speakers from across the Building. You can pick up a country, I hope that you take guidebook in the Campus the time to fellowship with Center. one another, to Our Centennial tour our camTheatre, located pus, and to reAs we mark the in the previous ally understand end of our first Mabee Library Auwhat attracts ditorium, is feamore than century, we are turing classic film 4,700 students looking ahead footage — such as here each year to all the Bobby Morrow winfrom nearly evexcitement to ning a gold medal ery state and come during our 60 countries. in 1956 — and exceptional, TellyAnd if you’re next 100 years. award winning a current stufilms from recent dent, I hope years. you take some Throughout our campus, time to check out some of you’ll see artifacts and docu- the hundreds of speakers ments that take you back in and activities in the next time and remind you of the few days. I believe our Cenrich traditions we celebrate tennial Lectureship is the at ACU — traditions of faith best yet. and excellence.

As we mark the end of our One of ACU’s important first century, we are looking traditions is Lectureship, ahead to all the excitement and this one is very special to come during our next 100 as we draw to a close the era years. of February Lectureships and I pray that God blesses we look forward to a great your time on our campus. new tradition — Lectureship in September.

I hope you all plan to atDr. Money is president of the university. tend the second part of our

Honor the old, respect the new I remember as a boy meeting my grandparents in the big tent that used to be pitched in the parking lot near Edwards dorm during lectureship. The tent was a strange and marv e l o u s Guest column place, with exhibits for Dr. Mark Love c h i l d r e n ’ s homes and mission initiatives and Christian publishers. I looked forward to viewing the backslapping and hugging that accompanied meeting old friends in the tent. And I looked forward to seeing my granddad who was always good for a box of Cracker Jacks.

These days, we set up our exhibits in the comfy confines of the Teague Special Events Center. These accommodations are an

I looked forward to viewing the hugging and back-slapping that accompanied meeting old friends in the tent.

upgrade in many ways, but they lack the character and ambiance of the old lectureship tent. The tent was drafty and smelled of kerosene, which kept the big heaters roaring inside the tent. You needed the heaters because lectureship was held in February and lectureship weather was notoriously extreme. Cold air whipped at the feet of the tent and spots near those old heaters were premium despite the head lightening fumes they emitted. Great memories.

Truth is, I am very nostalgic this year as we host the last-ever February lectureship. So many momentous things have occurred year in and year out as people gathered on our campus around the word of God.

And the weather was part of that experience. We were a people huddled together, sharing in the sheltering warmth of God. But I’m also excited about lectureship’s future.

Though this is the last of the February lectureships, already there is evidence of emerging new initiatives, many of which feature students.

From leading worship, to displaying art, to playing U2 music, to attending classes, students are increasingly involved in lectureship. This September (17-20), lectureship will find a new home on the school calendar and will increasingly be an opportunity for students and faculty to focus in special ways on the integration of

faith and learning. While the thousands of guests who travel to Abilene for lectureship will still find rich resources for the life of local congregations, more of lectureship’s energies will be directed toward enhancing our ability to integrate faith and learning.

We’re sending the February lectureship out with a bang. I especially want to highlight the talks that will take place each day between leaders from Churches of Christ and Christian Churches.

These are momentous, even historic conversations. So, when you wake up from Sing Song, head over to Cullen auditorium and witness some hope and some history.

Help us put on exclamation point on this great February tradition.

Dr. Love is director of Ministry Events for the university.

From dusty West Texas to 100 years of learning Abilene Christian University began in 1906 as a small, West Texas school, located in what promised to remain a dusty desert.

Early leaders likely wondered, “Would students really come to Abilene, Guest column Texas?”

A cenDr. Michelle tury later, Morris founder A.B. Barret would be pleased to see that the little school he began as Childers Classical Institute

on the old Hashknife Ranch now boasts enrollment of nearly 5,000 and serves as a national leader in Christian higher education.

Since we launched our Centennial Celebration year Aug. 22, 2005, the campus has been buzzing with activity and excitement.

Fall highlights include world-renowned speakers and musicians, an impressive art exhibition at The Grace Museum, and a record-breaking Homecoming.

We have been challenged in our thinking, entertained by original music, reconnected with old friends, and

touched by the faith stories of our speakers.

But now comes spring, and there will be so much to do!

March 11-18, students, faculty, staff and alumni around the world will participate in our Wildcat Week of Service, with the theme, “One Hour. One Day. One Mission.” Alumni are participating from many U.S. cities and four nations, so far, and the numbers keep growing. If you gather a group and register online, all of you can get ACU shirts to wear while serving in your community.

In April, we’ll have leader-

ship expert John Maxwell and “Good Morning America’s” co-anchor Robin Roberts.

The spring also boasts an exceptional line-up of activities including the Sacred Relationships seminar featuring Gary Thomas, a Conference on “Theology in the Christian University,” an Emerging Leaders Conference in Dallas, concerts, theatre performances, and academic speakers.

I hope you all make plans to attend “An Evening of Rodgers and Hammerstein Classics” April 22 at the Civic Center, when professional alumni singers will join with the Abilene Philharmonic in

two performances – at 3 and 8 p.m. – featuring favorites from Oklahoma!, The Sound of Music, The King and I and several other great musicals.

The year will conclude in September with a weekend full of activities – the unveiling of a 30-foot sculpture, a campus open house and carnival, an Ed George/Jack Boyd musical comedy called “Abilene 1906,” fireworks, a concert and other activities for the entire community.

In addition to the many activities, the Centennial planning team wanted to make sure ACU gained some permanent improvements

that will last well beyond our celebration year.

The nearly completed walk/jog track around campus and the purple ACU street signs are just a couple of the physical changes that will remind us of this special year well beyond September.

We are at the mid-point of our centennial year, and we hope you will help us make it our best ever. Thanks for helping us celebrate our 100th year!

Dr. Morris is the Centennial Celebration director and vice president of University Relations

Page 8A

Sunday, February 19, 2006

FROM THE FRONT PAGE

Date: Lectureship will move to September next fall Continued from page 1A “At the same time I’m finalizing this brochure [for February], I’m sending out invitations for September,” Love said.

Despite the hectic schedule of planning for two Lectureships almost simultaneously, Love said plans are coming together for Sept. 17-20 program, and about half of the program already has been organized.

The university announced the change in the calendar during Lectureship last year.

Instead of waiting 19 months between Lectureships, Love said it made more sense to shorten the preparation time and have two Lectureships in one calendar year.

Love said the schedule and events will be somewhat different than years past. The morning schedule basically will be the same with session times at 8:30 and 9:45

a.m. However, the afternoon schedule will be reworked to coincide more with the academic class schedule to allow more classes and students to attend the session. Afternoon class formats will incorporate workshop-style classes that allow for more interactivity for attendees, Love said.

When the change was announced last year, Love was prepared for attendees to have questions and concerns about the new date. When he

made himself available for attendees to ask questions, few showed up to voice concerns.

He said he has received a few negative responses since the announcement but mostly positive comments.

Most of the negative response Love said he received were from people who also regularly attend Harding’s Lectureship event, which will occur just one week after ACU’s in September. But Love said having Lectureship in

February put it close to similar events at Pepperdine and Oklahoma Christian universities.

“That’s going to be true wherever we’re at on the calendar,” Love said.

The new date might prohibit some people from attending, Love said, but it also will allow some people to come who haven’t been able to attend.

The shortened planning timeframe hasn’t created only

problems, however; some jobs have become easier. Love said he typically has to mail packages to groups who want to put exhibits in the exhibit hall area, and then he has to wait for responses from them. This year, he simply will be able to hand the packages to exhibitors this week and will know much sooner who plans to display exhibits.

E-mail Smith at: jvs02a@acu.edu

Stevens: Moneys remember former president’s wife Continued from page 1A time after her marriage to John Stevens in 1948.

They married after a threemonth courtship and were lifelong partners.

Glenda Knight, director of University Events, said Ruth was the perfect mate for him.

“He loved her a lot, and they had a special love story,” Knight said. “They were a close family.”

Money and his wife, Pam, agreed.

“She was devoted to the university, but she was de-

voted to John and her family first,” Royce Money said.

Pam Money said John often joked that he couldn’t teach without Ruth or else he would be “ruthless” — an attribution to her character.

Pam Money said Ruth spent a lot of time helping John grade papers, write papers, and that she even attended classes with him sometime.

“Many ACU students will remember her as much as they remember John,” she said.

The Stevens raised two children, John Clark Stevens

of Colleyville and Joyce Stevens Cole of Abilene, who survive. They also have five grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.

