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Dear Alumni and Friends, As I walk to work these fall days, or head home through that grand colonnade of elms that frames the way north, I often see Chemistry professor Graeme Wyllie stepping out from the Aasgaard House, his arms around a box of equipment on its way to Fjelstad. Science is on the move at Concordia College! Our science and math faculty have fanned out all over campus to do their work of discovery with students: psychologists in Old Main; biologists, chemists, mathematicians, nursing faculty, and physicists in Fjelstad; nursing classes in the King Intercultural Center; physics courses in the Grant Center on east campus; wet labs, still in Ivers and Jones this term, soon to move west to Normandy this spring. All this motion arises from the largest capital project in college history: the $45 million renovation of Ivers and Jones. That project, due to be completed by Fall 2017, is driven by our commitment to create science learning spaces that match the creative promise of our students and of the devoted faculty who guide them. Science study has changed so much since my own college days, when we shifted between large lectures and general labs: At Concordia College, science is discovery. Students strive with their faculty mentors to seek answers to big questions about the minerals of Mars, the genetic triggers of lupus, invasive species in Minnesota lakes. Ivers and Jones have served us well, but now they will be transformed, from the inside out. Among the changes we’re excited about: • “T-Search” spaces uniting teaching with research • Glass walls in labs for natural light and for revealing what's happening each day • Informal learning spaces that invite the sharing of ideas among peers and mentors • Faculty offices more conducive to student recruitment and mentoring • State-of-the-art mechanical systems to improve efficiency and sustainable environmental practices. This commitment to take a long-standing strength and make it new goes beyond our science facilities. Right now, through the imagination of our faculty and staff, the following initiatives illustrate that commitment well: • The Concordia Career Initiative has launched a four-year plan of self-discovery and applied learning that aims to make all Concordia students ready for their first job or graduate school. We have long had a Career Center, but this extends its scale to the entire student body: In just six weeks, the Career Initiative has already connected with more than 400 students. • The New Ventures Task Group, jointly appointed by Board Chair John Tunheim and me, is exploring the best ways to bring the virtue and value of Concordia learning to pre- and post-baccalaureate learners, both to serve our communities and to generate new revenue to underwrite the core enterprise of undergraduate learning. • The Worship, Faith, and Spiritual Practices project has set out to map the lived spiritual experience of our students. This singular study has already born fruit in revealing the remarkably wide range of experiences that shape the faith lives of Concordia students. Always reforming: The motto of the Reformation inspires us still in faith and learning at Concordia College. Soli Deo Gloria.
Dr. William J. Craft
ConcordiaCollege.edu/magazine
On the Cover Love of the land created new meaning when Bryan Boll ’96 took over the family farm and grew it into a successful agribusiness. Photo: Evan Balko
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Cobbers After Class Students pulled out their cameras and documented campus life in the evening. features
7 ew Formulas N for Success Three alumni bring new views and improvements to their fields.
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14 Crowdfunding Comes to Concordia A strategy used by entrepreneurs to raise funds is making a difference for students at Concordia.
VP for Enrollment and Marketing: Karl A. Stumo ’92 // Editor: Amy J. Aasen ’95 // Managing Editor: Erin Hemme Froslie ’96 // Art Direction: Andrea K. White ’12 // Editorial and Design Team: Evan Balko ‘12, Tracey J. Bostick, Laura Caroon ’06, James M. Cella, Kim Kappes, Amy E. Kelly ’95, Morgan Lewis, Eric Lillehaugen ’11, John Phelps, Lori J. Steedsman, Kaylin Walker // Student Assistants: Ali Froslie ‘18, Brianne Lee ’16, Sage Larson ‘17 // Contributors: Martin Fredericks, Danielle M. Hance ’07, Morgan Schleif ‘16
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Humanities Go Digital Today’s college students have never lived without Google. The humanities are now catching up.
eformation R Renovation A visitor to Germany finds Wittenberg preparing for the 500th Reformation anniversary.
