
5 minute read
Chapel tune-up can re-energize spiritual, musical heart of campus
Matching its physical location at the center of campus, A. F. Siebert Chapel continues to serve as both the spiritual and musical performance heart of the College.
Nearly 50 years into the chapel’s lifespan, Carthage sees potential for it to serve in yet another capacity: as a community venue.
To ensure it can pull triple duty in the decades ahead, this impressive facility needs a significant tune-up. As part of the comprehensive fundraising campaign that’s officially launching this summer, donations toward facilities will enable the College to modernize the chapel’s acoustics, lighting, and seating.
Dedicated in 1975 with a seating capacity of 1,325, the building was always intended as a multipurpose space.
“The challenge of that building was that it was both a chapel and a convocation center,” recalls Bob Erdmann, who was a partner at Architects III when the firm designed Siebert Chapel. “The space had to accommodate different-sized groups at different times for different purposes, without it feeling empty with a small group or crowded with a big group.”
Dual purpose
The chapel is named in honor of the late Alfred F. Siebert, whose philanthropic foundation has supported Lutheran ministries for more than 70 years. Carthage alone has received more than $7 million from the Siebert Lutheran Foundation.
From the Rev. Dudley Riggle to the late Rev. Kara Baylor, the College has been blessed with caring and influential spiritual leaders who preserve its deep-seated faith roots. The Center for Faith and Spirituality still coordinates weekly worship and meditation services in the chapel during the academic year, along with special events like the well-attended Nights of Praise that bring students together with thriving local congregations.
Groups often gather in Ehrler Hospitality Center, a welcoming space in the building’s northwest corner, for meetings or interfaith events. And Luther’s Lunchbox, a self- serve station where any student can pick up supplementary food and hygiene items, demonstrates ELCA colleges’ commitment to “serve the neighbor so all may flourish.”
Far from an exclusively religious space, the chapel has a natural link to Carthage’s acclaimed Music Department. The west end of it stands directly above a section of the H. F. Johnson Center for the Fine Arts, allowing people to move between the two buildings by elevator.
More than two dozen choral and instrumental music concerts take place in Siebert Chapel each year. Besides showcasing its high-quality student ensembles, Carthage brings in rising and established musicians through its longrunning Performing Arts Series.

Attracting more than 5,000 community members each December, the Carthage Christmas Festival remains the crown jewel. Each performance concludes with the Service of Light, which fills the chapel with candlelight to spread the joy and reverence of the holiday season.
As a young girl, Melissa (Nicholson) Rojas ’05 often attended the festival with her grandmother, C. Jeanne (Empson) Nicholson ’43. Those enchanting evenings left a permanent impression.
“That was when I fell in love with Carthage. It was the only college I applied to,” says Ms. Rojas, who later stood on the same risers as a student in the Gospel Messengers choir.
In the moments between selections, when they’re not focused on the conductor or their sheet music, the performers soak in the captivating atmosphere. Looking back, many describe it as a highlight of their time at the College.
“I remember the first time I sat grasping the cool keys of my bass clarinet underneath that giant star set up for Christmas Fest … and the heart-dropping moment when the candles were fully lit across the chapel, with everyone singing ‘Silent Night,’” says Sophie Shulman ’23.
An inviting space
In architectural terms, Siebert Chapel will always have good bones.
Built with the angular features of the brutalist style, it takes the form of a fourarmed Maltese cross. If you include the spire climbing up from the center of that cross, the building reaches 120 feet high — among the tallest in Kenosha.
Inside, visitors’ eyes are immediately drawn to the massive Fritsch Memorial Organ. Designed by Casavant Frères of Quebec, it remains one of the finest trackeraction pipe organs in the Midwest.

In other aspects, the facility is showing its age. Like other performance spaces on campus — namely the Wartburg Theatre, Studio Theatre, H. F. Johnson Recital Hall, and Visual Arts Performing Laboratory — the chapel needs improvements.
Upgrades to the sound system, lighting, flooring, and seating area would greatly enhance the attendee experience at all chapel events. And, by installing a mobile stage and adjustable acoustic panels, Carthage could quickly transform the space from worship space to concert venue (and vice versa) without making any permanent structural changes.
“This project embodies Carthage’s commitment to fostering artistic excellence and creating lasting memories for performers and audiences alike, while maximizing the revenue generation potential of all campus facilities,” says Adam Koenig, executive director of the student experience and strategic campus initiatives.
Countless alumni couples have been married in Siebert Chapel, and administrators see potential for the facility to open its doors even wider to the surrounding community.
Mr. Koenig says the building’s large seating capacity, distinctive architecture, and lakefront location make it an attractive venue. The proposed renovations would make the facility even more conducive to rent for conferences and other public events. The income, in turn, will support the ongoing maintenance of the historic building, as well as the Music Department and the Center for Faith and Spirituality. And the heart of the campus will beat stronger than ever.

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