Pam Money said Ruth was a role model for her.

“She was herself all the way until the end,” Pam Money said. “She was always honest, always appropriate and loyal.

She is the person that I aspire to grow up to be.”

When John became president in 1969, Ruth retired from teaching but didn’t stop giving to the university. She archived much of the univer-

sity’s history in the library, including past editions of the Optimist.

Knight said she spent a lot of time with Ruth while the two helped John write his book, No Ordinary University.

“She spent so much time researching and organizing history for his book,” she said. “They knew so much history about the school.

They wanted to tell a story, but they wanted to tell it accurately.

“I enjoyed the time I spent with her so much, she was so

precious and giving and determined.”

The Moneys also enjoyed the time spent with the Stevens, as John was Royce Money’s mentor before he became an administrator on campus.

“Our relationship began in the ’60s, and he mentored me while he was still a vice president,” Royce Money said. “He and Ruth also were wonderful mentors to us in the early part of our marriage.”

Royce Money said John was doing “remarkably well,” although her death was obviously a blow.

“She will be missed by us all,” he said.

Elliot-Hamil Funeral Home is handling funeral arrangements. The funeral will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at University Church of Christ. Money said John Stevens insisted her funeral and memorial not interfere with Lectureship, which runs through Wednesday.

He said Joe Baisden, Eddie Sharp, associate professor of Bible and himself, would preside over her funeral.

E-mail Sherwood at: mes02e@acu.edu

Unity: Discussion begins this week between two churches Continued from page 1A spiritual movement.

That story begins not with some important church meeting or decision, but with a most unlikely subject: the U.S. government.

Recognizing the split When the U.S. government established a permanent Bureau of the Census in 1902, it could begin to collect data more easily for statistics other than simply population.

In one of its earlier collections of data in 1906, the Bureau of the Census undertook a census of religious bodies, which sought to gather data about different faiths and denominations in the country and how many people belonged to those groups.

Dr. Douglas Foster, associate professor of church history, said up until this time, the terms Church of Christ, Christian Church and Disciples of Christ were used interchange-

ably to describe churches formed out of the Stone-Campbell Movement. The StoneCampbell Movement, named after Alexander Campbell and Barton Stone, grew out of a desire to structure the church after the example set in the New Testament.

As the Bureau of the Census began looking at the churches of the StoneCampbell Movement, it consulted journals and magazines Foster from those churches. In reading the Gospel Advocate, edited by Tennessee preacher and educator David Lipscomb, the bureau noticed that publication, which the bureau had assumed was part of the Disciples of Christ, seemed to be distancing itself from the Disciples.

In a letter to the Gospel

Advocate, the bureau asked Lipscomb if there was a group known as the Churches of Christ that did not identify with the Disciples of Christ.

Lipscomb identified the Churches of Christ as a separate group, and when the Bureau of the Census published its findings, Churches of Christ were identified as one of 17 “new denominations and denominational families.”

Noticeable differences between Churches of Christ and Christian Churches, formally identified as Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, are that Christian Churches use instrumental music during worship and associate with missionary societies used to train missionaries, while Churches of Christ do neither.

However, Foster said more fueled the split than these practices.

“What was driving this was the underlying attitudes of how the scriptures function and how the churches were to function,” Foster said.

Those among the Churches of Christ believed that churches should reject any innovation that was not alluded to in the New Testament, such as instrumental music, while those in the Christian Churches believed the Bible’s silence in certain areas gave them freedom.

Foster stressed that no official date or time of the split exists; it happened slowly during several decades. However, the 1906 date has become symbolic of the split.

A century later Foster said some from both groups have made attempts

through the decades to reconcile and push for unity.

“There were a lot of debates and condemnations, but there were many people who were saying, ‘We can’t let the divisions and condemnations go on,’” Foster said.

In 1984, 50 members of Churches of Christ and 50 from Christian Churches met at Ozark Christian College in Joplin, Mo., for the first Restoration Unity Forum. Since then, members of both churches have met together on an almost annual basis for the forum.

Foster first attended the forum in 1987 and said the meetings have always been positive.

“These are people who have felt for a very long time that there wasn’t something right with the mutual condemnation,” Foster said.

Topics deal with different aspects of unity each year.

In the past, Foster said discussions often involved members of Money Churches of Christ and Christian Churches alternately giving their opposing points of view.

“Not that people have changed their convictions,” Foster said, “but there has been a lot less point-counterpoint” in recent years as a way to encourage even more unity.

Foster said past forums have accomplished their stated purpose of unity with visible progress like missionary teams with Church of Christ and Christian Church members.

“Many people who have never met each other saw they had so much in common, and it really opened some doors,” Foster said.

ACU’s role The university has taken part in these discussions before, hosting the 1994 forum, but this will be the first time it is part of Lectureship.

Dr. Royce Money, president of the university, said he has been discussing the idea of reaching out to the Christian churches for several years with faculty and administrators, and Love said they have been asking among themselves what the appropriate response would be and when that should happen.

And while the university celebrates its Centennial year, Love said he thought it was appropriate for it to host the forum 100 years after the split between the churches was recognized.

Money will share opening night’s podium Sunday with Dr. Don Jeanes, president of Milligan College, a college associated with Christian Churches in Johnson City, Tenn., which has hosted the Restoration Unity Forum twice.

Their message will focus around John 1:14 and the unity all Christians have in Christ.

Money and Jeanes both said their message and the forums will not be about merging Churches of Christ with Christian Churches.

“It’s not an effort to create a mega-group by having a big merger,” Jeanes said. “It’s an opportunity to foster fellowship and good will, recognizing

we have a common heritage and purpose.”

Both university presidents have received mostly positive comments.

“Could I find some Christian Churches that wouldn’t like this fellowship? I guess if I looked hard enough I could.

I’ve gotten nothing but positive responses,” Jeanes said.

“But my guess is the Christian Church is a lot like the Church of Christ — we don’t always agree about everything.”

Although Money said the response he has heard largely has been positive, some still worry about the motivation behind the forum.

“There is a degree of concern among members of the Churches of Christ that there is some agenda at work or some doctrinal compromise at stake,” Money said. “The only agenda we have here is the mandate of Jesus to be one in Christ.”

Love said the negative responses — even if few — are to be expected.

“It doesn’t matter how aggressive or safe we play it,” Love said. “For some people, even having the conversation is a compromise of the truth.”

Money said people work through differences all the time, and that should be no different between Christians.

“In a local congregation, you have to work with people who are different,” Money said. “You have to do that in a family.

“You can be different from one another and still be one in Christ.”

E-mail Smith at: jvs02a@acu.edu

Page 1B

February 19, 2006 Standings

Men’s Basketball Team Tarleton St. WTAMU TAMU-K ENMU MSU ACU

Div. 9-0 7-2 6-3 4-5 4-6 3-7

Overall 20-4 18-6 16-8 10-14 15-10 8-17

Cats send No. 1 Bronchos home winless n The Wildcats didn’t shy away from top-ranked Central Oklahoma on Thursday, winning both games of a double-header 5-1 and 20-4, improving their record to 10-1.

By PATRICK LOVELESS

Women’s Basketball Team WTAMU Angelo St. Tarleton St. TX Woman’s ACU MSU Team ACU

ENMU Angelo St. TAMU-K WTAMU Tarleton St.

Div. 10-1 9-2 9-2 5-6 5-7 4-8

Div. 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0

Overall Thursday night the No. 21-3 4 Wildcats faced the highly 18-6 revered Central Oklahoma 17-7 Bronchos in a top five duel 12-11 that would most likely leave 11-14 10-15

Overall 10-1 8-1 5-1 3-1 3-2 2-6

SOFTBALL Team Div. Tarleton St. 0-0 ACU 0-0 ENMU 0-0 TAMU-K 0-0 Angelo St. 0-0 0-0 WTAMU

Sports Writer

Overall 7-2 10-4 8-4 4-4 4-7 4-7

Scores Thursday

baseball ACU 5, Central Oklahoma 1 ACU 20, Central Oklahoma 4 softball Cameron 6, ACU 3 ACU 12, St. Mary’s 3

Friday

softball ACU 12, St. Edward’s 6

Saturday

women’s basketball ACU 85, Eastern New Mexico 76

Upcoming Schedule Sunday Men’s tennis ACU at Cal-Poly Invitational 2 p.m.

Thursday woMen’s basketball ACU vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville 8 p.m.

Men’s basketball ACU vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville 8 p.m.

Friday baseball ACU at East Central, 4 p.m. (DH) softball ACU at Tarleton State, 5 p.m. (DH)

Saturday baseball ACU at East Central, noon (DH) softball ACU at Tarleton State, 1 p.m.