Concordia Magazine Fall 2015 Volume 54, Number 1 Concordia
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“ I hope that I will be able to use what I learned this summer (as a Peace Scholar) to help make the world a better, more peaceful place.” – Matthew Lillehaugen ’17
FINDING PEACE IN NORWAY
In a world so often in conflict, a program devoted to the development of peace is a breath of fresh air. Matthew Lillehaugen ’17 and Alexander Gray ’16 represented Concordia in Norway as participants of the Peace Scholars program, which was founded by six Norwegian-American colleges. They spent six weeks studying conflict, war and peace. Lillehaugen is majoring in political science and global studies. Gray is majoring in social studies education and political science. Both Gray and Lillehaugen hope to use the experiences they had this summer to impact their future careers – Gray as a teacher and Lillehaugen in international relations and diplomacy. “The Peace Scholars program exposed me to a wealth of information that I fully intend to relay to my future students so they may be advocates for peace and understanding,” says Gray. ◊
EXPLORING CHINA’S GLOBAL ROLE
Concordia’s annual Faith, Reason and World Affairs Symposium posed to the Concordia community the question: “China Rising: A New Global Order?” Attendees listened to views on whether an increasingly powerful and resource-hungry China seeks to integrate itself into the existing global order or transform it. The symposium explored the political, economic, environmental, cultural and security implications of China’s rise. Contributing to the discussion were speakers: Dr. Martin Jacques, author of the global bestseller “When China Rules the World: the End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order”; Dr. Minxin Pei, professor of
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government at Claremont McKenna College; and Dr. Elizabeth Economy, C.V. Starr senior fellow and director for Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. “Having a better understanding of China and Asia and the politics, economy, and culture of that side of the world is just becoming a lot more important and relevant in our lives,” says Alisa Batchelor ’16, a student on the symposium planning committee. ◊
INTERFAITH LEADERSHIP
Concordia continues to be honored for its leadership in interfaith discussion and research. The college’s student group, Better Together, received the Best Overall Campaign award from the Interfaith Youth Core in June. Interfaith scholars Rachel Crippen ’17 and Robyn Adams ’16, and director of the Forum on Faith and Life, Dr. Jacqueline Bussie, presented at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in October. They presented on the importance of interfaith studies for higher education. The Forum on Faith and Life also received a grant from The James S. Kemper Foundation to support student-faculty research that explores religious diversity dynamics in local professional environments. The research team includes Bussie, Adams, Crippen and Medora Frei ’17. “It is such an honor to be a part of the team that has this unique opportunity to share the work in the field of interfaith studies that so many at Concordia have contributed to,” Crippen says. ◊
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NGUNJIRI CO-EDITS BOOK
Dr. Faith W. Ngunjiri, director of the Lorentzsen Center for Faith and Work and associate professor of ethics, co-edited “Women as Global Leaders” with Susan R. Madsen, Utah Valley University. Ngunjiri also co-authored the introduction chapter with Madsen. The book is the second volume in the new “Women and Leadership: Research, Theory, and Practice” series published for the International Leadership Association by Information Age Publishing. Global leadership is a small but growing field of research responding to our increasingly complex, globalized world. Some of the global leaders profiled include former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, and the 2014 Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai. ◊
JENSEN HONORED IN CHEMISTRY
Chemistry professor Dr. Mark Jensen received the Department of Chemistry Alumni Award from Iowa State University. Jensen earned a doctorate in analytical chemistry from ISU in 1994 and joined the Concordia faculty 17 years ago. “Mark played a crucial role in developing me into a prospective graduate student,” says Nathan Rodeberg ’12. “He was the first professor I had that stressed the importance of learning how to read academic literature critically and helped facilitate a habit of keeping up to date on what was new and exciting in science.” Jensen served as chair of chemistry from 2003-05 and 2006-07. Under his leadership, the department was on the leading edge of a meaningful department assessment program, which has been received well by reviewers of many national grant proposals such as the National Science Foundation and Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Jensen’s specialty is analytical chemistry, and he has had an inspirational impact on his students. “Once I took his instrumental methods course, I knew I wanted to continue studying analytical chemistry at graduate school,” says Alex Johnson ’12. “He helped me with my applications for graduate school and recommended several schools.” ◊
SIX INDUCTED TO HALL OF FAME
Concordia inducted six alumni into the Athletic Hall of Fame in October: wrestler Paul Budd ’68, basketball standout Robert Peterson ’70, women’s golfer Karna Johnson Peters ’83, women’s track and field star Cynthia (Bogatzki) Doussard ’86, football AllAmerican Tim Lowry ’96 and men’s soccer program catalyst Brian Mahan ’96. ◊
