SWEDEN VIRGINIA

Dr. Gina Barker's life journeyed across the Atlantic Ocean and intoan unexpected career Barker grew upinSweden,the country that instituted the Nobel prize, stayed neutral forboth World Wars, produced the famous band called ABBA and started the furniture company known as IKEA. She met her husband EdBarker ather home church inSweden and followed him back tothe United States

According to her, the most startling difference between the United States and Sweden was theirviews on Christianity

"The percentage ofChristians inSweden is very low,"Barker said. "If you are a regular church goer and actually practice Christianity, you are seen as odd and different."

The acceptance ofChristianity was not the only thing she grew toappreciate.According to Barker the taxes inthe States are much lower than taxes inSweden

"Sweden has one ofthe highest tax rates inthe world, because they have such abig welfare system,alotof unemployment and they pay money tothe European Union,"Barker said.

When she arrived inthe States, she decided to pursue adegree atRegent University inVirginia Beach.

"When I got tothe States I thought,I have todo something, I might as well get mydegree,"Barker said. "Unknown to me,God knew that he wanted metoteach, and I needed thattraining."

After graduation and getting married,life presented Barker an opportunity fora teaching career According to her, teaching was something she never considered.Sixyears ago her husband, Dr. Ed Barker, was hired by the Psychology Department They packed their bags and leftVirginia Beach.

"My firstquestion was, 'What willI dointhe city ofLynchburg?'" Barkersaid.

After spending ayear inLynchburg,Barker applied and obtained a ob inthe Communication Department.

"I reallyfeellike the Lord put mehere fora reason,"Barker said "I lovethe students and I lovewhat I do.Mytime here has really helped me grow asaperson."

According tosenior Dana Chepulis,Barker was aprofessor who wanted the best for her students She challenged and pushed them, because she knew they could do better.

"It was very apparent that Dr Barker put forth much effortto understand and teach her students,"Chepulis said. "There is no doubt that Dr Barker cares greatly about all of us."

'*$$' Paul Reynolds

my life, butI learned alotinthatclass," Rockafellowsaid. "He taughtalot of technicalknowledge aswellastheory."

One theory Reynoldsstressedwasthe importanceofshowing truthin yourart "Expressionshould behonestand not contrived,justlikeourrelationshipwith God and each other,"Reynoldssaid He triedtosharehiswisdom about artand therealworld "We should be awareofhow themedia affects us."

He challengedstudentstodevelopa criticalmindset oftheirown,undefined byanyone.

VisualCommunications Professorhas theabilitytobringarttolife ProfessorofVisual Communications PaulReynoldsdeveloped apassionfor artwhen hewas young."It was bornin me todo it [art]," Reynoldssaid Reynoldshad atalentforartand shared how it waseasy to become egocentricand selfabsorbed. "On one hand God blessed me [withtalent], but on theotherhand he had toteachme," Reynoldssaid SeniorGarret Rockafellow had ProfessorReynoldsforadrawingclass "I'vebeen drawing casuallyformostof

"Hedefinitelycared about all his studentsand tookthetimetomake sure eachonesucceeded,"Rockafellowsaid Reynoldsalsoencouraged students tobecreative "Artislookingforthe uniquenessin things,"hesaid "It'sa world you can enterinto Aworld you cancreate."

The"100%NaturalGood TimeFamilyBand"performstheirfunand upbeat songinfrontofthousandsattheVinesCenterduringCoffeehouse.Everysemester, studentslookedforwardtoseeingthetalentfromtheirpeers "ThethingImost enjoyedaboutCoffeehousewasbeingabletodosomethingfunwithmy friends,"Ro Hardy,senior,said "ItwascooltobeapartofsomethingsouniqueanddiverseandI beabletoshareinthatcreativity."

C hao s filledthe room untilsophomore Matt Mielnicki yelled, "Okay!one, two, buckle my shoe!"

Then the room filledwith a uniformed sound of piano, trumpet,drum,guitar, bass, banjo and vocals. Junior guitarist Raymond Buckner swayed back and forth, freshman piano playerKelsie Knowles'head and fingers bounced and junior backup singer Amy Revis tapped the heel of her brown boot to the beat ofthe music.So it was forthe "100%Natural Good Time Family Band" asthey titledthemselves.

The sound slowly faded as the song concluded,and asthe lastnote resonated inthe air, the band members looked up with smiles on their faces.

"Okay,let'slearn a new song,because we gotthis one down,"joked lead vocalistand banjo player Matt Mielnicki atthe end ofthe practice. There were more practices tofollow before they played at Christmas

Coffeehouse,the holiday version ofthe popular campus talent show.

Matt Mielnicki'sunfinished basement served asthe band's makeshift rehearsal space.It was a collageof pieced together carpets ofvariouscolors, a lavalamp, N'Sync poster,Christmas lightson the ceiling andwalls, Greek art; and ofcourse instruments,mics and many, many wires.It was inthisroom the "100%Natural Good Time Family Band" played and learned the song called "Chicago" forCoffeehouse.