• Home games listed in italics

Briefs Segrest named to Texas Sports Hall of Fame James Segrest, former Abilene Christian track and field star, will be inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame on Wednesday.

Segrest was on the Wildcats 440 and 800-yard relay teams from 1956-1958 and ran on the U.S. national team in 1958.

Segrest went on to coach at Monahans High School and later at Odessa College where he won 11 total NJCAA indoor and outdoor nationsl track championships. In 1979 he coached the U.S. team at the World University Games in Mexico City.

Baseball the winner ranked No. 1 in next week’s polls. The Bronchos hung with the Wildcats in game one Thursday but ended up falling short of the Wildcats in a 5-1 decision. The Wildcats then won the second game in a 20-4 landslide.

Senior star Ben Maynard shut down the Bronchos and pitched a full seven innings.

Maynard gave up only one run

and five hits, dominating the Bronchos and keeping them in check to allow the elite batting corps of the Wildcats to open up the game in the fifth inning with three runs.

The Wildcats secured the game in the sixth when they held the Bronchos to no runs and scored one themselves for a comfortable four-run cushion until the game’s conclusion in the seventh inning.

Game two of the dou-

ble header against Central Oklahoma was what the Wildcats had been hoping for all season. With the Maynard temperature falling at an incredible rate, and the wind picking up to a level where even West Texas natives were caught by sur-

prise, the Central Oklahoma Bronchos couldn’t find their groove, much less any runs, in a 20-4 blow out.

“Our pitchers showed up big today, and I tip my hat to them,” Coach Bonneau said after the game. “Our hitters jumped on them early, and Chris Wiman kept them in check to keep them from getting a rally going.”

See

BASEBALL page 3

From walk-on to champion Story by Steve Holt Photo illustration by Gary Rhodes

W

atching track and field star Marvin Bien-Aime compete today, someone might never imagine his humble beginnings.

Living with his immigrant parents and sister in a one-room apartment in South Florida.

Running competitively for the first time as a high school junior.

Suffering an injury that ruined his senior season — and never qualifying for a state championship.

Struggling to pay tuition as a walk-on freshman at ACU. When watching Bien-Aime compete today, however, spectators see a scholarship sprinter with a 200-meter dash national championship and indoor school record on his collegiate résumé. And as a junior, BienAime is not yet finished surprising people with his accomplishments.

Bien-Aime is short but muscular — 5-foot10-inch, 165 pounds — a physique similar to American sprinter Maurice Green. But where Bien-Aime and the former world record holder differ is in attitude — Bien-Aime doesn’t have a swagger in his body. He has risen to Division II stardom — with accolades that include a 2005 outdoor 200-meter dash title and a school record Feb. 11 in the 200-meter dash — quietly and humbly.

Bien-Aime’s parents immigrated to the United States from Haiti’s capital city, Port au Prince, in the early 1980s. They settled in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where Marvin was born a few years later. Life in a one-bedroom apartment was tough for the Bien-Aimes in those early days, Marvin remembers.

“It was a struggle. I never saw my dad — he was working two jobs, and my mom was also working,” he said. “Me and my little sister were pretty much raised by my cousins and my aunts — I never saw my parents growing up.”

B

ien-Aime’s father worked in a restaurant and in a men’s store while his mother held a semi-stable job in hotels. Eventually, the family moved out of a crime-ridden Fort Lauderdale neighborhood to the safer, more suburban Plantation, Fla. Now free to play in the streets, young Marvin, passed the time like many kids do — by running.

“Growing up, I was a competitor at heart, racing on the streets and everything,” Bien-Aime said. “When you’re racing as a little kid, I never looked at it as a sport that I would get into.”

Bien-Aime didn’t fully recognize his speed until his fourth grade “field day,” where he competed in the 50-yard dash.

“Before the race, all my little friends were saying, ‘I’m going to beat you.’ I didn’t know what I could do — so I just kept my mouth shut. I didn’t want to talk and then get embarrassed,” Bien-Aime said.

But Bien-Aime recovered from a slow start — a problem he claims still ails him — to pull past his classmates and win his first “official” race.

“It just kind of clicked from then on,” BienAime said.

Even still, organized track and field was a long way off. Bien-Aime’s first love in high school was football.

See

BIEN-AIME page 2

Softball stays hot in tournament despite cold weather n After losing their first game to Cameron, 6-3, the Wildcats pulled off wins against St. Mary’s and St. Edward’s at Wells Field in the CBS Insurance Classic.

By ASHLEY MOORE Sports Writer

The women’s softball team won three of four games this weekend at the CBS Insurance Classic.

The Wildcats started out slow in their first game against Cameron, losing 6-3; Cameron scored four runs in the first inning against starting pitcher Melanie Smith.

Sarah Vidalin came in as relief

Softball and allowed just two more hits the rest of the game.

“We came out a little flat right off,” Wildcat head coach Chantiel Wilson said. “We just didn’t get our bats going soon enough to cover our initial run deficit.”

The team then turned its game around and defeated St. Mary’s later in the day, 5-3. The Wildcats gave up three early runs. But, later in the game outfielder Jade Wilson led off with a double, and catcher Samantha Borgeson lined a shot off the pitcher’s leg.

Second baseman Nicole

Deel hit the next pitch over the left center field fence to tie the game. The Wildcats added two more runs after RBI singles from outfielder Claudia Stephens and first baseman Jessica Johnson.

“Jennifer Leal pitched another great complete game to beat St. Mary’s for the second time this season,” coach Wilson said.

The Wildcats had their biggest win Thursday against St. Edward’s, 12-6. This game began with a three run home run in the first by Johnson.

However, St. Edward’s added See

SOFTBALL page 3

brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

Junior second baseman Allison Crouse hits a 2-run home run in the bottom of the second inning against Holly Marabella of St. Edward’s on Friday at Wells Field. Crouse went 1-4 in the game batting leadoff for the Wildcats.

SPORTS JUMPS

Page 2B

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Bien-Aime: Walk-on earned scholarship after titles Continued from page 1B He remembers a game his junior year, however, when the opposing running back broke free from his own oneyard line, and Bien-Aime ran down player from the cornerback slot. When Bien-Aime returned to the sideline, his defensive backs coach asked him, “Why aren’t you running track?”

Bien-Aime, thinking track and field was only distance running, replied, “I’m not running that, man.”

He said his coach then looked him in the eye and said, “If you don’t run track this year, you’re not playing football next year.”

Despite having one of the top 200-meter times in Florida as a junior in 2002, Bien-Aime found little success in his two seasons of high school track and field.

He turned the heads of a few Division I universities after his junior year — Tennessee, Florida International, and South Florida — but their interest faded after getting word that Bien-Aime had suffered a groin injury during his senior year.

Walking On

W

ith college decisions approaching, and knowing that he wanted to pursue track and field at the next level, Bien-Aime and his guidance counselor began to research Division II programs.

“The school that just kept popping up was Abilene Christian, and I was like, ‘What is this?’” he said. “I’m a mama’s boy; I didn’t want to leave Florida at all. I was like, ‘I’m not going to Texas.’”

After driving from Plantation to Abilene to visit the university, however, BienAime was hit with the realization that the Wildcat

track and field program was out of the ordinary with 12 men’s outdoor titles.

“I thought, ‘Maybe it’s not a bad decision,’” Bien-Aime remembered.

The high school senior applied, was accepted, and then-head coach Jon Murray allowed Bien-Aime to walk onto the track and field team to compete. He broke his personal best time in his first collegiate competition.

He continued to improve each meet. He would finish eighth in the 100-meter dash, but second in the 200meter dash at the NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships.

Head coach Don Hood emphasized how unusual it is for walk-ons to achieve the kind of early success of Bien-Aime.

“It doesn’t happen very often, especially in the sprints,” Hood said. “Marvin is different. He has no doubt about his potential. He just needed a place to train and compete.”

He said he surprised even himself with how quickly he adjusted to the bigger stage.

“In high school, when I’d run against big names, I would get nervous and timid,” Bien-Aime said. “When I got to ACU, though, I told myself I couldn’t do that — I couldn’t fear any competition. So I just ran. Without thinking, I just ran.”

Without a scholarship, however, Bien-Aime and his family struggled to find the money to pay for tuition.

What’s more, the sprinter struggled to make friends on the track and field team.

With improved sprint times from high school and having proven he had overcome past injuries, BienAime considered transferring to the University of Tennessee. After a conversation with Murray, however, Bien-Aime decided to

stick it out as a Wildcat. He would be glad he did.

