Messiah College's The Bridge magazine - Spring 2017

THE

14 10, 000 HOURS

Is practice enough when it comes to mastery?

29 1 FAMILY, 5 FINAL FOUR RUNS

MESSIAH COLLEGE ALUMNI MAGAZINE SPRING 2017

The Rosenberrys know soccer—and field hockey

22

Faith amid crisis

When disaster strikes, where’s God?

MATTHEW TENNISON

OU TSIDE LOOK

Assistant Professor of Adventure Education Dave Tanis teaches students river rescue techniques in the Yellow Breeches as part of his Advanced Technical Skills course.

S P R I N G 2 0 1 7, VO L . 1 0 8 , N O . 4

THE

office of Marketing and COMMUNICATIONS

One College Avenue Suite 3020

M E S SMechanicsburg I A H C O L L EPA G E17055 A LU M N I M AG A Z I N E

717.691.6027 www.messiah.edu

TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Office of Marketing and Communications One College Avenue, Suite 3020 Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 717.691.6027 | www.messiah.edu PRESIDENT

Kim S. Phipps V I C E P R E S I D E N T F O R A DVA N C E M E N T

Barry Goodling ’79 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF M A R K E T I N G & C O M M U N I C AT I O N S

Carla E. Gross EDITOR

Anna Seip C R E AT I V E D I R E C T O R

Nancy Soulliard GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Cindy Agoncillo ’09 DIRECTOR OF A L U M N I & PA R E N T R E L AT I O N S

Jay McClymont ’92 CONTRIBUTORS

Sarah Fertsch ’19, Steve King ’06, Jake Miaczynski ’20, Robyn Passante, Danielle Ran ’06, Jeff Vrabel

The Bridge (ISSN-0279-3938) is published quarterly by the Messiah College Office of Marketing and Communications for alumni and friends of the College, free of charge. Periodicals postage (USPS #342000) paid at Mechanicsburg PA 17055 and additional mailing offices. Please contact us at thebridge@messiah.edu or 717-691-6027. Items for the alumni news section should be identified by class year and sent to the Messiah College Office of Alumni and Parent Relations, One College Avenue Suite 3023, Mechanicsburg PA 17055.

You may email them to alumni@messiah.edu or fax them to 717-796-5371. Postmaster: Address corrections should be sent to the Office of Development, One College Avenue, Suite 3013, Mechanicsburg PA 17055.

14

F E AT U R E S

14

As its name suggests, The Bridge connects alumni, parents and donors with Messiah College. It also serves to build the College’s image with these audiences. It does this by publishing accurate news about the College and about alumni and by offering interesting feature articles that are issue- or College-related for readers’ continued education. Messiah College accepts news submissions from alumni and the broader community but reserves the right to edit or decline to print materials at its discretion.

Messiah College is a Christian college of the liberal and applied arts and sciences. The College is committed to an embracing evangelical spirit rooted in the Anabaptist, Pietist and Wesleyan traditions of the Christian Church. Our mission is to educate men and women toward maturity of intellect, character and Christian faith in preparation for lives of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society.

Messiah College does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, disability and national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic or other College-administered programs. © 2017 Messiah College

COVE R: The Bridge is printed on recyclable paper: 50/25 PCW EFC

When a storm brews in our lives, we rely on our faith to weather it.

2 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

22

10,000 HOURS

FAITH AMID CRISIS

What does it take to master a skill? Dedication? Passion? Pop psychologist Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours of practice. Is he right?

Messiah alumni show resilience in times of disaster.

F R O M T H E E D I TO R AS I HELPED MY FOURTH-GRADER WRITE A THREE-MINUTE SPEECH LAST WEEK, I STARED AT THE INDEX CARDS SPREAD ON THE DINING ROOM TABLE. HOW MANY TIMES BEFORE HAD I PUT PEN TO PAPER? TYPED ON A KEYBOARD? HOW MUCH TIME HAVE I SPENT IN MY LIFE JUST, SIMPLY, WRITING?

At 9, I wrote my first short story, a parody of my teacher and her fashion choices. It circulated among my friends and was a big hit until the main character confiscated my only copy. The thrill of others enjoying my stories, however, sparked a passion to write.

Because I filled so many notebooks with my thoughts and stories, my mother brought home boxes of blue scrap paper from the print shop where she worked. Blue for short stories, white for homework, she reminded me. I still have some of those blue sheets today.

9

D E PAR TM E NT S

4

FROM THE PRESIDENT

5

ON CAMPUS

5

Heard Around Campus

6

Faces and Places

8

Brain Waves

9

Campus News

12

Athletics

28

OUR ALUMNI

28

Alumni News

29

Alumni Profiles

30

Class Notes

32

From the Archives

28

At college, I majored in writing, which surprised no one. As a freshman, I dropped a 200-page, single-spaced opus on the desk of my favorite professor and asked for help. He turned it into an independent study and showed me the value of rewrites.

Since then, I’ve enjoyed a career where I write every day. From working as a columnist at a daily newspaper to writing political speeches to editing magazines, I’ve never stopped.

ONLINE EXTRAS

MESSIAH.EDU/THE_BRIDGE Watch the PBS documentary “The Race Underground,” featuring animations by Professor of Engineering Don Pratt Learn more about the Ralph S. Larsen Finance Lab and the new finance major Check out the service-learning children’s book by Ulysse Toussaint ’08 at superheroesofservice.com

In our feature “10,000 Hours” on p.

14, we take a look at the book by pop psychologist Malcolm Gladwell. He suggests it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill. I have a few hobbies that keep me busy but doubt I’ve logged 10,000 hours with any of them. But writing? I’ve put in my time there. And am in no way an expert.

What’s your 10,000-hour skill?

We hope you enjoy the spring issue of The Bridge.

A N N A S E I P, E D I T O R

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 3

FROM THE PRESIDENT

Discernment in leadership CULTIVATING OUR DISTINCTIVE CALLING While I’ve witnessed the importance of this process in my personal and professional life, discernment is not a popular term in our national lexicon. Yet, our communities, nation and world suffer when leaders do not engage in a careful process of discernment—what the Oxford English Dictionary defines as “The faculty or power of discerning or understanding clearly . . . insight; good judgment” or “spiritual understanding.” At the same time, our national distrust of authority figures and institutions continues to increase. As a Christian college of the liberal and applied arts and sciences, we have a sacred and timely opportunity to lead with discernment—a notable distinctive—as we live out our mission for the flourishing of church and society.

Throughout this issue of The Bridge, you will read about

“I’ve learned that our calling is often specific, embedded in our core values, abilities and passions.”

— Kim S. Phipps, President

many ways Messiah College educators, students, staff and alumni are influencing the world around them as they strive for mastery in their fields and respond faithfully in the face of disasters.

It is my fervent hope and prayer that we will all seek to practice intentional discernment in the leadership roles we hold—whether as parents, teachers, scholars, community or church leaders, coaches or managers—so that our decisions will reflect careful and compassionate consideration.

K I M S . PH I PPS, PRESIDENT PHOTO: RYAN SMITH PHOTOGRAPHY

Last fall, I shared my personal journey of leadership and discernment with pastors from Central Pennsylvania who are participating in the Lilly Endowment-sponsored Clergy Leadership Program hosted at Messiah College. A unifying theme in my vocational development is the significance of trusted mentors and confidants. My first inkling that my vocation might involve academic leadership occurred when I was enrolled in graduate school at Kent State University. A professor I deeply admired told me that he had observed my ability to persuade others and to facilitate people working together. Dr. Swierenga said, “You will be a fine teacher, but I hope you consider academic administration.” He planted a seed, which caused me to give some initial thoughts to educational leadership positions even as I settled into a fulfilling role as a faculty member.

In the intervening years, as doors opened to greater leadership roles in academic administration, I began to employ a conscious process of reflecting on my interests, gifts and abilities; and of considering how to use them to benefit colleagues and students. This discernment process includes fervent prayer and seeking the counsel and affirmation of others when opportunities arise. Throughout my career, I’ve learned that our calling is often specific, embedded in our core values, abilities and passions. For example, I sensed a specific call to lead the Messiah College community as president, not a broader call to become a college president. I was called to Messiah’s beloved people, this work and our unifying mission. Likewise, our discernment process as a college is rooted in our specific mission and identity. We utilize a formal process of discernment to create and implement strategic plans— requesting input from colleagues across campus, praying for guidance and rooting each theme in our vision, mission and core values.