NEW SCIENCE
The Board of Regents gave final approval to update Ivers and the Jones Science Center. The $45 million project will be completed in fall 2017. For more details: ConcordiaCollege.edu/science ◊
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Formally trained
in classical East Asian arts, visual artist Kwon Kisoo of South Korea experiments with various mediums and forms. A reoccurring figure in many of his works is Dongguri, a simple stick figure. This semester, Kwon is a Fulbright scholar-in-residence at Concordia. He is lecturing and teaching a course, “Ink Painting and Mixed Media.” Shown here is detail from his acrylic work, “Sky High-Pilgrimage.” Read more: ConcordiaCollege.edu/kwon
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ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARDEES P
A STEM OF KNOWLEDGE
Samantha Adank ’16 is often the only young woman in a 30-person class. It’s only one reason the Phillips Scholar decided to teach a STEM course to 10 middle school-aged girls this summer. The Phillips Scholar program selects six students from Minnesota private colleges each year to plan and implement a service project that meets a previously unmet need in Minnesota. Adank is among three Cobbers who have received the award in the past three years. After researching the gender gap in STEM fields, she decided to focus her project on further exposing middle school girls to science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The math and education major offered the class through Moorhead Community Education. Women are statistically less likely to study a STEM topic in college and also less likely to get a job in a STEM field, Adank says. “I think a lot of our memories stem back to that day in science where we had to do something and it wasn’t interesting. But these things I’m trying to do are a little bit more real life, a little bit more hands on,” she says. ◊
aul D. Erickson ’74, Circle Pines, Minn., is a sports administrator whose passions have benefited cities across Minnesota. After teaching in Australia, he served as Concordia’s director of student activities from 1976-82. While at Concordia, he led two Arctic ski expeditions – one in Greenland and another in Lappland with two blind skiers. He was vice president of public relations for the Sons of Norway from 1982-86. In 1986, the governor appointed him executive director of the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission, a position he held for 27 years until he retired. During his tenure, he established the largest youth sporting event in the U.S. and led the development of $300 million of sports facilities in Minnesota.
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r. Alan R. Hopeman ’42, Minneapolis, served in the U.S. Army as an enlisted medic and Medical Service Corps officer during World War II. Completing medical school in 1950, he returned to the army as a medical officer and served until 1970. His leadership was widely recognized in the field of cardiothoracic surgery. His second career was in academic surgery as professor of surgery at the universities of Missouri, Nebraska and Colorado. In 1985, he was awarded professor emeritus of surgery from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center based at Denver General Hospital. He provided extraordinary public relations to the hospital community and gave freely of his time to his patients, medical students and residents.
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r. Craig J. Lambrecht ’83, Bismarck, N.D., is responsible for operations for Sanford Health west region. He became president/CEO of Medcenter One, Bismarck, in 2010 and guided the health system’s merger with Sanford Health. He was a 30-year member of the North Dakota National Guard and served two wartime deployments to Iraq. During his second deployment, Lambrecht built up a struggling pediatric burn clinic, the only one in Iraq, by gathering thousands of dollars of donated supplies and cash donations. He earned a medical degree from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He holds three master’s degrees: health services administration, public health/occupational medicine and business administration.
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r. Howard O. Nornes ’53, Fort Collins, Colo., obtained a doctorate in neuroscience from Purdue University and did postdoctoral research at the University of Lund, Sweden, and the Max Planck Institute in Germany. He is professor emeritus of neuroscience at Colorado State University and continues to teach courses in neuroplasticity of the adult brain in its continuing education program. His major research interest was the development and regeneration of the nervous system, work that promotes healing and recovery of the function of the spinal cord and brain. Through the years he has been involved in community programs to promote peace and social justice. ◊
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100 wins
“ It’s an honor. It goes to show that there has been a lot of great teams, great players and a lot of great coaches that have come through the program ... It’s not an individual thing. It’s a total team effort.”
– Head Football Coach Terry Horan after earning his 100th career victory in the annual Lefse Bowl at St. Olaf
CONCORDIA NAMES NEW LEADERS
We welcomed three leaders to Concordia's campus over the summer.