Title Time

I

n the spring of 2005, BienAime came into his own as a Wildcat track and field athlete. Now on scholarship, Bien-Aime placed a close second in the 200-meter dash indoors before finishing sixth in the 100-meter dash and first in the 200-meter dash. The sophomore’s championship in the 200 meters was the first such title since Nic Alexander’s title in 2000. Bien-Aime’s performances also helped ACU win team championships both indoors and outdoors. But after his rapid success as a freshman in 2004, Bien-Aime took his national title in stride.

“I knew what my ability was, and I just felt I needed

to put in the extra time and work hard,” Bien-Aime said of last season’s success. “So the way the season went, it really didn’t come as a surprise.”

On Feb. 11, Bien-Aime broke the school record in the indoor 200-meter dash, winning the event in a blistering 21.27 seconds at the New Mexico Albuquerque Invitational. He is a favorite to win the event at the NCAA Division II Indoor National Championships.

“Marvin is a perfect mix of great talent with great work ethic,” Hood said. “He would be a good runner without working hard, but his hard work allows him to rise up to a higher level.”

Haitian Dream

B

ut while Bien-Aime said he has a goal to break the school out-

door 200-meter dash time of 20.56, he has a greater ambition to shoot for.

“My whole purpose for running track is to run for Haiti,” Bien-Aime said. “If I can represent them in a few big meets, I think I can gain their trust. My whole objective is to keep getting faster, get on that level, and compete for them, so I can begin doing the things I want to do — like rebuilding that country, getting kids into schools. That goal has really made me stay focused and work hard.”

Hood said he believes Bien-Aime’s dreams of competing professionally are certainly not far-fetched.

“I won’t place any limits on him,” Hood said. “He has already exceeded the expectations most people had for him. If he can continue to work hard and stay healthy, I believe he has the ability to

compete at the highest level.”

Clearly, Bien-Aime’s heart is in the little nation where his parents were born, a nation whose flag hangs on his wall above his bed.

“Sometimes, before I go to bed at night, I think about all the stuff that’s going on over there,” he said. “Sometimes it’s overwhelming, and sometimes I even cry.”

Bien-Aime pulls for Haiti — an underdog in the world — because he can identify with it himself. He has not forgotten his roots and the distance he has come from racing neighbor kids in the streets of south Florida.

Maybe that is why BienAime connects with the 200meter dash so much: Even if you have a bad start, you can still make up the distance and come away with a victory.

E-mail Holt at: smh00a@acu.edu

gary rhodes/Contributing Photographer

Junior Marvin Bien-Aime runs stairs in Moody Coliseum. Bien-Aime’s work ethic has helped him rise to a championship calibur sprinter for the Wildcats.

Sunday, February 19, 2006

SPORTS JUMPS

Page 3B

Softball: Wildcat bats continue putting up runs and wins Continued from page 1B first. Home runs from Allison Crouse, Daisy Barcena, and a grand slam from Jenna Daugherty headlined the second inning. This was Daugherty’s second grand slam of the season.

By the third inning the Wildcats led 10-1. St. Edward’s added four runs in the fourth to make it 10-5. ACU scored two more runs on an error and RBI single from Johnson.

Leal had another start allowing five runs in four innings.

Vidalin finished the game pitching three strong innings, allowing just one run.

The Wildcats play in the LSC Crossover tournament Friday and Saturday in Irving.

Brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

E-mail Moore at: aem03d@acu.edu

Senior center fielder Heather Krumpols steals second base in the bottom of the second inning against St. Edward’s on Friday in a 12-6 at Wells Field. Krumpols later scored on a Allison Crouse home run.

Baseball: Bronchos fall to No. 4 Wildcats on Thursday Continued from page 1B In the first inning Trey Watten led with a double, advanced to third on a wild pitch. Danny Williams was then hit by a pitch and advanced to second base when Johnny Zepeda got a walk to first, loading the bases.

Following a Matt McGuire strike out, designated hitter Joel Wells came to the plate.

Wells, who was voted hitter of the week last weekend, lived up to his hype when he launched one over the rightcenter field wall for a grand slam home run to stun the Bronchos with four runs and just one out.

The rest of the line-up followed suit with four more hits and four more runs in the inning, giving the Wildcats a massive 8-0 lead in the first inning.

The Bronchos tried to rally when their first batter of the second inning, the 260-pound

brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

First baseman Danny Williams tags up and advances to third on a sac fly Morgan Colonel in the fourth inning of the first game of a double-header against Arkansas Tech on Feb.12 at Crutcher Scott Field.

big hitter Brandon Bacon pummeled one over the right field wall for a one run home run. But pitcher Chris Wiman held his composure and finished the inning with no more runs scored.

“The wind tonight forced me to keep my focus,” Wiman said. “You can’t lose your focus when you are trying to compensate for wind like this.”

Wiman pitched six innings, giving up only three more runs after Bacon’s home run in the second.

In the fourth inning, the Wildcats again stunned the flustered Bronchos when Chris Walsh hit one to left field and the left fielder missed the ball on the bounce. Walsh then proceeded to advance all the way around for an in-thepark, two-run home run to put the Wildcats up 11-3.

The Wildcats never let up on the floundering Bronchos and bumped the lead to 184 in the bottom of the fifth,

and finally to 20-4 in the bottom of the sixth. When the Wildcats held the Bronchos scoreless in the top of the seventh inning, the game finished and both teams hurried off the field. The beaten and hurt Bronchos left knowing that come Monday, they would no longer be ranked No. 1, and the Wildcats are leaving knowing that by defeating a team of the caliber of Central Oklahoma, they had a chance to stand on top of the nation at No. 1 for at least a week.

“The big picture here is not that we beat the No. 1 team in the nation,” Bonneau said. “It’s that we still have 45 more games left this season and we want to ride this hot streak that we are on as long as possible and show the NCAA poll voters that we belong in the tournaments at the end of the season.”

E-mail Loveless at: spl05a@acu.edu

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February 19, 2006

around the world

Witnessing During Melissa Landry’s internship last summer, she traveled 7,458 miles and learned how to drive on the wrong side of the road.

Landry’s internship not only helped her learn how to work with community leaders, children and teenagers; it also taught her how to deal with culture shock, overcome homesickness and live like a missionary.

Landry traveled overseas for the first time last year for a World Wide Witness internship in Auckland, New Zealand. Although Landry is from Plano and her major is accounting and finance, her internship focused on missions.

“I didn’t have much experience in extended missions,” Landry said. “I was getting out of my comfort zone, especially when it came to children and teens.

“But I learned that when you truly do become vulnerable to God and ask him to use you, he really does.”

Landry is one of 170 students who have participated in World Wide Witness, the university’s missionary summer internship program. This summer, the organization will send 65 more students out across the globe—the most sent in its five-year history.

Landry learned about World Wide Witness from Dr. Gary Green, one of the organization’s founders and a missions coordinator for Latin America. Although Landry wasn’t planning on becoming a long-term missionary, one of her friends told her about her own experience overseas and intrigued Landry.

After Landry spent eight weeks helping the Northshore Church of Christ reach out to the community, she’d consider living overseas for a longer period of time to do vocational missions.

“I really do want to move out there at some point,” she said.

That’s one of the goals of Green and co-director Dr. Wimon Walker, instructor of Bible, missions and ministry.

“We know that most of our interns will not become missionaries.” Green said. “But we know that they will also be much more supportive of international missions; they’ll have a comprehension and compassion for what goes on worldwide that they never had before.”

Dr. Gary Green came to the university in 2001 from working as a missionary in Venezuela. His goal coming to ACU was to begin a short-term

Anna carroll/Staff Photographer

Dr. Gary Green, World Wide Witness co-founder and missions coordinator for Latin America, shows Dr. Waymon Hinson, also a co-founder and instructor of Bible missions and ministry, a location where a student has traveled to while participating in the missions program celebrating its fifth year in the Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building on Friday. missions program for Latin America.

Dr. Wimon Walker had begun working at the university just one semester earlier, and his goal was to begin a missionary apprenticeship program.

When the two realized they could combine their goals, they formed World Wide Witness.

“Since then, it has been a great partnership, and things have really taken off,” Green said.

Before Green and Walker arrived, ACU had missions internship opportunities in Thailand and Africa, but no easy way to get involved.

“There was no front door for those internships; you basically had to know the right person to get involved,” Green said. “My goal was to make it more of a front-door approach and make it more high profile.”

Now Green and Walker make promotional videos, visit Bible classes and recruit students for the internships, which allow interns to work with a missionary from four to eight weeks during the summer.