4 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

OUR

HEARD AROUND CAMPUS

WHAT ARE YOU READING? STUDENTS AROUND CAMPUS REALLY HIT THE BOOKS DURING SPRING SEMESTER—AND LEARNED A LOT!

“Education and Social Change: Contours in the History of American Schooling”

by John L. Rury

“As a future teacher, I would like to take these ideas and try to figure out if there is a better way to ‘do’ education.”

“The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”

by Mark Haddon “ This book took me into the mind of a teenage boy with autism and allowed me to understand the confusion and frustration many experience.”

— Matt Blaylock ’20

— T.J. Culclasure ’19

“The Problem of Pain” by C.S. Lewis

“I’m learning about why God allows pain to enter our lives, so that I can better explain to nonbelievers why we serve a God who allows both the good and the bad to enter our lives.”

— Hannah Reed ’20

“The Great Divorce”

by C.S. Lewis “ The book speaks on the ways in which we line up our priorities, and it’s impacting the way I now set up priorities in my life.”

— George Noble ’19

“ Learning for the Love of God”

by Don Opitz and Derek Melleby

“I am gaining a whole new mindset of learning. I can’t just go through college just to get the degree. I must truly enhance my learning in order to enhance my life as a Christian and as an intellectual.”

— Hannah Ling ’20

“ Minding God: Theology and the Cognitive Sciences”

by Gregory R. Peterson

“This book is teaching me that as Christians we cannot acknowledge cognitive science without theology, and we cannot acknowledge theology without cognitive science.”

“ Introductions to Christian Theology”

by Richard J. Plantinga, Thomas R. Thompson, Matthew D. Lundberg

“This book is teaching me how to support my faith and how to combat questions of ‘Is God real?’ I’m learning how to form my own opinions with background — Caroline Barsom ’20 knowledge while strengthening my “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander belief in God. It’s “It’s showing me how the system was made a solidification to oppress and form classes in order to process, and it’s divide. The deeper it divides, the subtler it working to benefit becomes, making it harder to see racism my faith.” and oppression at first glance.”

— Tazia Rice ’18 — Kassidy Singleton ’19 MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 5

OUR

FAC E S A N D P L AC E S

Giving a kidney to a stranger KATEY DAY ’17

PROFESSOR CREATES DONOR CHAIN REACTION

Messiah College Professor of Engineering Don Pratt donated a kidney to a complete stranger—all because of a radio ad. Last year, he happened to hear a commercial from the National Kidney Registry about something called a kidneydonor chain, which creates opportunities for multiple donor-recipient matches.

“I had an overwhelming sense that this was something that God was calling me to do,” said Pratt.

A kidney donor chain begins only with an altruistic donor— in

this case, Pratt— someone who wants to donate a kidney out of the goodness of his heart.

That kidney is transplanted into a recipient who had a donor willing to give a kidney, but was not a match.

“Let’s say your husband needs a kidney,” he explained. “You want to donate, but you’re not a match for him. But if you’re put into the database, maybe you’re a match for someone unrelated to you, maybe a guy in Kansas.

6 | SUMMER 2014 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

So, through this chain, multiple transplants occur on the same day.”

The day before surgery, Pratt read his Bible for encouragement.

The doctors told him he could change his mind at any point— even as he was being wheeled into the operating room.

But, he remained committed. After all, a chain of people depended on him to get the ball rolling.

“I looked at verses on giving, thinking about how God gave us such a precious gift of His Son; how Jesus chose to give not a piece of Himself or an extra organ, but His very life for us,” he said. “I was utterly humbled.”

Pratt says he timed the laparoscopic surgery during Christmas break. He returned to Messiah for spring semester and a full load of teaching.

“I’m completely recovered now, and I was able to go to Cambodia during spring break,” he said.

Also, he recently a dinner honoring altruistic donors in New York City. “I don’t have the stats, but apparently there are not very many people crazy enough to do this kind of thing.”

— Jake Miaczynski ’20 and Anna Seip

Professor of Engineering Don Pratt consulted on a documentary about the first subway system, animating the sketches of Frank Sprague, an inventor known as the Father of Electric Traction.

PROF CONSULTS ON PBS DOCUMENTARY ABOUT SUBWAYS

PBS recently aired “The Race Underground,” a documentary about the first subway system in Boston, Messiah’s Professor of Engineering Don Pratt served as the technical consultant.

Pratt deciphered sketches and notes from Frank Sprague, who is credited with the first designs of electric-powered trolley cars.

While the documentary was in progress, Pratt was prepping to donate a kidney. That didn’t stop him from designing the film’s animations to bring Sprague’s notebook sketches to life.

VIEW THE DOCUMENTARY ON PBS’ WEBSITE AT MESSIAH. EDU/PBSDOC.

MOUNTAIN VIEW RESIDENCE

NEW COMMUTER LOUNGE DEBUTS

The lounge will be named in honor of Charles Frey, who helped fund the renovation of the space.

funded by a legacy gift from Charles Frey along with Scott and COLLEGE DESIGNATES MORE PARKING SPOTS, TOO Gaye Heintzelman, will be named for Frey.

Commuters also will find “Commuters have been a With almost 300 commuter stumore parking spaces available. In priority for the College for a long dents, Messiah College is serving addition to the existing commuttime,” said Kathie Shafer, vice this growing population by builder lot at Starry, new designated president of operations. “We ing a new commuter lounge to commuter spots will open in front have been working with commutopen in fall 2017. of Sollenberger Residence and in er students to determine what The lounge, housed in what the Bittner lot. their needs are, and now we can was formerly the South Side Café Ambreen finally give in the basement of the Mountain Imran ’20, them a good View Residence, will include a “WE NEED TO commutes home here on kitchen area with a refrigerator, a from her home campus.” television area, study tables and BE MORE AND in Hershey.

The lounge, plenty of locker space.

MORE AWARE THAT STUDENTS ARE CHOOSING TO COMMUTE. A STRONG COLLEGE CAMPUS HAS STUDENTS WHO BRING ALL KINDS OF PERSPECTIVES TO THE TABLE.”

KITCHEN AREA WITH A REFRIGERATOR

— Kathie Shafer, vice president of operations

“Most of my classes are in Jordan and Kline, so the new parking will really make my days better,” said Imran.

Shafer says listening to commuters and their needs made the new lounge possible. “We need to be more and more aware that students are choosing to commute,” said Shafer. “A strong college campus has students who bring all kinds of perspectives to the table, and it’s important that all students have the opportunity to be successful.”

— Sarah Fertsch ’19

COLLABORATIVE LEARNING SPACE

Housed in what was formerly Southside Cafe in the Mountain View Residence, the lounge offers kitchen and study space for Messiah’s growing commuter population.

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 7

RENDERINGS COURTESY OF DERCK & EDSON

BLEN ASRES ’18

LOUNGE AREA

OUR

BLEN ASRES ’18

B R A I N WAV E S

VERSION 1 Dereck Plante, engineering projects manager, uses a 3-D printer to make maps for the visually impaired.

Mapping the future for visually impaired COLLAB LAUNCHES 3-D GROUP EFFORT VERSION 2

VERSION 3

“I have been reading Braille all my life, and I am totally blind,” said marketing major Jason Polansky ’18. “Maps really help me orient my location.”

As part of a Collaboratory group, Polansky works with faculty and peers to create Messiah’s first map for the visually impaired.

Taken from satellite imagery, the map can be mass produced on the College’s 3-D printer. The prototype doesn’t yet include intricacies such as crosswalks and elevators.

Engineering major Carlie Adair ’20 is working on the next version. “I’m trying to make a campus map that includes

8 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

everything in the College app— the creek, College Avenue, Creekside Drive,” she said. “I’m also trying to find a way to differentiate between the roads, paths and buildings.”

Julia Baker ’17, a human development and family sciences major, serves as the liaison between

app that triangulates where you are and how close you are to a building with this map.”

Associate Professor of Graduate Education Maude Yacapsin, the project manager, says the Collaboratory brings people together. “While Disability Services is our client,” she ex-

“I HAVE BEEN READING BRAILLE ALL MY LIFE, AND I AM TOTALLY BLIND. MAPS REALLY HELP ME ORIENT MY LOCATION.” –Jason Polansky ’18, marketing major

the group and Disability Services, the client for the project. “I intern for [Director of Disability Services] Amy Slody, so I have conversations with her about the progress and what she would like to see with this project.”