New VP Selected for Enrollment and Marketing
Karl Stumo ’92 was selected as Concordia’s vice president for enrollment and marketing. He started June 1. He came to Concordia from Dominican University, River Forest, Ill. He began his career as an admission counselor at Concordia. From 19992004, he served as associate dean of admissions at Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa. From 2004-14, Stumo served at Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Wash., in various enrollment division positions including admission counselor, dean of admission and financial aid, and vice president for admission and enrollment services.
New Dean of Offutt School Appointed
Dr. K. Brewer Doran was appointed dean of the Offutt School of Business in August. “The foundations have been laid for extraordinary achievements at the Offutt School and I look forward to continuing the success,” she says. Doran comes to Concordia from Salem State University in Massachusetts, where she was dean of the Bertolon School of Business. Her doctoral work focused on cross-cultural marketing, including a study of Chinese and North American consumers. She also has experience working for International Paper Corp. and has owned her own aviation and consulting businesses.
Executive Director Named for Career Initiative
Carly Nelson ’96 is the executive director of the Career Initiative on campus. Nelson previously worked for Microsoft, most recently as the Global Go to Market program manager for Partner Services. Nelson will focus on engaging both internal and external constituents in expanding and diversifying opportunities for students to pursue internships and other forms of off-campus work experiences. She earned a master’s degree in leadership from Luther Seminary in 1998. ◊
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FACULTY, STAFF HONORED
Concordia bestowed awards at the annual Faculty and Administration Fall Banquet in August. Dr. Julie Rutherford, associate professor of biology, received the Ole and Lucy Flaat Distinguished Teaching Award; Dr. George Connell, professor of philosophy, received the Ole and Lucy Flaat Distinguished Scholarship Award; and Dr. Larry Papenfuss received the Ole and Lucy Flaat Distinguished Service Award. ◊
OLSEN RECEIVES FELLOWSHIP
E n g l i s h professor W. Scott Olsen received the Lake Region Arts Council McKnight Fellowship Grant. He will use the $5,000 grant to begin work on his next collection of travel essays and photographs. He is the author of 11 books, editor of six anthologies and editor of Ascent, a national literary magazine. ◊
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Success requires hard work with a good dose of creativity and critical thinking. Every day our alumni use these hallmarks of their Concordia education to bring new views and improvements to their fields. Here are the stories of three.
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Love of the Land
The first day Bryan Boll ’96 walked into football practice at Concordia, Coach Jim Christopherson pulled down a board that read from top to bottom – Gentleman, Scholar, Athlete. Christopherson stressed that gentleman was at the top and these young men should never forget the order.
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Bryan Boll ’96 diversified the family farm to make it successful. Photos: Evan Balko
More than 20 years later, Boll says he thinks of the order in his life and doesn’t want his roles to get out of balance. “That was something I loved about Concordia,” Boll says with a smile. “It didn’t get the priorities out of whack. Faith was always a priority. Education was a priority. Family was a priority and I liked that.” Now, Boll balances being a husband, father, farmer and entrepreneur. He and his wife, Melissa (Staples) ’97, along with their six children, live on the family farm near Crookston, Minn. Boll graduated from Concordia with an elementary education major. After graduation, he was a computer consultant and teacher planning to work in education until his dad was ready to retire from farming. “In the late ’90s, times were tough on the farm,” Boll says. “My dad came to me and said he was going to sell the farm. So, at the age of 23, it was basically a change of plan and I took over the farm.” Boll started farming 800 acres while keeping his job off the farm. But as his dreams and vision for his business grew, he quit his outside job and diversified the farm. The farm’s standard mix of wheat and sugar beets broadened to corn, edible beans, soybeans and raising cow/calf pairs through a sustainable method called rotational grazing. He also opened a trucking company to make better use of the equipment he was only using during harvest. It was also a way to employ help year round and have people available for fall. “It grew from one truck I drove myself to six trucks and five full-time guys that are really versatile,” Boll says. “It’s just helped diversify the operation and make it more financially feasible.” Throughout the changes and upgrades he’s made