The internships go beyond mission trips, both Green and Walker said. They are like a “try-out” for students interested in missions. The students must raise anywhere from $2,000 to $4,000 in support, and they work with the missionary in the field.

The two men assist students in raising funds for their trips by helping them write letters.

Green said he signs up to 4,000 letters a year to be sent to churches, friends and family.

Students can work in places near and far such as Thailand, Australia, Brazil, France, Mexico, Costa Rica and the United States.

In turn, the missionaries mentor them and help them build relationships and experience cross-cultural life.

“They’re not really trips,” Walker said.

“They’re really going in and living in that place … they’re going to serve and learn.”

As a result, Walker said, they come back with an increased vision of what God is doing in the world.

In the Swiss Alps

photos courtesy of Mitch ebie and melissa landry

Top: Mitch Ebie, masters of Christian ministry graduate student from Orrville, Ohio, stands by the water’s edge with a woman he worked with to help her with her English skills in Switzerland this summer. Bottom: Melissa Landry, junior accounting major from Plano, smiles with one of the children during her eight-week summer internship in New Zealand. Mountain spread: Landscape portrait of the Swiss Alps.

Design by Mallory Sherwood Story by Jaci Schneider

Mitch Ebie, masters of Christian ministry graduate student from Orrville, Ohio, lived for six weeks last summer with a Let’s Start Talking group in Schauffhausen, Switzerland, where he said he learned a lot about teaching the Gospel.

Let’s Start Talking is a national program that

sends students to teach English in foreign countries. At ACU, the program comes together with World Wide Witness in training and recruiting.

Ebie said working in Switzerland stretched his beliefs and the way he tells people about Christ.

“Over there it’s more complicated,” Ebie said.

“They’re very skeptical, and they think that [Church of Christ] is a cult.”

Every day, Ebie would read with students of different ages using a workbook and the Bible to help them practice their English. He also had time to hang out in the town, explore its surrounding scenery, including the Swiss Alps, and get to know some residents.

Although Ebie participated in Let’s Start Talking trips before, this particular trip presented different issues to him when trying to teach other’s about Christ.

“They’re not just going to pick it up,” he said.

“It’s interesting to see the perspectives of other people and what they’ve been through and their culture and society.

“They don’t need God like people in Africa … maybe they have too much.”

Ebie said learning to reach the people in Switzerland proved to be a challenge “It’s challenging to think of ways to get through to them,” he said. “You have to build a relationship, and they have to trust you, and see it in you.”

Ebie came home with a different perspective, which Green and Walker hope every student comes home with.

Although Ebie plans to stay in the United States this summer, he said he would like to spend time overseas in his future.

Changing lives Ebie and Landry are not the only students to participate in World Wide Witness or Let’s Start Talking and decide to spend more time overseas.

Walker and Green can both list names of students and scenarios where the internship changed the student’s life.

One student left for her internship and decided to take the next semester off so she could stay where she was, Green said.

One intern went to Mexico and, by the time he returned at the end of the summer, he had already arranged with his sponsoring church to return after graduation.

However, Green and Walker know not all interns will come back ready to be cross-cultural missionaries.

“We hope that some of our interns will hear God’s calling and say, ‘I want to spend the rest of my life there,’” Walker said. “But it’s not for everyone. Some will come back and say, ‘You know, I need to go back to Wichita Falls and spend the rest of my life there.’

“But no matter what, they will have a different perspective.”

Although World Wide Witness is only in its fifth year, Walker and Green are beginning to see some of their interns make long-term decisions.

“We’ve had several interns whose lives have been seriously changed,” Walker said.

Green said many students have begun masters degrees in missions with the desire to be church planters.

“We are just now getting to the point of seeing interns become part of long-term teams,” Green said.

The long-term results do not come from luck or chance; Green and Walker work diligently to provide students with a realistic experience of missionary life by making sure the missionaries the students work with will serve as mentors and help them build relationships.

“We don’t want to run a temp agency,” Walker said. “While they’re there, they ought to be of service, but we also want them to be mentored.”

Walker and Green work year-round on the internship program. The missionaries who participate are found through relationships within the Halbert Institute of Missions.

“We don’t work with just anyone,” Green said.

“Someone in the Halbert Institute knows them personally or has references for them.

“It becomes a network of relationships.”

Although Walker and Green arrange the sites before students even apply, every once in a while something falls through.

One year, a site in Papua, Indonesia, fell through 10 days prior to departure because the government rejected the students’ visas. However, Green was able to turn to relationships he had with people in Singapore and Malaysia, and the students traveled there instead.

“We had to scramble quite a bit, but we work with a lot of wonderful people,” he said. “Those students had a very positive experience.”

Future decisions For Landry and Ebie, their internship became even more than a positive experience. It changed their ideas about the world and their futures.

Ebie said the church he worked with in Switzerland asked him to return to work with the youth group, and he also considered traveling to New Zealand this summer to work with a church there.

“I would love to go overseas,” Ebie said.

Landry came back from New Zealand not only missing Cadbury chocolate and the beach; she misses the people she formed relationships with the most.

“It was awesome being able to see that we really did have an affect on the people,” Landry said. “When I first got back, I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to go back next semester.’ But I’ve experienced it, and I think someone else deserves that chance, too.”

E-mail Schneider at: jrs02a@acu.edu

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Series offers breakfast for thought n “Spirituality@Work” breakfasts at 6:45 a.m. Tuesday at Hillcrest Church of Christ and Wednesday at University Church of Christ will tie in with the “Faith@Work” series.

By GARY RHODES Student Reporter

Two breakfast presentations this week targeting business professionals will address integrating spiritual and business life.

The breakfasts, which are at 6:45 a.m. Tuesday at Hillcrest Church of Christ and Wednesday at University Church of Christ, are intended to draw professional people from around town to meet and discuss how they can foster their spirituality in the workplace, said Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events.

“We want them to see every aspect of their life as ministry

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before God,” he said. “Worship and daily life are connected.”

Love will give a presentation at the Tuesday breakfast, while Edward Fudge, an attorney from Houston, will present Wednesday. The breakfasts tie in to the Faith@Work forum, which will be Monday through Wednesday afternoons.

This is the second year the events have been part of Lectureship, although last year visitors could also attend a breakfast on Monday, Love said.

“We did away with the Monday breakfast,” he said. “It’s kind of hard to sell tickets for a Monday morning event when Lectureship begins on Sunday night.”

Last year’s breakfasts were well attended, Love said, and he expects this year’s events to be the same.

“Last year, we had 60 people at our biggest day and 30

The Great Flying Gamma Sig

at our smallest day,” he said.

“We did well enough for us to do it again. I think it will stick around and continue to be a part of Lectureship.”

The breakfasts offer area businessmen and women a chance to meet and look at how their spiritual lives and business lives interact, said Monty Lynn, professor of management.

“The breakfasts are an intentional time set aside to do that,” Lynn said.

Lynn said he believes many business people desire to integrate their business and spiritual lives.

“They are not only wanting to practice lives of honesty and integrity at business,” Lynn said, “but also to be a witness and model for those around them.” brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

E-mail Rhodes at: optimist@acu.edu

Jon Hinson, sophomore computer science major from Houston, is tossed into the arms of his fellow Gamma Sigs in Gibson Health and P.E. Center’s double gym after the men’s club performed in Sing Song on Friday.

Forum series focuses on intertwining faith, workplace n “Faith@Work,” one of the sessions in the “Marketplace Faith” series, will focus on how Christians can make their careers a central part of their ministry.

By TAKISHA KNIGHT Page 2 Editor

It doesn’t take apostles, prophets or ministers to do the work of God on earth.

This is the message of one of the forums in Lectureship

2006, “Faith@Work.”

Faith@Work is one session of a six-track series called “Marketplace Faith.” The sessions will focus on teaching Christians how their lives and careers are an essential part of their ministry, said Dr. Mark Love, director of Ministry Events.

“We want students to see their life as ministry before God,” Love said.

The sessions are at 3:15

p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at the Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building Room 114.

Presenters include, Todd Bouldin of California; Rebecca Clark of West Virginia; Richard Hughes of California; and John Grant of Tennessee.

In a related session, “A Christian Lawyer: An Oxymoron?” Edward Fudge of Houston will present his ex-

perience of being a Christian trial lawyer. His sessions will be at 9:45 a.m. on Monday and Tuesday at the OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building Room 130.

“We want not just Bible majors, but every student to see their life as participating in the mission of God,” Love said. “We hope students will have some sense that their lives are caught up in the purpose of God.”