Future steps include figuring out a “you are here” component, perhaps with a phone application. “Jason’s phone gives him feedback that, for example, he could be 70 feet from the Oakes Museum,” explained Dereck Plante, engineering projects manager. “I could imagine engineering students developing an

plained, “you could also hand out this map to anyone. It could be used by Admissions. The beauty with this project is that it is interdisciplinary, and that’s new for the Collaboratory.”

Polansky, who will serve on the Collaboratory’s board next year, says the group is not limited to engineering majors only. “We need business people. And, keeping the website up to date is important. Education majors would find this interesting. Making it multidisciplinary is what I’d like to see for the Collab’s future.”

— Anna Seip

CAMPUS NEWS

stock ticker continuously displaying market information

1,065 SQUARE FEET OF LEARNING SPACE

3 26

large-screen televisions showing CNBC, Bloomberg and other financial markets media

10

computer workstations with dual monitors

MESSIAH COLLEGE ANNOUNCES RALPH S. LARSEN FINANCE LAB FINANCE MAJORS LEARN REAL-WORLD TRADING THROUGH BLOOMBERG TERMINALS To prepare students for exciting careers in finance, the new Ralph S. Larsen Finance Lab will equip future financiers with state-ofthe-art technology and market data in a Wall Street trading floor atmosphere. Students will become proficient with how to use a Bloomberg terminal to research historical and real-time data on stocks, bonds, economic indicators, foreign currencies, commodities and options.

The 1,065-square-foot learning space will contain 26 computer

workstations with dual monitors and instructor podium; 10 Bloomberg Professional terminals; three large-screen televisions showing CNBC, Bloomberg and other financial markets media; and a stock ticker continuously displaying market information.

For real-world experience, finance majors will participate in the annual Bloomberg Trading Challenge, a nationwide stock-trading simulation in which teams invest $10 million for two

months based on a defined trading strategy they develop on the Bloomberg terminals.

The Student Investment Club— another hands-on learning opportunity for finance majors—also will use this state-of-the-art lab to manage a $275,000 portfolio of stocks.

The lab is funded by generous trustees, alumni and business leaders along with a matching gift from Dorothy Larsen, former trustee and wife of the late Ralph Larsen, former CEO of Johnson & Johnson, for whom the lab is named. The Larsens are Messiah parents and longtime generous supporters of the College.

Dwayne Safer, professor of finance and business at Messiah College, said, “I’ve talked to

Bloomberg Professional terminals

a number of professors from colleges and universities all over the country that aren’t willing to take the effort to teach students finance using Excel spreadsheets, primarily because their classes are too large and they don’t have the time.”

Classes at Messiah, however, will focus on solving financial problems using spreadsheets; building complex forecast and transaction models; and the practical application of how current events drive the financial markets.

—Danielle Ran ’06, director of communications TO LEARN MORE ABOUT MESSIAH’S NEW FINANCE MAJOR AND THE RALPH S. LARSEN FINANCE LAB, VISIT MESSIAH.EDU/FINANCE.

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 9

RENDERINGS COURTESY OF GREENFIELD ARCHITECTS LTD.

1

OUR

CAMPUS NEWS

IVC 2017 At Impact Venture Challenge (IVC) April 28, fathering.me won, receiving $5,000 in seed money to help equip young fathers of unplanned pregnancies to become better dads. IVC is a live business plan competition that helps student entrepreneurs explore innovative solutions to critical problems facing society.

FaithWorks

@Messiah College High schoolers deepen faith WEEKLONG INSTITUTE SLATED FOR SUMMER Launched by faculty from the Department of Biblical and Religious Studies, Faithworks—a summer institute for high school students who want to get serious about their faith—will be held on campus July 16-22.

Assisted by Messiah faculty with expertise in ministry and theology, attendees will explore

July 16–22 theology through reflection, practical ministry and service.

Current junior and senior Messiah students also will serve as mentors to help attendees find a richer life of faith as they work alongside others and invest in their communities.

This program extends the College’s ability to offer educational experiences to high school youth in ways that reflect its educational mission to prepare students for lives of service, leadership and reconciliation in church and society.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT MESSIAH.EDU/FAITHWORKS

10 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

CALEB BORNMAN ’18

NICK GOULD

FATHERING.ME WINS

Service Day 2017

MADISON DINGER ’19

1,752 total volunteers

ALUM AWARDS PRESENTED Several returned to campus for the 2017 Alumni Awards dinner April 1. From left: The recipients include John Arthur Brubaker, Alumni Christian Service Award; Kimathi ’97 and Tosha Sampson Choma ’97, Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award; and Aaron Faro ’03, Young Alumnus Achievement. Dorothy Larsen, winner of the Alumni Appreciation Award, will receive her award at a later date during the dedication of the Ralph S. Larsen Finance Lab. FULL AWARD CITATIONS CAN BE FOUND ON THE BRIDGE WEBSITE AT MESSIAH.EDU/THE_BRIDGE.

JORDAN LEIGH PHOTOGRAPHY

MADISON DINGER ’19

on- and off-campus projects

alumni

in on- and off-campus projects

SARAH HENRY ’19

+32 Special Olympics

7

SARAH HENRY ’19

463 SARAH HENRY ’19

MADISON DINGER ’19

1,289

employees and students at other projects

employees and students volunteering in Special Olympics

CEO of Rider Musser Development Corporation D. Kelly Phipps welcomes Pennsylvania State Sen. Mike Regan to Orchard Hill March 23. State and local officials gathered to learn more about the Oakwood Hills development project.

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 11

OUR

AT H L E T I C S

“I KNEW I WAS REPRESENTING MORE THAN JUST MYSELF. ABOVE ALL, I KNEW I WAS COMPETING TO GLORIFY GOD, WHO IS FAITHFUL AND LOVING, AND WITHOUT WHOM I CAN DO NOTHING.” — Katie Wingert ’18

Swimmer Katie Wingert ’18 dominated sports and academics this season. The English major holds a 4.00 GPA, receiving the Elite 90 Academic Award.

Lucas Malmberg ’16 wins national title, Falcons place 5th GRADUATE STUDENT WRAPS UP WRESTLING CAREER WITH SECOND-STRAIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP Messiah wrestler Lucas Malmberg ’16 reached his fourth NCAA Division III final in four years and earned his secondstraight championship at 125 lbs. The title capped off the most decorated career of any wrestler in Falcons history, including a program-record 174 wins and 638 takedowns.

“Lucas is easily the most accomplished wrestler in the history of our program,” said Messiah Head Coach Bryan Brunk. “To be four times in the national finals is incredible, and he’s our first-ever two-time champion.”

Malmberg’s second-straight National Championship was the highlight of four individuals who earned All-American honors, including Ben Swarr ’18 who finished as the national runner-up.

“It was a little overwhelming,” Malmberg said of his title win.

“It was a great, great blessing, but being a part of the program at Messiah has meant more to me than the accolades [on the mat].

Growing in my faith, growing as an adult in Christ and competing alongside my brothers and coaches in the wrestling program has been the greatest blessing.”

In Malmberg’s four years with the Falcons, the team finished

third, sixth, second and fifth in the nation, respectively. Messiah also won 77 dual matches, the most of any four-year stretch in program history.

“Every individual impacts culture in their own way, so I don’t want to overplay the impact that Lucas has had on this program,” said Brunk. “But I also don’t want to underplay it either, because Lucas has helped us drive forward. He makes everyone around him better, and comes with the

whole package. He’s a leader, has great work ethic and character, and he’s a spiritually driven guy.”

Malmberg, who finished his undergraduate degree in Christian ministries last year, is pursuing a master’s degree in counseling from Messiah.

— Steve King ’06, senior associate director of athletics

Lucas Malmberg ’16 holds the distinction as the most-decorated wrestler in Falcons history. Read more about his training schedule on p. 14.

12 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

SWIM TEAM WINS MACS SWIMMER OF THE YEAR HOLDS 4.00 GPA Middle Atlantic Conference Swimmer of the Year. NCAA qualifier. Winner of the NCAA Division III Elite 90 Academic Award.

Katie Wingert ’18 won all of these honors during her historic season for Messiah women’s swimming.

Wingert and her teammates captured their fourth-straight MAC Championship this season,

and she won individual gold in the 100 freestyle, 200 individual medley and 200 freestyle. She also helped the Falcons win gold in three relays—the 200, 400 and 800 freestyle. Wingert’s 100 freestyle time of 51.36 qualified her for the NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships.

“To have one of our student-athletes qualify for the NCAA championships was a huge honor,” said Messiah head coach Nancy Luley, who retired this season. “To get national exposure for our program has been a goal,

and to do so less than 10 years in the program’s history was very exciting.”