"When I came to my firstpractice with everyone, I was amazed at how good they all sounded together and I was excited totryout [forCoffeehouse],"Allison Scales, freshman and backup vocalist, said. She added, "There were some days when we had practice at3 p.m and didn't leave untilmidnight,because we werejust sitting around talking, playing videogames or hanging Christmas lights. "

"I was really nervous before we tried out[for Coffeehouse],because I didn'tthink we were ready," Mike Cocco, juniortrumpet player, said. "After we played it though,I knew that our audition was one of the best times that we had ever played thesong."

Junior bass player Joe Mielnicki shared the excitement they all feltupon receiving word they had made the cut to perform."I was leaping forjoy whenI heard we got a time slot inthe show," he said.

"I did not know Coffeehouse was inthe Vines Center,"Chelsea Wetherill, freshman violinplayer, said "I thought it was justa nonchalant event intheTilley. Iwas very surprised and excited when I found out it was a huge campus event that everyone goesto."

Preparation oftheirversion of"Chicago"forthe show began immediately.The band watched YouTube videos ofpast performances and started perfecting theiract. They splitthe group intothe orchestra and the band sections to make practiceeasier ofthereasonswerethatwe lovemusicand wante talentand passionwithothers We wereanew band who wastrying to getournameoutthere.We knew itwouldbesomuch fun,and aband orartistrarelygetsanopportunitytoperforminsuchalargeandwell equippedvenue. iOthers inthe band included viola player senior Paul Mclntyre, violinistssophomore David Sherret and freshman Tim Ukwuani and fluteplayerjunior Meredith Hurt

Why didyou decidetotryoutforcoffeehouse?

How oftendid you practiceforthe audition?

Actually,we onlypracticedforoneandahalfhoursbeforeweauditioned. Ourfirsttimerunningthroughthesong fromstarttofinish wasthe audition itself.

How did theband selectthesong you chose?

We selectedthissong, it'sactuallyamedleyofCaroloftheBellsand 0 Come,0Come Emmanuel,becausewe felt itreallyexpressesthemeaninc ofChristmas, We wanted todosomethingoriginalthatwouldappealto many differentpeople We wanted totaketworelativelywell-knownand simplesongs,and make them amazing. Hopefullywe didit right.

Wlmt emotions did you experienceasyou prepared?

Aswe approached thenightoftheperformance, thereweredefinitely some mixedemotions:excitement,alittlebitofnervousnessandasense ofhumility.We weresoexcitedfortheopportunitytoshareourtalentand passionwiththestudents, butmostofallwe wereexcitedforachancelo glorifyGod throughthetalentsHehasgivenus.

The Friday nightevent came and the band performed toward the end ofthe show The lights came up as Matt Mielnicki started the number offwith a banjo solo Soon the trumpet joined inwith him and the restofthe instruments and voicesfollowed.

The crowd bounced and swayed with the music as they enjoyed the fun and upbeat song.As the end came, Matt Mielnicki turned to look atthe band and applauded them expressing hispride and approval of thejob welldone

"We practiced a lotwhich paid offinthe end, and I think it's given everyone a chance to get closer together,"Knowles said. "Even though I often dread practicing,I have a feeling I'm going to miss it next semester."

Studentspeerindramatized awe,pastthecoatsintheirpretendwardrobe,atthewintry wonderland ontheotherside Although noteveryholidaycame withtheimaginary worldcalled Narnia,studentsand teacherseachhad theirown way ofcelebrating "ThethingI likemost about holidaysoncampus isgettingthechancetoseehow my friendsfrom otherplacescelebrate,ratherthan justhow my familydoesit,"ChristineLemon,senior,said

ThemenonDorm22-2trolickintheir"snow"coveredhall createdfrommanyrollsoftoiletpaper Holidaysgavestudents theexcusetodecoratetheirroomsandgivethehallafunand invitinglook "Istartedcelebratingtheholidaysoncampusby decoratingmy room,puttingawreathonourdoor,andplanning adinnerpartyorfunctionwithmy closestfriendsoncampus," RebekahFrancesTurner,freshman,said. Facultymember Adam LancasterraiseshishandtotheLordasheimpersonatesDr. EdHindson whilegraduatestudentJustinKintzel,staging asElmerTowns,listensin AlongwithHindsonandTowns, LancasterandKintzelcausedmuchlaughterastheypretendedto beCampuspastorsJohnnieMooreandDwayneCarson "Ihave toadmitChristmasconvocationisalwaysagoodthingtogoto, especiallywhenpeopledressupandreallygetintoit,"Austin Marsh,sophomore,said AstudentdressesupasSantaClaus torChristmasConvocation. Studentswereeagertosharewhat theylovedabouttheholidaysoncampus "Myfavoriteholiday tocelebrateoncampusisThanksgivingbecauseprogressivehall dinnersarethebest,"AmandaJones,senior,said Withatacky Christmassweaterandcoolshades,juniorJordanSpicer showshislovefortheholidayasheplaysChristmassongs withtheCampusPraiseBand. Thebandwasnottheonlygroup thatmadetheholidaysfun."TheDiningHallmakesholidays oncampusspecialbymakingfestivehome-stylemealsforthe students,"AngelaDion,juniorsaid