Love said the idea for the forum came from the thoughts of three different committees, including faculty from the Bible, Missions and Ministry Department, English and other departments.

“Ministry is not just done by professional clergy,” he said. “Ask how a university can help its students understand [a life of ministry].”

Another new feature along with the forum is the commu-

nity’s involvement. Hillcrest Church of Christ and University Church of Christ have planned a breakfast series to encourage professionals to view their work as ministry called “Spirituality@Work.”

For more information about Lectureship, students can pick up a Lectureship information packet at the Campus Center ticket windows.

E-mail Knight at: tnk03a@acu.edu

LECTURESHIP NEWS

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Sunday, February 19, 2006

Cuban-American artist to transform blank canvas during lecture n Rolando Diaz, class of 1981, will create a theme-based painting in one hour while pastor Scott Sager reads aloud from the Bible in three to four-minute increments.

By KELLINE LINTON Staff Writer

Cuban-American artist Rolando Diaz will paint during a live performance Sunday, Monday and Tuesday night at 8:45 p.m. in the Williams Performing Arts Center.

His performances are a part of Bible Lectureship that organizers hope will appeal to the college crowd through art, music and spirituality.

As music plays and the lighting changes, Diaz, class of 1981, will transform a blank 4-by-5-foot canvas to a theme-based painting in one hour.

Scott Sager, preacher of Preston Road Church of

Christ in Dallas, said the production is a “performance art message.”

“It is not like going to the Dinner Theatre,” he said. “It is sharing in an experience where the Holy Spirit will move the people.”

Sager will read the Bible in three to four-minute increments as Diaz sketches, which will help further the message.

“The message will come out of what God is saying,” Diaz said.

Sager said he hopes the pair presents the Gospel in a fresh and relevant way.

“It is not preachy,” Sager said. “but students will experience the great mysteries of the Christian faith.”

Each night will center on a different theme, ranging from angels to incarnation to martyrs. The incarnation night will feature one of the prevailing topics in Diaz’s works — the

mother and child.

After Diaz completes the paintings, a silent auction will begin immediately. The proceeds from the first night will go to Bridges to the World, an organization that helps the poor in Honduras. The second

Christ even donated his art supplies.

Diaz’s paintings usually sell for $2,000­ to $8,000. Private collectors of his works include singer Liza Minelli; Rob Thomas, the lead singer for Matchbox 20; and Reg-

“It is not preachy, but students will experience the great mysteries of the Christian faith.”

Scott Sager, preacher of Preston Road Church of Christ in Dallas

night’s funds will go to the Bible, Missions and Ministry Department; the third night will help the Christian Relief Fund, an organization that supports the efforts to reduce the spread of AIDS in Africa.

Diaz will not accept payment, and the members of the Preston Road Church of

gie Williams, vice president of Disney World Attractions.

A recent auction ended with the highest bidding in Diaz’s career: a 30-by-40 inch sold for $25,000.

“Rolando is the most talented guy I ever met,” Sager said.

Diaz has been painting pro-

fessionally for 15 years. He performs regularly around the nation, accompanied by pianist Seth Simmons, and raises funds for numerous charities. His shows attract crowds of all ages, especially the college crowd in Dallas, his current residence.

He has shows coming up in Miami and Boston and a PBS special coming out at the end of this year.

His painting the “Man in the Boat” was recently exhibited at the Grace museum. A new art center opening soon in Buffalo Gap will feature some of his works.

Diaz graduated from ACU in 1981, and Jonathon Diaz, junior electronic media major from Arlington, is his nephew and the current art director for the Prickly Pear.

E-mail Linton at: krl04b@acu.edu

Art-related Lectures The event is one of many artistic presentations at Lectureship this year. Other artistic experiences at Lectureship include: • “Lux Et Tenebrae: Light and Darkness in Sacred Music,” featuring a panel of theology and music faculty, including Dr. Mike Scarbrough, director of choral activities, and Dr. Greg Straughn, chair of the Music Department.

• Performances from the A Capella Choir and Freshman Chorale.

• “The Gospel of John and Songs for Worship,” an exploration of prevalent themes in modern worship songs.

Visit http://www.acu. edu/events/lectureship.html for more information about Lectureship.

LECTURESHIP NEWS

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Summer ministry internships available n Students looking for an internship with a church or in the mission field can submit their résumé and interview Tuesday and Wednesday in the Bean.

By SARAH CARLSON Arts Editor

Students interested in interning in a church ministry or missionary position can still submit résumés for interviews with churches Tuesday and Wednesday, said Robert Oglesby, instructor of Bible, missions and ministry and director of field education.

About 50 churches will conduct interviews in the east side of the Bean, and about 45 to 50 students have already submitted their ré-

sumés to be reviewed by the churches. Some churches will not give interviews at Bible Lectureship but are still accepting interns, and other churches will not have enough interns, so students of all majors should feel free to interview, he said.

Students can submit their résumés to Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building Room 245 by Tuesday. The interviews will be 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and 8:30 a.m. to noon Wednesday.

Oglesby said the response rate from churches that employ students for a summer is almost always positive, and church leaders have been attending Lectureship to find interns for at least 10 years.

“That’s why they keep

coming back,” he said, referring to the churches. “We see some of the same folks year after year because they like what our students do.”

Most of the churches will be from Texas, he said, though some will be from various places such as New York City; San Diego, Calif.; and cities in Florida. Two or three students will be accepted for a chaplaincy internship at Houston’s MD Anderson Cancer Center. In addition to churches, students can interview for missionary positions around the world through World Wide Witness.

Bible ministry majors are required to complete an internship before their senior year both for educational ex-

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A newsprint bouquet

perience and so if problems or conflicts occur with the student and the church during the internship, professors and staff can work with the student to analyze what went wrong and solve the problem before the student graduates.

For the non-Bible majors, who make up about 20 percent of the internship applicants, Oglesby said most are looking for a fun and enriching summer job.

“Most of them just have a great love and passion for ministry and working with children,” he said. “The more experience and more variety, the better off it is in the long run, to continue to learn.”

E-mail Carlson at: skc02a@acu.edu

emerald mcgowan/Staff Photographer

Mark Waller, senior art education major from Abilene, learns to make newspaper baskets in his Art for Secondary Students class Thursday.

Directors of Let’s Start Talking to speak at luncheon Monday n The missionary organization will conduct an informative luncheon at 12:15 p.m. Monday in the Hilton Room for those interested in the program.

By CAMILLE PAINTER Student Reporter

A program that uses the Bible and the English language to minister to people in foreign countries will have an informative luncheon at 12:15 p.m. Monday in the Hilton Room.

Let’s Start Talking is an organization that connects native English speakers with people who aren’t confident

in their English skills. They fine-tune their language with Bible reading. LST has been around for more than 20 years and gives Christians a chance to share their faith and their language simultaneously, said Lisa Herndon, LST’s administrative assistant for development and public relations.

Studying with someone who isn’t as exercised in English “helps [the learner] read the English and get more exposed to the Bible, and the worker serves as the illustration — a light in a dark world people can see,” Herndon said.

The main goal of the luncheon is to inform people about the organization and opportunities available for those who want to get involved.

“We hope to inspire people to participate in missions, support others who participate in missions and inspire people to get their local congregation involved in evangelism,” Herndon said.

Mark and Sherrylee Woodward, co-directors of LST, will speak at the luncheon.

“We’ve been in existence for 25 years, so most involved in missions in the Church of Christ know about us; we’re

trying to reach those who don’t,” Mark Woodward said.

Herndon said Mark Woodward is a good speaker.

“He has a heart for the ministry and the more you hear him, the more you can’t help but want to try it,” she said.

Last year, about 35 people attended the luncheon.

“We were happy with the attendance” Herndon said.

“Anytime we get in front of people it plants a seed.”

Let’s Start Talking sent 512 people to 25 different countries last year.

“We send Americans into the whole world, onto every continent where there are churches, and we’re serving side by side and there’s a huge need for people to share their faith,” Woodward said.

One hundred twenty-five churches also participate in LST’s Friend Speak program, which ministers to American

non-native English speakers.

“I think anytime you make friends with someone not like you, you get to see Jesus,” Herndon said.

Tickets for this event cost $10 and will be sold at the door. E-mail lst@lst.org if there is a time conflict and visit Let’s Start Talking’s Web site lst.org for more information about the organization.

E-mail Painter at: optimist@acu.edu

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Sunday 12:15 p.m.

ACU Alumni Day Luncheon, Abilene Civic Center 6:15 p.m.

Praise and Worship, The Ministry, Moody Coliseum 7 p.m.