Wingert was the only women’s swimmer from the conference to compete at the national championships. Because of her qualification in the 100 freestyle, she competed in three events and set personal records in two of them: the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly.

As impressive as she was in the water, Wingert was even better on land. She earned the Elite 90 Academic Award at the championships, which is awarded to the student-athlete with the

Alum to coach men’s volleyball JUSTIN BEACHY ’13, MA ’15 RETURNS TO MESSIAH TO HEAD UP FIRST SEASON

Justin Beachy ’13, MA ’15 returns to Messiah from Lipscomb University to coach men’s volleyball.

In March, Justin Beachy ’13, MA ’15 accepted the job as the men’s volleyball head coach to lead the NCAA Division III sport’s inaugural 2017-18 season.

“Our search committee overwhelmingly believed Justin was the best person to lead our first intercollegiate men’s volleyball team,” said Executive Director of Athletics and Fundraising Jack Cole. “Justin is personable, exhibits a solid knowledge of the game, understands the values of Messiah, and is both organized and possesses a great work ethic.”

Beachy completed two degrees from Messiah: an undergraduate degree in mathematics and an M.A. in higher education, with a concentration in collegiate athletics management. As part of the Falcons’ club team as a

highest cumulative grade point average. She holds a 4.00 grade point average as an English major with a teaching certification.

“I was incredibly honored to represent Messiah swimming at the NCAA championships,” said Wingert. “Although I was the only member of my team to compete, I knew I was representing more than just myself. Above all, I knew I was competing to glorify God, who is faithful and loving, and without whom I can do nothing.”

— Steve King ’06, senior associate director of athletics

student, he was a three-time MidAtlantic Collegiate Volleyball Conference (MACVC) Most Valuable Player and played on two National Collegiate Volleyball Federation (NCVF) Division II Championship teams.

“It’s an incredible honor to be able to be a part of the Messiah Athletics community in this role,” said Beachy. “The excitement surrounding the program is at such a high level, and I cannot wait to get started.”

Previously, Beachy spent one season as an assistant coach for women’s volleyball at Lipscomb University, a Division I school in Nashville, Tenn., where he led the program to a 22-8 record, the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship and an appearance in the NCAA tournament.

— Steve King ’06, senior associate director of athletics

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 13

F E AT U R E S T O R Y

10,000

HOURS DOES PRACTICE REALLY MAKE PERFECT?

BY JEFF VRABEL

14 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

MATTHEW TENNISON

10,000 HOURS

E

arly in his book “Outliers,” pop psychologist Malcolm Gladwell made the case that mastering a skill — such as playing a piano, pitching a fastball or painting a portrait — required 10,000 diligent hours of practice. For example, what made the Beatles so good? Gladwell explains the band played eight-hour sets in small German clubs for years before hitting it big, a solid block of rehearsal that honed their skills well before their first appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” The book’s detractors, however, have spent years arguing the number is a little too convenient—and fails to address natural talent and passion.

No matter where you fall in the 10,000 hours debate, the figure does have two benefits: it dictates that mastery means working very hard, and it’s eminently quotable, which makes it the go-to figure for scholars to assign some sort of measure to success. As such, we tracked down a range of Messiah experts in disparate fields and asked them a Gladwell-based question: Have you practiced for 10,000 hours to get where you are? The answer is a resounding yes—and a resounding no.

JUST A SECOND

2.5

YEARS

MATTHEW TENNISON

Justus Danielsen ’20 is part of the small, select group of humans who can solve an entire Rubik’s Cube in 12 seconds. What’s funny is, in the world of “cubers,” 12 actually isn’t very impressive. With some more practice, Danielsen says he hopes to be part of a group he calls “the sub-10s.”

The engineering major has been cubing for 2.5 years, which, if you work out the math, isn’t anywhere near 10,000 hours.

“I tried calculating,” he said, apologetically, “and it’s only like 1,000.”

This begs the question: What would happen with 9,000 more hours of practice? Cubers practice in two ways. The first is simple solving, the classic sit-and-twist method popularized during the Rubik’s Cube’s debut in the ’80s. Danielsen’s good at that. But the other method—“slow-solving”—is a more precise, surgical approach that commands most of his daily practice time.

“It’s not going for speed,” said Danielsen.

“It’s learning techniques, memorizing algorithms. It’s like a chess board.”

Engineering major Justus Danielsen ’20 calculates he has spent roughly 1,000 hours practicing how to solve a Rubik’s Cube as quickly as possible. He can accomplish this feat in 12 seconds and hopes to get below 10.

16 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

ZELMA LIAS

A self-described ‘adventurer-composer,’ Stephen Lias ’88, pictured at Yosemite National Park, schedules blocks of time in which to craft his orchestral pieces.

A single pattern on the cube, for instance, can translate into a 16-move algorithm that Danielsen can burn through in seconds. Slowsolving teaches his eye to grab those patterns.

Since Danielsen is pursuing a degree in engineering, it’s unlikely a Rubik’s Cube career is in his future. But he will compete in this summer’s national championships in Fort Wayne, Ind., where he’ll fight to join the ranks of the sub-10s—at least. “I saw people online doing it in under six seconds, and I was like, ‘I gotta do that,’” he said.

COMPOSED HOURS

Music grad Stephen Lias ’88 calls himself an “adventurer-composer,” and his most recent work bears that out. In the spring, he debuted his orchestral piece “All the Songs That Nature Sings” at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Commissioned by the Boulder Philharmonic and funded by an NEA grant, the piece synchronizes Lias’ compositions with lush photographs of Rocky Mountain National Park, many of which he snapped himself.

For Lias, a professor of composition at Stephen F. Austin State University,

“IT SEEMS WEIRDLY COINCIDENTAL, BUT IT’S USEFUL IN THAT IT’S A REALLY HIGH NUMBER. I’D BE HAPPY TO THROW THAT PRINCIPLE AT MY STUDENTS, AS A KICK IN THE PANTS, A COMMITMENT TO PURSUE YOUR CRAFT TO A DEEPER AND HIGHER DEGREE THAN EVERYONE ELSE AROUND YOU. THAT’S THE KEY TO SUCCESS.” — Stephen Lias ’88

composing music began at Messiah College.

As a student, he would leap out of bed in his dorm room to capture inspiration when it struck. As he has gotten older, Lias says his work has become more of a discipline than an impulse.

“It’s a mental exercise, assembling all the moving parts of a symphonic piece in your head,” he explained.

Like others, Lias distrusts the 10,000-hour baseline.

“It seems weirdly coincidental,” he laughed, “but it’s useful in that it’s a really high number. I’d be happy to throw that principle

at my students, as a kick in the pants, a commitment to pursue your craft to a deeper and higher degree than everyone else around you. That’s the key to success.”

He says that while instrumentalists often benefit from a strict, regimented practice schedule, that’s simply not how he works. He schedules blocks of time in two- to three-hour increments and then focuses.

“The moral of the story is,” said Lias, “you’re going to have to work really hard, and really long, and maybe then you’ll come out into the sunshine.”

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 17

MESSIAH COLLEGE ATHLETIC S

AT LEAST

MINUTES

90

PER DAY

10,000 HOURS

“DANCE ISN’T A THING WHERE YOU CAN GO INTO THE CLASS, LEARN MATERIAL, STUDY AND PASS A TEST. YOU HAVE TO BE CONSTANTLY PRACTICING.” — Makayla Garrett ’19

FULL-TIME JOB

20

HOURS PER WEEK

Above: Makayla Garrett ’19 practices six days a week. Opposite page: Lucas Malmberg ’16 says since his collegiate wrestling career has ended, he still works out every week but ‘takes it easy’ on his body now.

“I WAS BORN WITH A LOT OF NATURAL ATHLETIC ABILITY, WHICH I THINK HELPED ME PICK UP MOVES FASTER THAN SOME, BUT IT TAKES TIME TO MASTER THOSE SKILLS.” — Lucas Malmberg ’16

MUSCLE MEMORY

Wrestling appealed to grad student Lucas Malmberg ’16 for two reasons: 1. He was a hyper kid whose energy barely fit inside his childhood home. 2. His older brother was a wrestler, fueling a classic case of sibling rivalry.

“I told my parents I wanted to be like my brother and wrestle in college,” Malmberg said. “They said, ‘We can help you, but you have to make a commitment.’”