to his farm, including growing his business to 6,000 acres, Boll has used good conservation practices to protect the fields from erosion and nutrient depletion. Boll’s entrepreneurial spirit and sustainable methods earned him the honor of the Young Farmer Sustainability Award from Bayer CropScience last year. With all the changes in the past 20 years, Boll hasn’t left his former profession behind. He’s carried his technology skills into farming. “Technology, whether it’s auto-steer or variable rate application of nutrients, has really changed how we do things on the farm in exciting and beneficial ways,” Boll says. “I enjoy being at home and I can communicate with my grain dryer or see where my trucks and tractors are in the field.” Boll now thinks about agribusiness on a whole different level. He says his education at Concordia shaped that way of thinking and expanded his reach. “That’s the thing about a liberal arts education – it’s broad based. Everything ties together. It really opened my mind that there is more out there. It’s a big world and the things we do here shape and define things way beyond what we see or know.” While he speaks passionately about the potential opportunities in farming, when you ask him what he loves about the farm he gets quiet and reflective. There are so many things. The smell of the soil and the rains after a long dry spell. The chance to see his kids run freely and learn about hard work and difficult realities – like having a calf die or a crop fail. The spiritual aspect – the faith to keep going when you know nature can change your plan in a moment. That in the end we have to remember who is in control and never forget the order. “We’re borrowing the land from God,” Boll says. “I’m excited about the direction we are headed with agriculture. I believe I’m involved with a noble profession. We feed the world.” ◊ See the farm: ConcordiaCollege.edu/farm fall 2015
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On Fire for Research Dana walsh ’09 knows bacteria. She is quick to point out that you have more bacteria cells than human cells in your body and, believe it or not, this is good. B y Dani el l e M . H ance
For example, bacteria in your body aid in digestion and provide some natural defenses. Bacteria in your lungs, however, are a different story. More than 3,000 Americans die as a result of fire and smoke inhalation each year, according to the American Burn Center. Many of these people are treated for bacterial infections, a leading cause of death in burn victims. Walsh, a doctoral candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is doing groundbreaking research that could save thousands of these lives. She has devised an innovative method for gathering bacterial DNA from the airways of burn victims. The information gathered allows physicians to treat burn victims with the correct antibiotics and improve outcomes.
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Here’s how: In healthy lungs, there are generally little to no bacteria, explains Walsh. In fact, introduction of bacteria can have quick and lasting consequences. That’s what happens to smoke inhalation victims – their lungs are left vulnerable to bacterial infections like pneumonia and sepsis. “By identifying early on what bacteria people are being infected with, we can prevent worse bacterial infections down the road,” she says. For her research, Walsh collected samples from airway washings of smoke inhalation victims. But extracting bacterial DNA from the samples proved challenging. First, the samples were fairly small because there are fewer bacteria in the lungs than, say, in the gut. Second, the samples were contaminated by smoke and soot. Finding a better
solution required innovative thinking on Walsh’s part. Through use of a novel sequencing technique that works well for samples with low amounts of DNA, she began generating data. Her mentor’s partnership with the UNC Jaycee Burn Center gave her a wealth of samples to study. Once she performed the sequencing, she was able to get an accurate picture of the bacteria residing in the lungs of burn victims. Walsh recently presented her research at the Gordon Research Conference on Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Toxicity in Andover, N.H., a highly selective honor. Only 150 attendees and presenters are chosen from a global pool of applicants. Her work and innovation have earned her the
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The research of Dana Walsh ’02 will help physicians treat smoke inhalation victims. Photo: Submitted
respect of the scientific community. “Her work is truly multidisciplinary,” says her mentor Dr. David DiazSanchez, chief of the clinical research branch of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “She sees the bigger picture and how techniques from one discipline can be applied to a different area. The data she has generated is going to be mined for a long time to come.” She credits Concordia for sparking her interest in microbiology and giving her a taste of what research really entails. “I learned how to be an independent and critical thinker through my courses,” Walsh says. “My professors taught me to seek the resources I needed to be successful.” She discovered her love of microbiology through a research course and
independent research projects with Dr. Krys Strand and Dr. Ellen Aho, professors of biology. Aho says showing students the real-world implications of their work is key. “All of our work involves an intersection of many fields,” Aho says. “But most of the big problems also have political and social implications. We try to help students see problems in all their complexity.” Walsh hopes that her work will lead to research in other organs and systems. By learning how the body’s bacteria interact with antibiotics and seeing how these colonies change over time, Walsh hopes that doctors will be able to treat all types of infections more effectively.
communities of organisms living in harmony with each other,” she says. “The challenge of future research is to understand these complex interactions and how they influence health and disease.”