The Word Became Flesh and Dwelt Among Us; Royce Money with guest Don Jeanes, Moody Coliseum Ohio Valley University/ NCNJ Reunion Reception, McGlothlin Campus Center, Reservations Only Rochester College Alumni and Friends Reception, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room World Christian Broadcasting Reception, McGlothlin Campus Center, Living Room

Monday

War of the Unseen Worlds; Lee Dial, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 104

Invisible Children / Visible God; Milton Jones, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 130

Worship in Spirit and Truth; Mark Black, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 112

Becoming Truly Human; Randy Harris, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium

Do We Teach Another Gospel?; Jay F. Guin, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 113

Let the Older Women Teach the Younger; Jeanene P. Reese, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill

We All Fall Down: Rethinking Church Leadership; Mark Henderson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 114 Chronology and Theology in John and the Synoptics; Randy Chestnutt, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 115 Jesus Among Jews and Christians; Mark Hamilton, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 117 The Life Abundant: Filling Emptiness and Healing Brokenness in the Community of the Spirit; Eric Wilson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 120

Restoration Unity; Doug Foster, Cullen Auditorium Lifestyle As Testimony In Post-Christian America; Bill Richardson, Mabee Business Building, Room 115 Emergent Expressions; Sean Palmer, Mabee Business Building, Room 117 Our Song; Tim Spivey, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 111 (Recital Hall) We Beheld His Glory; Ike Graul and Jack Reese, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 145 (Muns Choral Rehearsal Hall)

6:45 a.m.

Focus Northeast / Northwest USA Breakfast, McGlothlin Campus Center, East Dining Room

Paying the Price for Turning on the Lights; Harold Rollinson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 122

European Evangelistic Society Breakfast, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room

Can You Hear Me Now?; Allen Burris, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 126

Haitian Christian Foundation Breakfast, University Church of Christ, Family Room

Living as Family in the Lord; Armando Alaniz, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 127

Missions Prayer Breakfast, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room

Partners For 100 Years; Eddie Sharp, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 128

8:30 a.m.

Loving the Broken Children of God; Darren Edwards, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103

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“Blog” is Not a Dirty Word; Mike Cope; Greg KendallBall and Travis Stanley, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 129

Biblical Studies Room 114

Building,

John­—The “Different” Gospel; Neil R. Lightfoot, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 115 The Mystery of Becoming a Servant-Leader; Robert K. Oglesby Sr., Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 117 Rediscovering the Preacher; Pastor, Parson, Person, Greg Anderson, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 120 Justice in a Cup of Joe; Joyce Haley, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 122 The Powerless Church; Howard Rhoden, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 126 Imagine a Marriage; Ignacio Barcenas, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 127 Glorifying God With One Voice; Calvin Bowers, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 128

9:45 a.m.

How God Can Change a Church; Steve Eckman, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103 War of the Unseen Worlds; Lee Dial, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 104 The Word Becomes Flesh; David Bland, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 112 Is God Calling You to Be a Desert Father or Mother?; Bobbie Huebner and Jeanenne Nichols, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 113 The Fruit of the Spirit; Jeff Christian, Onstead-Packer

Blind Revelations; Kevin Murray, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 129

tians Lose Their Faith and What Can be Done About It; Brian Simmons, Mabee Business Building, Room 115 Jesus’ Teaching, Take Two!; David Bearden, Mabee Business Building, Room 117 When the Levee Breaks; Virgil Fry and Larry James, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 184 (Fulks Theatre) Church Planting Returns; Stan Granberg, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 111 (Recital Hall) That You Might Believe; Frederick Aquino, Kelly Carter and Rex Hamilton, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 145 (Muns Choral Rehearsal Hall)

A Troubling Faith; Tim Woodroof, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium God in the Neighborhood; D’Esta Love, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill Together Again; Rick Atchley and Bob Russell, Cullen Auditorium Falling Away: Why Chris-

Developing Leaders; Ian Fair and Mitch Mitchell, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 114 Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign; Mark Matson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 115 Will the Grandkids Be in the Church?; The Barton and Powell Families, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 117 Discerning Leaders for an Advancing Kingdom; Doug Peters, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 120 Judging With Righteous Judgment; Harold R. Redd, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 128

11 a.m.

For God So Loved the World; Samuel TwumasiAnkrah, Moody Coliseum Let’s Start Talking Ministry Luncheon, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room Artist Talk with Nil Santana and Selected Students; Don H. Morris Center, Shore Art Gallery 2 p.m.

A Christian Lawyer: An Oxymoron?; Edward Fudge, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 130

Room 113

What is Truth?; Chris Benjamin, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103 War of the Unseen Worlds; Lee Dial, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 104 Christian Leadership; Benny R. Walls, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 112 The Temptation to Clone vs. the Courage to Plant; Sonny Guild, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building,

Our Father in Heaven; Ervin D. Seamster, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 129 For God So Loved the World; Amy Bost-Henegar, Carolyn Metcalf, Steve Weathers and Peter Wilson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 130 Celebration of Marriage; Carl Brecheen and Paul Faulkner, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium Christians Should Think Otherwise: The Call to a New Perspective; Charme Robarts, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill How We Tried to Reconcile; Chris DeWelt and Leroy Garrett, Cullen Auditorium Hollywood’s Challenge for the Church; Gregory Stevenson, Mabee Business Building, Room 115 Empowering Boards for Leadership; Barry Packer,

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Empowering Boards for Leadership; Barry Packer, Mabee Business Building, Room 117

ship, University Church of Christ, Family Room Asian Interest Group, China Star Restaurant

sion, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103

Christian Child and Family Service Association, Briarstone Manor

Deaf People Can Hear, Respond and Commit to Christ; Bob Anderson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 104

European Interest, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Mission Strategy Room

Worship in Spirit and Truth; Mark Black, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 112

3:15 p.m.

Friends of ACU Library, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room

Do We Teach Another Gospel? Jay F. Guin, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 113

The Apprentice; Tim Sensing, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103

Mission Reunion, McGlothlin Campus Center, East Dining Room

Is He Calling Me?; Todd Bouldin, Rebecca Clark, John Grant, Richard Hughes and Rick Lytle, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 114

Sunset International Bible Institute, Mabee Library Atrium

The Sent Life; Chris Flanders, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 111 (Recital Hall) Lux Et Tenebrae; Frederick Aquino, Michael Scarbrough and Greg Straughn, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 145 (Muns Choral Rehearsal Hall)

The Wonder Years: Parenting and Family Building; Sam and Geri Laing, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 130 Spiritual Pollution; Richard Beck, Gary Elliott, John Mark Hicks, Tommy King and Tracy Shilcutt, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium Old-Time Singing; Gene Linder, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill Restoration Unity Forum; Rick Atchley, Bryan Barrett, Sue Burton, Chris DeWelt, Leroy Garrett, Victor Knowles, Tom Langford, Dennis Randall and Bob Russell, Cullen Auditorium

Page 9B

LECTURESHIP SCHEDULE

7 p.m.

Worship in Spirit and in Truth, David Fleer, Moody Coliseum After Evening Lecture York College Friends and Alumni, McGlothlin Campus Center, Living Room 8 p.m.

Race in America: Reviewing the Movie Crash; Steven Moore, Bean Sprout

Tuesday 6:45 a.m.

Herald of Truth, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room

Once Upon a Time; Mark Henderson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 114 Chronology and Theology in John and the Synoptics, Randy Chestnutt, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 115

Room 129 Invisible Children/Visible God; Milton Jones, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 130 Becoming Truly Human; Randy Harris, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium Let the Older Women Teach the Younger, Jeanene P. Reese, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill

Lifestyle as Testimony in Post-Christian America; Bill Richardson, Mabee Business Building, Room 115

The Powerless Church; Howard Rhoden, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 126

Emergent Expressions; Sean Palmer, Mabee Business Building, Room 117

Imagine a Marriage; Ignacio Barcenas, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 127

Becoming a Church That Heals; David B. Srygley, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 120

9:45 a.m.

Living as Family in the Lord; Armando Alaniz, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 12

4:45 p.m.

Restoration Quarterly, University Church of Christ, Family Room

Continent of Great Cities, Hillcrest Church of Christ, Multi-Purpose Room

Spirituality@Work, Hillcrest Church of Christ, Multi-Purpose Room

Partners for 100 Years; Eddie Sharp, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 128

5 p.m.

African Missions Fellow-

8:30 a.m.