He did, and it worked. In March, Malmberg

became Messiah’s all-time wrestling wins leader while also defending his national championship. He also reached the national final in his freshman and sophomore seasons, meaning that he wrestled in the championship match for four consecutive years. On the academic side, Malmberg received his B.A. in Christian ministries in three years and returned to Messiah in the fall of 2016 to pursue a master’s in counseling.

Since his graduate degree is conducted almost entirely online, Malmberg spent much of his fourth year of eligibility training. He

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 19

MATTHEW TENNISON

Dance major Makayla Garrett ’19 got a significant jump—or more like a grand jeté—on her 10,000 hours by starting her ballet career at the age of 2.

“I’d watch the Barbie ‘Nutcracker’ on my VHS tape and say, ‘Mom, that’s what I want to do!’” said Garrett.

Right on cue, Garrett’s mom enrolled her in ballet classes.

In those years, she spent 10 hours a week at the studio. By high school, she was practicing up to 40 hours a week, logging 8 hours each Saturday and Sunday.

“It really was a full-time job,” she said.

“Dance isn’t a thing where you can go into the class, learn material, study and pass a test.

You have to be constantly practicing.”

To finish high school early, Garrett combined her junior and senior years. Then it was off to college. At Messiah, she continues a less grueling practice schedule—dancing 20 hours six days a week for her major and rehearsing in the evenings for the program’s annual shows—but her focus has changed.

“Before college, dance was almost a selfabsorbed kind of thing for me,” said Garrett.

“My college experience transformed this understanding and made me realize that God is the sole reason that I can wake up each day and do what I love for His glory: dance. I will only reach my full potential as a dancer when I completely and joyfully surrender my talents to God in order to make all of my work, effort and tireless hours spent practicing worth something.”

10,000 HOURS

“NURSING IN ITSELF REQUIRES CLASSROOM AND CLINICAL TEACHING, SO I HAVE TO MAINTAIN PROFICIENCY IN THE CLASSROOM AS WELL AS THE HOSPITAL.”

24 7

spent at least 90 minutes five or six days every week in the wrestling room and three days a week weight training and conditioning.

“I was born with a lot of natural athletic ability, which I think helped me pick up moves faster than some,” said Malmberg, “but it takes time to master those skills. To work against the best opponents in the country, all those moves need to be muscle memory, second nature. That takes a lot of repetition and time on the mat.”

DOCTOR TIME

Professor. Student. Nurse. Kristen Slabaugh ’05 fills all of those roles and seems to have mastered the art of time management. She’s a full-time associate professor of nursing at Messiah who also clocks hours as a per-diem family nurse practitioner. In July, she will complete a four-year DNP/FNP (Doctorate of Nursing Practice, Family Nurse Practitioner) with a sub-specialty of nursing education degree from the University of South Alabama.

She’s also a mom of three children under the age of 6—one of whom is a newborn.

“If I think about everything that needs to be done in the next month, I panic,” she said. “So I keep my head down and keep plugging away each day.”

At any given hour, she’s shifting gears among her roles as teacher, student and nurse. A prof during the day, she studies for her doctorate at night. Her nurse practitioner hours fit where the schedule allows.

“Nursing in itself requires classroom and clinical teaching,” she said, “so I have to maintain proficiency in the classroom as well as the hospital.”

Associate Professor of Nursing Kristen Slabaugh ’05 logs endless hours as a professor, family nurse practitioner and student. She says she concentrates on completing daily tasks in small chunks to avoid burnout.

She empathizes with the nursing students she teaches and offers them time management wisdom from her own life.

Picking specific days to accomplish specific tasks—laundry always on Saturday mornings, shopping only on Wednesday evenings, etc.

“I give them some really minor but helpful strategies that I use: work in small chunks, plan ahead, know what you need to do today and get it done,” said Slabaugh. “Don’t look ahead at everything that needs accomplished in the next few months or years—it’s too scary!”

In August, she’ll wear a new hat as the coordinator of the DNP/FNP program, continuing to share her cumulative hours of experience and expertise with Messiah students. “I really don’t have any clue what life is going to be like without [doctoral] school,” she laughed. “I hope it’s a pleasant surprise.”

20 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

DECADES OF PLAY

Richard Roberson is both dean of the School of the Arts and possibly the only man on campus who doesn’t consider Richard Roberson a master at the piano.

He started playing as a child and picked it back up as a sophomore in high school, when he found himself inexplicably drawn to the symphonic score books that he and his mother—a piano player in her own right— brought into their home.

“At the time, I wasn’t thinking, ‘I must see an orchestra score,’ only that they might be interesting to look at,” he said. Yet before long, the interest blossomed into something more.

“I can’t explain it beyond realizing one day, ‘Oh, that’s right! I need to be a musician!’”

Roberson enrolled at Indiana University, where four hours of daily practice was the expected minimum.

“My body could practice more, but my brain

MELISSA HESS ’05

— Kristen Slabaugh ’05

4

HOURS PER DAY FOR

MATTHEW TENNISON

10 YEARS

Dean of the School of the Arts Richard Roberson says, after decades of practice, he’s still never satisfied with his last performance.

10,000 HOURS + A MONTH

couldn’t. If I find some pianist who says he practices more I’m always a little suspicious,” he laughed. Still, he recognized that college represented a prime opportunity to dig in.

“My teacher said to me, ‘Now is the time to do this, because after this you’ll have to earn a living.’”

Conservatively speaking, practicing at least four hours a day for a 10-year period means Roberson easily cleared the 10,000-hour bar before making that living. “When I was first a faculty member, I still came close to that four hours a day,” he said. “Once I had kids, it was more like two or three. Now, as an administrator, of course, I sometimes go weeks without touching a piano.”

The exception to that rule, of course, is when Roberson stages one of his occasional performances. “I have to spend two hours a day just to get things halfway decent,” he laughed.

Today, Roberson is recognized as a master

— when brainstorming subjects for this story, his name was the first to come up — but he politely demurs, arguing that he’s never satisfied with his last performance. Yet he agrees that the fire still burns. “I’m not sure I can explain the inner motivation, and I don’t like to use the term self-expression, but some people need to make music,” he explained. “It answers an inner need you have. But I can’t explain what it is.”

All he can do is pursue it.

Whether it’s logging clinical hours to stay abreast of the latest medical technology or composing a musical score, mastery of a skill does require practice, but passion also plays a key part—in keeping one motivated, in fueling the desire to become a little better at something today than you were yesterday.

And that’s an intangible Gladwell can’t measure. B

What does it take to succeed? Well, if you’re a hockey player, a January birthday might be key. Why? The book “Outliers” explains that January 1 is the cut-off date for junior hockey in Canada. In other words, a child born in January has an extra 11 months of growth and maturity over a December baby. Over time, coaches might see the more mature children as having more “potential.” As a result, the coaches take more time teaching those athletes valuable skills.

Wondering when National Hockey League Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzsky was born? Jan. 26.

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 21

F E AT U R E S T O R Y

JOHN SHEA / FEMA NEWS

Yap

22 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

sante

Pas obyn

By R

COURTESY OF THE GODSHALL FAMILY

a rd ge Bo e l l o b er iah C Mess tees mem his nd us of Tr odshall a g G itin Rich were vis an ly esi fami Micron 04 20 iny the t of Yap in me ca d islan typhoon . a gh when ng throu el i ba r r

D I M A

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 23

Previous page: Trustee Rich Godshall, pictured with daughters Brittany (Godshall) Prosseda ’10 and Tana, survived a typhoon on the small island of Yap. The family helped with the relief efforts after the storm.

COURTESY OF THE GODSHALL FAMILY

FA IT H A M I D C R I S I S

odshall tucked his two daughters and wife into the hotel room bathroom for hours while he held a mattress against the door.

“You weren’t sure if these were the final hours, but the wind, you could hear it shearing the roof off the hotel. You could feel the building heaving,” he said. “You heard that wind and that typhoon just ripping at that hotel—like it wanted to get in—and was just peeling the layers off. And I was thinking, ‘How many more layers are there to go before this room’s just gonna open up?’”

The Godshalls were on Yap visiting their oldest daughter, Tana, who was there with the Peace Corps. As they huddled together that night, they relied on their faith for comfort and support.

“A number of times we prayed together as a family for our safety,” Godshall said. “The Lord is with us, and he will guide us where he wants us to go.”

Understanding that God is with you is easy to do under sunny skies. But when disaster strikes or a personal crisis erupts, even the most steadfast among us can falter in our faith. At Messiah College, students, faculty, staff and trustees like Godshall are empowered by the simple call to live out the truth of the gospel. And that urge to serve and love others no matter the circumstance is what ultimately shines the light of Christ in life’s darkest moments.