“ Concordia gave me a desire to do something with my career that is meaningful and would have a positive impact on the world.” — Dana Walsh
Something Walsh took away from her education at Concordia is that her career is not about acquiring accolades, but about doing work that makes a difference. ◊
“We are more than just ourselves; we are complex
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Now, 12 years later, they own and operate Lift Bridge Brewing Co., one of the largest craft breweries in Minnesota by volume. Their beers – with whimsical names like Crosscut, Farm Girl and Hop Dish – are sold and savored in establishments across Minnesota, eastern North Dakota and parts of Wisconsin. As with all good tales, and beers, there’s more to it than that. You have to go back further, say to the early 1990s at Concordia, for the rest.
True Brew
Cobber gets serious about the business of beer
So this guy walks into a bar … The story is nearly as old as the craft of beer brewing itself. Remember, even Martin Luther was particular about his brew. In Trevor Cronk’s case, the story goes something like this: So this Concordia graduate walks into a garage to brew a craft beer with three of his neighbors. It’s pretty good, but the men continue to make adjustments: mash, boil, ferment and repeat. They start throwing backyard tasting parties with every new mix. Their neighbors are welcome for a small price – honest feedback on flavor, body, consistency and the other characteristics that make for a great beer.
By Martin Fredricks
ABOVE: Lift Bridge Brewing Co. has five owners. Trevor Cronk '92 is pictured second from left. Photo: Submitted
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That’s where Cronk ’92 met his future wife, Julie Seim ’94, a pre-med major who was on the path to becoming a dermatologist. While she was in medical school, Cronk worked as a long-term care facility administrator. Seim landed a fellowship in Australia for close to a year, and when they returned to the States they wound up in Atlanta. For several years he worked in marketing for the Atlanta Braves, Hawks and Thrashers. Kids were in the picture by then and being closer to home – Burnsville, Minn., for her, Chinook, Mont., for him – sounded good. They resettled to Stillwater and he joined the Minnesota Timberwolves marketing team. When he walked into his neighbor’s garage that day, Cronk carried with him the ingredients needed to launch and grow a successful company: a business administration degree from Concordia and nearly 10 years of management and marketing experience. Cronk and his friends continued to refine their beer
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until they were confident it was something others would buy, and buy some more. For the first couple of years, they brewed on a contract basis at a local facility and hit Minnesota’s back roads to sell their product. “There was a renaissance of sorts in craft brewing at the time, and the economy wasn’t in the best shape,” Cronk says. “People were looking local for options for food and entertainment. Our handcrafted beer went right along with that.” Lift Bridge Brewing, named after the span between Stillwater and Houlton, Wis., introduced its first beer in 2008. The partners released new brews regularly after that and, Cronk says, “we built the business on a bootstrap.” A fifth partner, a master brewer, joined the business in 2010. Lift Bridge Brewing’s output has grown by about 70 percent each year and today the company employs about 20 people, including chemist Michael Connelly ’13. By the end of this year, the brewery will have produced 11,00012,000 barrels of five yearround offerings and a bevy of seasonals, around 22 beers in all. One of the seasonals, Mini Donut, has become a favorite at the Minnesota State Fair. The Lift Bridge Brewing taproom, which opened in 2011, provides a more relaxing environment. It’s a cross between a German brauhaus, a Rocky Mountain lodge and a Minnesota ice house, with a split-wood bar, picnic-style tables and taps drawing eight different beers straight from the chiller out back. The comfortable
atmosphere draws a laidback, neighborhood crowd as a rule, but the place can get downright boisterous during the community parties the partners often throw. Regardless, it’s always warm and welcoming, with fresh beer flowing into pints and growlers and accompanying banter from across the room. Two more Concordia graduates, Chris Opsahl ’91 and Robert Powers ’92, are among the regulars. They own Studio 2, a design and marketing firm in St. Paul that’s been working with Cronk and his partners from the get-go. “Each of them brings something valuable to the business and they’re a good, down-to-earth bunch of guys,” Opsahl says. “We tried to work that into what Lift Bridge Brewing looks and feels like, along with Stillwater’s historical vibe and strong brewing tradition.” After seven years of building their own traditions, Cronk and his partners have proven one thing beyond all doubt: Lift Bridge Brewing is no joke. The company with the oldschool feel, unconventionally named beers and a view of its namesake bridge is here to stay. “We’ve been successful because, first, the beer tastes really good,” Cronk says. “We’ve been able to stay true to ourselves and build a business that complements the fabric of this community.” As it turns out, Trevor Cronk was the guy who walked into a bar. ◊
the staples
Lift bridge brewing's five year-round beers
Farm Girl A Belgian saison named after the wife of one of the partners. “It’s our flagship beer and the name reminds me of my Montana roots,” Cronk says.