Feeding the Souls of Marginalized Women; Irie Ses-

Can These Bones Live?; Jim Hackney, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building,

Rediscovering the Preacher, Pastor, Parson, Person; Greg Anderson, OnsteadPacker Biblical Studies Building, Room 120

Opportunities of Unity, Jim North, Cullen Auditorium

Our Song; Tim Spivey, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 111 (Recital Hall)

Seeds that Grow; Odra Pratt, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 126

The Mystery of Becoming a Servant-Leader; Robert K. Oglesby Sr., Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 117

Making Disciples vs. Making Churches; Brian Mashburn, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 122

Jesus Among Jews and Christians; Mark Hamilton, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 117

Paying the Price for Turning on the Lights; Harold Rollinson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 122

Gospel; Neil R. Lightfoot, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 115

Delete, Defrag, Reboot; Mark Frost, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 103 Deaf People Can Hear, Respond and Commit to Christ; Bob Anderson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 104 Creating Women’s Ministry; Carolyn Wilson, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 112 Divine Justice – Or Grace?; Jesse Long, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 113 The Fruit of the Spirit; Jeff Christian, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 114 John – The “Different”

ness Building, Room 115 Jesus’ Teaching, Take Two!; David Bearden, Mabee Business Building, Room 117 When the Levee Breaks; Virgil Fry and Larry James, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 184 (Fulks Theatre) Church Planting Returns; Stan Granberg, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 111 (Recital Hall) That You Might Believe; Frederick Aquino, Kelly Carter and Rex Hamilton, Williams Performing Arts Center, Room 145 (Muns Choral Rehearsal Hall) 11 a.m.

You Search the Scriptures, Rick Marrs, Moody Coliseum 12:15 p.m.

A Desolate Valley is God’s Roadway to Mission; Jay Hawkins, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 128

ACU Halbert Institute for Missions Luncheon, Williams Performing Arts Center, Lobby

Prayer; Tony Ash, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 129

Prison Ministry Luncheon, University Church of Christ, Family Room

A Christian Lawyer: An Oxymoron?; Edward Fudge, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Room 130

Restoration Unity Luncheon, McGlothlin Campus Center, Hilton Room

A Troubling Faith; Tim Woodroof, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Hart Auditorium God in the Neighborhood; D’Esta Love, Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building, Chapel on the Hill Together Again; Rick Atchley and Bob Russell, Cullen Auditorium Falling Away: Why Christians Lose Their Faith and What Can be Done About It; Brian Simmons, Mabee Busi-

SING SONG NEWS

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Page 10B

Student singing groups will lead evening worship n Come As You Are, a nine-person student group, will be one of several singing groups that will lead worship during Lectureship in the evenings.

By DANI LINTHICUM Opinion Editor

Nine student singers, known as “Come As You Are,” will lead worship during Bible Lectureship. They will lead late-night praise on Sunday at 8:45 p.m. and praise before the lectures at 6:15 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

The group has never led

worship for Lectureship before, but it leads a weekly Small Group Chapel called “Come As You Are” on Thursdays in the Chapel on the Hill.

“I love the chance to be involved in the ceremonies with such amazing speakers and singers all around me,” said Jacob Lollar, freshman Christian ministries and Biblical text major from Tucson, Ariz., and member of Come As You Are. “But I am most excited about filling up Moody Coliseum with praises to God.” Katie Noah, senior English major from Midland, said even

though it has never lead worship for Lectureship, the group has a tightly knit friendship with each other, born of many hours singing and fellowshipping together.

“I love the community we have formed through singing together since last August,” Noah said. “We have practice on Tuesday nights, and it’s such a fun and relaxing time to get together and sing and laugh.”

Charity Sibert, senior interior design major, concurred.

“We’re very comfortable with each other; we enjoy each

By MITCH HOLT Staff Writer

A world mission prayer breakfast sponsored by the Missions Resource Network will take place at 6:45 a.m. Monday in the Hilton Room and will provide a time of prayer and reflection for missionaries and church planting opportunities all over the world.

Gina Waldron, organizer for the event and office manager for MRNET, said the purpose of the event is to focus on the needs of the world and strengthen people’s belief that prayer has the power to change the world.

The free breakfast and prayer time is for anyone interested in supporting world missions.

Bob Waldron, executive director of MRNET, will facilitate the breakfast and will begin with some remarks and then open up the event for a time of prayer. Attendees will sit at round tables, be given a program of issues to confront and engage in a time of prayer with others sit-

ting near them.

Waldron said the theme of the prayers will be missions in China and churches that send missionaries and missions teams throughout the world.

“The theme of the breakfast is to encourage church planting worldwide,” Waldron said. “This is the reason for our existence.”

MRNET is an organization with the goal of improving the church planting efforts in the Churches of Christ by providing help to churches wanting to send missionaries into the mission field, according the organization’s Web site. Church leaders from across the United States established the organization in 1994 to improve the state of global evangelism.

“We want people to come to the prayer breakfast because they believe in missions,” Waldron said. “We want them to see that they need to invoke the Holy Spirit to effectively spread the Gospel throughout the world.”

Waldron also said being faithful to God’s tasks is asking his blessing on what they’re doing, which is the point of the breakfast.

E-mail Holt at: mah02f@acu.edu

jor from Alvin, agreed.

“I think my favorite part is getting to stand in front and listen to everyone,” Nelson said. “I love to put the mic down and just listen to the harmonies that are made.”

Team members also said they are looking forward to the opportunity to actively participate in Lectureship.

“I am most excited about the fellowship that is going to take place. The young and old co-existing in peace for a short amount of time is just a small reminder to me of how God intended for things to be,”

Nelson said. “Lectureship is a time to see old friends and to soak in all the wisdom you can squeeze out of the speakers.”

Nate Lollar, senior Biblical text major from Tucson, Ariz., said he is thrilled to see the community at Lectureship.

“Seeing people from all over the country come together to talk and discuss the things we all share in common is really awesome,” he said. “Mainly, our belief that God is Lord over all.”

E-mail Linthicum at: del01a@acu.edu

‘Hold steady ...’

Supporters to pray for world missions n People interested in praying for missionaries around the world and learning more about planting churches can attend a breakfast Monday at 6:45 a.m.

other, and we enjoy being together,” Sibert said. “I think that comes through in our singing.”

When all is said and done, worshipping God and leading others into worship is the real reason Come As You Are exists.

“I love watching people that are joining us become so involved in worshiping the Lord, by raising their hands and smiling and singing as loud as they can,” said Jeremiah Gibson, senior interdisciplinary major from Garland. Mandy Nelson, youth and family ministry ma-

brian schmidt/Chief Photographer

Brittany Bagby, freshman business management major from Sugar Land, puts makeup on Baron Smith, freshman business and marketing major from Irving, as final preparations are made in the single gym of Gibson Health and Physical Education Center for the freshman Sing Song act Friday.

100 exhibits to be featured in Teague Center n More than 101 exhibitors will be featured in the Teague Center during Lectureship, including camps, book publishers, prison ministries and book signings.

By AARON BALLARD Staff Writer

During Lectureship, the Teague Special Events Center will feature exhibits from 101 different organizations for “Meet Me at Teague.”

Beginning Sunday evening, Meet Me at Teague will be open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily until Wednesday night.

“Meet Me at Teague is not only a time for people to relax and visit with old friends, but also an opportunity to

access resources that they might not be able to access except when they are here,” said Sandy Lowe, events coordinator for the College of Biblical Studies and contact person for “Meet Me at Teague.”

Organizers of the event made some changes this year. The configuration of booths has been changed, creating more open space and allowing for two new refreshment areas on either end of Teague. In addition, no singing groups will perform, as in years past.

“We wanted to give folks a better opportunity to sit down, rest their feet and fellowship,” Lowe said.

Exhibitors range from camps and children’s homes to book publishers and prison ministries. Exhibitors will sign books, distribute information, and guests can enjoy coffee and pie and even free 10-minute massages.

“Exhibitors come for various reasons,” Lowe said.

“Some are mission efforts hoping to gain interest and funds. Others are booksellers who hope to add to their income. It depends on the booth and the organization.”

Organizations that express an interest in attending are placed on a mailing list, and each year it is up to them to decide whether or not they want to come.

The deadline this year was Dec. 15.

“Most of the exhibitors are ones that have been coming to Meet Me at Teague for years,” Lowe said.

Although this is Lowe’s first year in charge of Meet Me at Teague, she has been a part of it for years.

“When I was a minister’s wife, and we we’re coming to Lectureship every year, it was something I enjoyed to do because there was always something I didn’t know about or someone I hadn’t seen in a long time,” Lowe said.

E-mail Ballard at: agb04b@acu.edu