Ashley Sheaffer, director of the Agapé Center for Service and Learning.

Sheaffer says an important part of Messiah’s curriculum, from its annual Service Day to its Experiential Learning Initiative graduation requirement, is aimed at instilling something within its students they might not yet know they’ll need.

“LITTLE DID WE KNOW THAT WE HAD INVITED A TERRORIST TO SIT WITH US THAT EVENING.” — Kris Sledge ’13

PRACTICING WHAT WE PREACH

“Who Jesus was and what he taught, it was always about loving marginalized groups in times of need, in times of disaster. And that requires us to be uncomfortable,” said

24 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

“I think the larger piece that we as an institution are trying to teach is the idea of resilience, that in times of disaster we want our students to be brave, courageous

AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Above and left: Kris Sledge ’13 and his friends were watching a soccer game at a crowded outdoor cafe in Uganda when a man detonated a vest bomb.

Below: Sledge suffered multiple injuries as a result of the bombing that killed 76, including three of his friends.

CHARLIE SHOEMAKER/THE NEW YORK TIMES/REDUX

AP PHOTO/MARC HOFER, FILE

and resilient, to seek the gospel in living. That’s the rootedness that we want for our students,” she said. “And if they are really rooting themselves in the gospel, we hope that will enable their spirits to be bold and brave and courageous.”

Getting students out of their comfort zones in the name of service is a large piece of that faith building block. Christian ministries major Kris Sledge ’13 stepped out of his comfort zone while on a mission trip to Uganda after his freshman year. It nearly cost him his life, yet deepened his faith.

In 2010, Sledge convinced a few of his friends to stay an extra week abroad to immerse themselves in the culture of the East African country they’d been serving. On the evening of July 11, 2010, he and his friends went to a crowded outdoor café to watch a World Cup soccer game. Toward the end of the game’s first half, they noticed a man walking back and forth in front of the screen. He seemed agitated. Sledge’s friend invited the man to take an empty seat at their table.

“Little did we know that we had invited a terrorist to sit with us that evening,” he said.

The man was wearing a suicide vest of explosives. Minutes later, the vest detonated, killing the bomber and 75 others, including three of Sledge’s Ugandan friends. Sledge suffered a severely broken leg, an orbital fracture and a temporary loss of hearing.

It took 10 surgeries, six months of rehab and extensive therapy for the young pastor to recover physically, mentally and emotionally.

But Sledge says in the chaos of that horrific

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 25

Uganda FA IT H A M I D C R I S I S

CRISIS TEAM STAYS POISED FOR OBSTACLES From a kitchen fire in a residence hall to an active shooter on campus, many scenarios could pose a danger to Messiah’s students and staff. And Vice President of Operations Kathie Shafer has imagined them all.

“I could lose sleep if I thought about all the things you could catastrophize about,” said Shafer, who heads up Messiah’s crisis management committee. “So I have to figure out what’s most likely.”

The committee, comprised of staff from several departments, makes sure students are cared for, communication is clear and safety protocols are followed when disaster strikes.

The team holds mock drills and practice sessions through the year.

They mobilize for a weather-related incident, a student injury or anything that takes the College out of its normal business flow.

“We work together to give the immediate response to minimize danger to students and damage to our properties,” said Shafer. “And then the team looks at what we have to do to get our campus back to normal.”

Shafer is the first one called when something happens that warrants the crisis team’s involvement.

“I feel the weight of caring for the campus,” she said, “but, on the other hand, I’m blessed with a response team that equally feels that way and people who work really well together. If it weren’t for the faith that all of us have, it would be a lot harder.

Inherently, at some point, someone at the table will say, ‘Can we just take a minute and pray?’ And that’s a different person every time. Without our faith, we’re not going to be able to do this.”

crime, one simple expression of faith at the bombing site rose above the din and rooted him to the truth he still believed to be true.

“Two of my team members were there, and I remember one of them looked at me and said ‘Kris, sing us a song.’ I remember telling her, ‘Pam, I can’t.’ And then her 14-yearold son began to sing ‘Jesus Loves Me This I Know.’ So we were sitting there singing ‘Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so,’” he recalls. “In that moment, it gave us peace, because we didn’t know what was going on. It took 12 hours before I really knew what had happened.”

WHERE IS GOD?

In the months afterward, as Sledge grappled with survivor guilt and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, he was led to a Bible verse that helped him make sense of where God is in such times of inexplicable suffering.

“Romans 8:31: ‘What, then, shall we say in response to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?’ It gave me hope, but also a lens to look at other incidents that happen in the world today,” said Sledge, who credits the support of his peers and professors at Messiah for his ability to recover as quickly as he did. “There is evil in this world; from the beauty of free will, there’s pain and difficulty. And I was a part of that that night.”

Accepting that God can be with those suffering yet not prevent the circumstances of suffering might seem like a difficult leap of faith to make, yet those who’ve experienced such moments of fear and

26 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

stress see it clearly in the way humanity immediately comes together. It’s what called Godshall, who is semi-retired, to stay on the island for two weeks after the storm, helping FEMA volunteers, Yap villagers and his daughter clean up from the devastation.

“During that time you saw people of all types come together and work in unity and peace and calm,” he said. “You’re able to glean out of (a disaster) the positives of what life really means.”

Sledge, now a pastor at State Line Methodist Church in State Line, Pennsylvania, says he now understands, perhaps better than most, that safety in this life is not guaranteed. Yet his Messiah experience left him convicted that Christ is with us and acts through us for the good of people everywhere.

“I am convinced that God is active in all places, including the worst moments,” Sledge said. “I saw God so much clearer in the worst moment of my life.” B

Recovered from his injuries, Kris Sledge ’13 now works as a pastor.

Ulysse Toussaint ’08 returned to his home country of Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, which sparked the idea for a children’s book about service learning.

“.... in times of disaster, we want our students to be brave, courageous and resilient, to seek the gospel in living.”

— Ashley Sheaffer, director of the Agapé Center for Service and Learning

Photographer and French grad Ulysse Toussaint ’08 has parlayed his passion for service learning—a fundamental pillar of Messiah College— into a children’s book, “Superheroes of Service an Immigrant Story.”

“The book encourages children, parents, friends and colleagues to engage in more acts of civil-mindedness,” he explained.

As a child in Haiti, Toussaint grew up immersed in service to others. Then as a Messiah student working at the Agapé Center, he deepened that commitment.

In Grantham, he met two influential people: Community Engagement Liaison Chad Frey (then-director of the Agapé Center) and Kirstin Snow, an adjunct professor at the time, both featured on the book’s cover.

“They opened doors for me,” said Toussaint. “This book is the product of [Messiah’s] community.”

When an earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, Toussaint tried to go home, but flights were limited to medical staff and media. So, Snow, a former

AP PHOTO/GERALD HERBERT

ALUM WRITES SERVICE BOOK FOR CHILDREN

chief of staff for then-Governor of Pennsylvania Ed Rendell, called her former boss on behalf of her former student. Rendell expedited a press pass for Toussaint, who then flew home to take photos in a professional capacity. The trip sparked the idea for the book—and Rendell wrote the foreword.

“During my time at Messiah College, I learned that being a Christian is not about what one says, but about what one does,” said Toussaint, who operates a photography business in Norristown, Pa. “Messiah and the United States, showed me that if one lacks love and service, they are breakable. With love and service, one is unbreakable.”

–Jake Miaczynski ’20

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 27

OUR

ALUMNI NEWS

Critics love alums’ film MESSIAH SERVES AS SITE OF ‘THORNBIRD’ MOVIE Did you know two alums filmed an award-winning movie on campus? That’s right.

Communication majors Jonathan Stutzman ’09 and Krista Imbesi ’09 conceptualized, filmed and produced “Thornbird,” a short film in 2015, and the accolades have been pouring in ever since.

Actress Hannah Riordan (above and below, left) starred in a film at Messiah by alums Jonathan Stutzman ’09 and Krista Imbesi ’09.

and tragic image that embodied the story of so many young people today: unable to comprehend how much they are worth until it is too late.”

GABRIELLE SNYDER ’16

After graduating from Messiah, the two friends stayed in touch while pursuing their Master of Fine Arts degrees—Stutzman at Temple University and Imbesi at SUNY Buffalo.

In 2012, Imbesi returned to Messiah to teach. Now an assistant professor, she asked Stutzman to visit her film and production techniques class, where he would serve as guest director to create a short film—“Thornbird”—with her students acting as the crew.