Hop Dish “A potluck of seven varieties of hops,” this India pale ale is like a church-basement hotdish, so tasty everyone comes back for more.
Crosscut A pale ale whose name is a nod to Stillwater’s logging roots.
Chestnut Hill A nut brown ale named for the rise on the west side of the Stillwater Bridge between Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Getaway A crisp, well-balanced pilsner so named because, Cronk says, “We like to believe people come to Stillwater for a getaway from the everyday.”
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Crowd FUNDING c o m e s t o concordia B y er i c l i l l eh au gen
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n a saturday morning in September, more than $1,750 was raised for the Concordia women’s hockey team. The team wanted a new skate sharpener. To make it happen, they appealed to supporters through Concordia’s new crowdfunding site. Within days, the machine was grinding blades in the women’s locker room.
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It’s the kind of success story that Rachel Clarke, director of The Concordia Annual Fund, hoped for when the crowdfunding site CobbersGive launched this summer. Crowdfunding is a fundraising model that leverages donors’ social networks to generate funding. The idea behind CobbersGive is simple: help donors put their money where their heart is. The Concordia team that built and designed CobbersGive drew inspiration from popular sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. These sites open the door for millions of users to fund products, services or entire startups by pledging their dollars. Adapting this fundraising model to meet Concordia’s needs made sense. At a time when more and more meaningful social interactions are taking place online, CobbersGive engages donors in a medium that they can get excited about. As the first institution in the region to use crowdfunding in this way, the site is Concordia’s answer to the question: why can’t crowdfunding work for us? The short answer is, it does. Project proposals come from all around the campus community and the Concordia Language Villages. From start to finish, these campaigns are managed by the staff, faculty and students who propose them. In the case of the sharpener project, that some work upfront Jason Gregoire, head
skate meant from coach
of women’s hockey, and Associate Athletic Director Rachel Bergeson. CobbersGive provides the platform, but the project coordinators and their contacts build excitement around their project. Bergeson attributes the campaign’s success to finding the right mix of broad appeal and engagement among alumni. “Our women’s hockey players and alumnae were great at spreading the message through their social media outlets,” Bergeson says. “(But we also) have a great hockey community in Moorhead eager to support a project like this.”
Bemidji, Minn., raised more than $3,000 for a new French baker’s oven – becoming the first project successfully funded through CobbersGive. The oven’s construction won’t begin until spring 2016, but the successful campaign confirmed that crowdfunding could help projects happen.
“ It’s about making connections between the great ideas of our campus community and our donors who share that passion.”