“He was able to integrate themes about self-doubt, female coming-of-age experience and the process of gaining confidence and self-worth, all set in a surreal and abstract context within the film,” said Imbesi.

Stutzman, the film’s writer and co-editor, said, “I had been itching to film something and had a story I needed to tell.”

Based on a Celtic myth, the film tells the story of a young girl named Elle, who finds a magic mask that transports her to a dark dream world. Stutzman says he wanted to tell Elle’s story as a fairy tale.

“Fairy tales have a profound ability to speak to human fears, dreams and life transitions with simplicity and sincerity,” he said. “‘Thornbird’ represents a lovely

ANTHONY WATKINS ’16

FROM MESSIAH AND BACK

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION

For both alumni, filming at Messiah meant working with familiar faces and spaces. “One of the best parts about attending Messiah College was the community of film students,” said Stutzman. “We worked together, learned from each other and grew together, in school and post-graduation.”

Filming took only two days, with part of it shot in the College’s Poorman Black Box Theatre. Along with the videography, the film uses audio effects produced in the College’s Foley Studio. Once the filming was complete, Imbesi and Stutzman spent countless hours in Messiah’s editing studios.

Since its release, the film has

28 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

been screened at more than 60 film festivals in eight different countries, while winning awards in categories such lighting, acting and cinematography.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Stutzman is busy with new scripts, a children’s picture book and his first novel.

Imbesi has her hands full with projects through CAP Collective, the video production company she manages with husband Christian Imbesi ’09 and fellow alum Cody Wanner ’09. They are working on a feature-length

documentary on sex trafficking in Pennsylvania titled “From Liberty to Captivity” and a short documentary about land grabbing filmed in Uganda titled “Our Feet Are Rooted.”

Meanwhile, “Thornbird” continues to screen across the country, its timeless message resonating with audiences. “For anyone who sees the film, remember to be brave and sing your song,” said Stutzman. “No matter what the world tells you, you are beautifully and wonderfully made.”

— Jake Miaczynski ’20

COURTESY OF CANDY ROSENBERRY ’8 8

From left: The Rosenberry family includes Eric and Kilee Rowits ’12 (holding their daughter Ivy), Keegan, Kaylor ’18, Candy ’88 and Rob ’86.

THE ROSENB ERRYS

FAMILY COMPETES IN FINAL FOUR ROSENBERRY ALUMS BUILD ATHLETIC LEGACY First steps, first pair of cleats, first game. Often, the youngest child reaches life’s milestones years after her older siblings.

When field hockey player Kaylor Rosenberry ’18 made it to the NCAA Final Four, her family knew the feeling. All five members of the Rosenberry family—Kaylor, her parents and her two siblings—have played in Final Four tournaments, the men in soccer and the women in field hockey.

The difference, however, is that Kaylor and her team won the championship—Messiah’s first in field hockey.

“I was honored to be a part of the team that could accomplish what so many people before us worked for,” said Kaylor.

This Final Four legacy began with Kaylor’s parents: Rob ’86 and Candy (Hershey) Rosenberry ’88.

While Rob competed in the men’s soccer Final Four in 1986, Candy played as part of Messiah’s first field hockey team to make a championship run in 1984. The team lost in the final game, becoming national runners-up.

“It was exciting to be a part of that team,” said Candy. “However, it took on new meaning when I realized that I was a part of the

first team to get to the final and Kaylor was a part of the first team to win the championship.”

Kaylor and her siblings followed in their parents’ footsteps.

Eldest child Kilee (Rosenberry) Rowits ’12 played field hockey for Messiah as part of the 2008-semifinalist team and the 2009 and 2010 runners-up.

Six years after Kilee’s run, Kaylor took a turn.

“I was so proud and happy for Kaylor as well as the team,” said Kilee. “It takes a lot of hard work and dedication, and it was very exciting to see it finally pay off.”

WHERE IT BEGAN While raising—and coaching— their three children, Rob and Candy worked to establish a mindset of effort over outcome.

“We constantly told our children that in any team sport, they may not control who ultimately wins or loses the game,” said Rob, “but they can control the effort they give on the field.”

Rob, a marketing grad and human resources director at Berks County Intermediate Unit coached son Keegan in soccer for years. Candy, a physical education teacher at Locust

“WE CONSTANTLY TOLD OUR CHILDREN THAT IN ANY TEAM SPORT, THEY MAY NOT CONTROL WHO ULTIMATELY WINS OR LOSES THE GAME, BUT THEY CAN CONTROL THE EFFORT THEY GIVE ON THE FIELD.” — Rob Rosenberry ’86

Grove Campus of the Lancaster Mennonite School System in Lancaster, Pa., coached both daughters in field hockey.

ONE AT GEORGETOWN Keegan graduated from Georgetown University with a business management degree in 2015. What was it like to attend a D.C. school in a family of Falcons? He says he received full support from his parents.

“Messiah has one of the top college soccer programs in the country at any level,” said Rob, “but a high school player should reflect on his personal goals and aspirations for his college education and playing career.”

In his freshman year, Keegan started every game, went to the Final Four and then advanced to the championship game in 2012.

Ultimately, Georgetown lost.

“My next three years at school I realized how lucky I was,” he said, “as we never made it to a

national championship again.”

He is, however, still playing soccer, starting his second year with Major League Soccer team the Philadelphia Union.

LOOKING AHEAD What’s next for Kaylor?

“As a team, we can only hope to set the stage for the future Messiah field hockey teams the way my mom, sister and all of the women did when they paved the way for us,” said Kaylor. “But last year’s success will not matter once preseason arrives.”

As the second generation continues athletic excellence, a third might be waiting on the sidelines.

In 2016, Kilee gave birth to a daughter, Ivy, who already has her own hockey stick and soccer ball.

“We, of course, would love her to follow in our footsteps and love athletics as much as we all do,” said Kilee, “but she can of course choose her own path.”

— Jake Miaczynski ’20

MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 29

OUR

CLASS NOTES

1970s

1990s

Lamar Dourte ’72 is a member of the Susquehanna Chorale.

Beth (Maurer) Dewhurst ’92 won 2017 DC Teacher of the Year.

1980s David Di Raddo ’80 is the pastor of Remnant Life Church in Mechanicsburg, Pa. He and Katharine Swope married July 11, 2009.

Rita (Kiser) Reynolds ’83 was named a 2017 Top 24 Doer, Dreamer and Driver in Government Technology Magazine. Reynolds is the CIO of the County Commissioners’ Association of Pennsylvania.

David Biser ’93 published a book, “Navigating Waves of Change: Change is Constant in a Dynamic Church.”

Biser is the senior pastor at CrossPoint Church in Harrisburg, Pa. Donna Rae Ester ’93 is a fourth-grade teacher at Duval Public Schools in Jacksonville, Fla. She earned a master’s degree from Concordia University in 2015.

Sunday school project 5 years old

DAN REISTE ’18

Family and Consumer Science Education

Allegra (Smith) Vosseler ’93 and her husband David adopted Matthew Jin from China, Dec. 7, 2015.

2000s Christina (Anastasi) Fleisher ’02 and her husband announce the birth of twins, Isaac and Isabella, Nov. 18, 2016.

Tracey (Newell) McGarry ’02 completed a post-master’s degree in special education administration from Bridgewater University.

She is a learning specialist at Norton Middle School in Norton, Mass.

Deanna (Ng) Robinson ’04 and her husband Daniel announce the birth of Paul Richard, Aug. 13, 2016.

of Albemarle in Charlottesville, Va.

Katie Chapman ’06 and Joshua Carpenter married Aug. 13, 2016.

Allie Lehman ’10 and Aaron Rehm ’10 married May 11, 2014. She is a certified athletic trainer at CPPR Physical Therapy in Mountville, Pa.

Erin Conklin ’06 and Scott Benedict ’02 married Nov. 11, 2016.

Bethany Kent ’06 is the operations coordinator at Vermont Law School and lives in West Lebanon, N.H. Lindsay DeVries ’07 and Ivan Herndon married April 22, 2017. She works as a nurse at Family Medicine

2010s

Alicia Jean Brown ’11 and Tim Harbison married April 25, 2015. After earning a medical degree, she began working in a family medical residency at Guthrie/Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, Pa. She and her husband announce the birth of Preston Reed, April 20, 2016.

YOUR LEGACY... THEIR FUTURE Creating a legacy at Messiah College – Planning a gift through your will or trust is a simple way to make a difference for a lifetime. A gift in your will does not affect your current cash flow or assets, but you will have the benefit of knowing your legacy gift will provide a lasting impact to future students.

How can I make a legacy gift to Messiah College?

• Make a provision through your will or trust • Add a codicil to an existing will • Name Messiah as beneficiary in a qualified retirement plan • Designate Messiah College as beneficiary of a life insurance policy • Sample language to add Messiah to your will: I, [name], of [city, state, zip] give, devise and bequeath to Messiah College, situated in Grantham, Pennsylvania [written amount, description of property or percentage of the estate] for its unrestricted use and purposes.

Visit messiah.edu/createalegacy for more information or email heritagesociety@messiah.edu.

30 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

Nathaniel Jenkins ’11 and Anna Stoner married May 13, 2016. The couple moved to Stillwater, Okla., and he works as an assistant professor and co-director of the applied neuromuscular physiology lab at Oklahoma State University.

Morgan (Liser) Powis ’12 works as a physical therapist at NovaCare Rehabilitation in Souderton, Pa. Sarah Wagoner ’12 and Derek Mauldin married Oct. 14, 2016.

Kathy (Messner) Stockner ’15 recently moved to Athens, Tenn.

Jessica Sponsler ’16 and Brandon Klinger married Aug. 12, 2016. She works as a procurement associate at SAP in West Chester, Pa.

IN MEMORIAM

William S. Woods, Jr. 1920–2017 William “Bill” Woods, who served on the Messiah College Board of Trustees from 1981 to 1991, passed away in January 2017. He was a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. He served his country in World War II and then went on to a lifelong career at Sun Oil Company.

His life was one of service to others. His generous spirit was recognized publicly when he received an award as one of the top philanthropists of Philadelphia.

He contributed greatly to Messiah College and, in particular, to the disciplined management of our endowment. He was insistent that Messiah establish articulate and well-reasoned endowment management policies. This careful and insightful discipline was brought to the forefront with the transformational Leonard Fry estate gift, which now makes up a significant portion of Messiah’s endowment. His advice and counsel helped establish a stable financial foundation that continues today.

Throughout his life, Woods was

a wonderful encourager and advisor. His greatest passions were his love for God, for his family and for his country. His beloved wife Dolly passed away one month to the day after he died.

In addition to serving on the Board of Trustees, Woods had several Messiah connections, including several alumni such as his daughter and son-in-law, Barbara ’77 and Gary Gonsar ’74 Gonsar along with granddaughter Kristin Gonsar ’05.

Granddaughter Lindsey Barnett also attended Messiah.

We are grateful that Woods’ commitment to service to others included meritorious service to Messiah College.

See

differently.

Our MBA, M.A. in strategic leadership and graduate certificates equip you to make an immediate impact on your career, the teams you lead and the organizations you serve.

Experience the academic distinction of a nationally ranked Christian college.

your career

Discover if you qualify for a tuition discount at messiah.edu/graddiscounts

NOW ENROLLING 717.796.5061 messiah.edu/leadership MESSIAH COLLEGE • THE BRIDGE • SPRING 2017 | 31

OUR

FROM THE ARCHIVES

Campus fun, Messiah style

JOANNA BENNER ’17

MESSIAH COLLEGE ARCHIVES

CALEB BORNMAN ’18

MESSIAH COLLEGE ARCHIVES

When they’re not studying, our students love to have fun—whether that’s hanging out with friends, unwinding at the Yellow Breeches or participating in campus events such as Coffeehouse. Here’s a look—past and present—of our students enjoying the many different opportunities and events the College has to offer.

MESSIAH COLLEGE ARCHIVES

HOW DO STUDENTS UNWIND AFTER CLASS?

32 | SPRING 2017 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

CALENDAR OF EVENTS JUNE–AUGUST 2017

JUNE 24 Wrestling Summer Duals High school and junior high teams can compete in dual tournament play for this one-day session.

Registration deadline: June 24.

JUNE 26-29 Boys’ Basketball Individual Skills Camp This camp, for boys ages 10–18, is designed to meet each athlete at his current level of experience to improve in skill and understanding of basketball. Registrations accepted until camp is full.

JUNE 26-29 Girls’ Lacrosse Summer Camp Designed to teach and develop lacrosse players at any level, the camp provides a positive learning atmosphere. Registration deadline: June 25.

JULY 10-14 Boys’ Soccer Day Camp Day camp is for soccer players of all levels interested in competition, development and fun. The individual skills-based program incorporates basic techniques into a team/game setting. Registration deadline: July 10.

JULY 11-12 2017 Softball July Elite ID Camp l Advanced elite athletes entering grades 10-12 by fall will be challenged by college-level training. Registration deadline: July 11.

JULY 14-16 Boys’ Soccer Team Camp

7

2 01

This camp is for high school teams interested in receiving highlevel coaching and intentional team development. Registration deadline: July 14.

Save the date

OCT. 20-21

JULY 16-19 Girls’ Field Hockey Resident Camp Resident camp is geared toward athletes heading into grades 6 through 12 with an interest in improving individual skills and field hockey knowledge in a fun and competitive environment.

Registration deadline: July 14.

JULY 17-21 Little Falcons Soccer Camp This camp is for young boys and girls wanting to learn the game of soccer in a positive high-energy environment, with most current players in Messiah’s men’s and women’s soccer programs serving as camp staff. Registration deadline: July 17.

JULY 23-26 Boys’ Soccer Resident Camp Resident camp is for athletes heading into grades 7-12 with an interest in quality training and competition. Sessions focus on technical and tactical skill training.

Registration deadline: July 23.

JULY 24-27 Boys’ Basketball Individual Skills Camp This camp, for boys ages 10–18, is designed to meet each athlete at his current level of experience to improve in skill and understanding of basketball. Registrations accepted until camp is full.

JULY 27-29 Boys’ Lacrosse Summer Preparatory Camp This camp is geared toward the advanced high school player, focusing on the development of lacrosse knowledge and advanced skill techniques. Registration deadline: July 29.

JULY 30-AUGUST 2 Girls’ Soccer Resident Camp This camp is for field players and goalkeepers in grades 7-12 interested in and committed to improving their technical and tactical skills in soccer.

Registrations accepted until camp is full.

JULY 30-AUGUST 2 Girls’ Volleyball Camp (Grades 6-8) Designed for girls who want to improve their volleyball skills, this camp focuses on improving fundamentals such as setting, passing, hitting, blocking, defense and serving. Registration deadline: July 17.

AUGUST 2-5 Girls’ Volleyball Camp (Grades 9-12) Designed for girls who want to improve their volleyball skills, this camp focuses on improving

fundamentals such as setting, passing, hitting, blocking, defense and serving. Registration deadline: July 17.

AUGUST 4-6 Girls’ Soccer Team Camp Team camp is geared toward high school teams preparing for the upcoming 2017 season.

Registrations accepted until camp is full.

AUGUST 5-6 Boys’ Basketball Elite Prospect Camp Messiah College’s prospect camp is open to boys’ basketball players entering grades 10-12 who aspire to play in college. The camp features a combination of collegelevel competition and skills work.

Registrations accepted until camp is full.

AUGUST 10-11 2017 Softball Elite ID Camp This camp, for advanced elite athletes entering grades 10-12 by fall of 2017, will challenge and introduce athletes to college-level training. Registration deadline: August 10.

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER FOR SPORTS CAMPS, VISIT GOMESSIAH.COM/CAMPS.

office of Marketing and communications

One College Avenue Suite 3020 Mechanicsburg PA 17055 Address Service Requested

yellow breeches

college

memories

academics reconciliation

alma mater bridge action mentors dream friendship

#welovemessiah homecoming sports

students leaders

community swinging bridge learn travel intellect blue lottie

roommate

faith white

d o r m service eyas chapel

graduate arts networking growth commencement

WHEN YOU GIVE, OTHERS GIVE. That means your participation matters!

A generous group of donors have challenged YOU to be one of 500 new* alumni donors to show your LOVE for MESSIAH. Every time a new* alum makes a gift, they’ll donate $50 to The Messiah Fund, up to $25,000! Show your love and make your tax-deductible gift before June 30 to help us achieve our goal!

BE ONE OF THE 500

Give at messiah.edu/welovemessiah or mail a check made out to Messiah College at the address below.

ALUMNI TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

Messiah College Office of Development One College Avenue Suite 3013 Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 *Refers to alumni who have not yet given this fiscal year (July 1, 2016-June 30, 2017)