Gregoire recognized the platform’s potential as a practical way to secure funding that might otherwise never come. “(It was an) item that we felt could get funded over a short period of time,” Gregoire says. “I was hoping that enough hockey supporters would see our need and help us out.” And they did. Crowdfunding opens the door to projects that wouldn’t otherwise receive funding, Clarke says. It also allows donors to find specific projects that they feel strongly about supporting. “We’re accomplishing things we wouldn’t otherwise be able to accomplish,” Clarke says. If there’s one guiding principle behind CobbersGive, it is to create a positive experience while doing good. So far, it’s working. In July, Lac du Bois, Concordia’s French Language Village in
— Rachel Clarke Success isn’t guaranteed, however. While some projects are funded in a flash, others – like a proposal seeking $5,000 to expand Concordia’s greenhouse garden – fall short of the goal. The money raised by the campaign, however, will still be used and, with funding from other areas, the greenhouse expansion is moving forward. At the end of the day, Clarke says, the goal for CobbersGive has always been to develop deeper relationships with donors and friends. And in that sense, there's no doubt that the homegrown crowdfunding platform has been a success. “Knowing that we’ve made it possible to connect a goal with a group of people who care about it, that’s where the magic happens,” Clarke says. ◊
To learn more about Concordia's crowdfunding projects, visit CobbersGive.org fall 2015
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doing humanities B y l au r a ca r o o n
Aliza Rux ’17 employs interdisciplinary skills as curator for the Invitational Alumni Art Exhibit in Concordia’s Cyrus M. Running Gallery this fall. Photos: Evan Balko
When was the last time you reached for your encyclopedia? For most of us, it has been a while. Maybe decades. Today’s college students may have never cracked one open. Or even used a card catalog in the library. Scholarship and research are changing. Information is no longer conveyed only in printed material. “It’s interactive and communicated in many different ways,” says college archivist Lisa Sjoberg. Research happens on laptops, tablets and mobile phones using websites, e-books, apps and video chat. With the rise of the digital revolution, technical fields like math, science and health care are gaining popularity and perceived as most applicable to the job market. “People are questioning the value of the more traditional disciplines of the humanities and liberal arts,” says Dr. Joy Lintelman, chair of the history department.
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But the humanities – those academic disciplines that study human culture – are alive and well. In fact, they are more relevant and multifaceted than ever. The humanities, too, have gone digital. Next year’s incoming class of first-year students has never lived in a time without Google; they were “born digital.” So studying the humanities through a digital lens is a natural realization. Digital humanities is essentially the intersection of technology and the disciplines that study the human condition and culture. At Concordia, the humanities include classical studies, English, history, philosophy, political science, religion, women’s and gender studies, and world languages and cultures. In 2014, Concordia was awarded an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant to encourage incorporation of digital methods and tools in research, teaching and scholarship. Since then, the grant has funded multiple faculty workshops to introduce and provide hands-on instruction of digital tools – including mapping, digital publication and text mining – and curriculum development opportunities. ast spring, Lintelman taught a new course called “Doing Digital History.” Students learned how to use technology to do historical and archival research. Instead of writing a final paper, they communicated their findings through digital timelines and interactive maps. The goal of the course was for students to gain confidence in their skills and get comfortable with the tools needed to produce digital knowledge, Lintelman says.
Aliza Rux ’17, who is majoring in one of Concordia’s newest programs, heritage and museum studies, also took the class. For her group assignment, she used a program called Tiki-Toki to create a digital timeline of Concordia’s history. Some of that information will be presented as part of the college’s 125th anniversary celebration in fall 2016. Learning how to use the tools was important, she says. But, like previous generations before her, Rux found that studying history had its own lessons to teach. “The main purpose of the class was to teach us how to problem solve and find the tools that work the best for each situation. Technology is constantly evolving – in 10 years we’ll probably be using completely new programs. It’s about learning how to adapt,” Rux says. s assignments across disciplines are created and consumed digitally, students are no longer writing a paper to be shared only with their professor. Their work can easily be seen and critiqued by a broader audience. Knowing that their work may be seen and used by others means students are more engaged in their research, Lintelman says. “They’re creating products for their peers to see, for the world to see, and more and more for others to respond to, even,” says Lintelman. “I had a student ask me, ‘Do you mean someone could footnote me and my work?’” Her answer: “Yes.” ◊
During the class, Bjorn Altenburg ’16 dug through Concordia’s archives, campus facilities storage, and even his own family history to gather and piece together generations worth of maps and blueprints. In the end, he and his classmates created an interactive map of the college. By completing the project, he learned interesting facts about Concordia and his Cobber family – like the fact that his father, Karl Altenburg ’89, played in a band at the first Cornstock. But Altenburg says the most valuable skill he learned was how to build a website.
Bjorn Altenburg ’16, a fifth-generation Cobber, stands in front of Ivers Science Building, which is named after his great-grandfather, Ralph Ivers.
See the projects: ConcordiaCollege.edu/digitalhistory fall 2015
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This fall, three student photographers documented campus activity in the evening. Here’s what they found.
As campus settles into evening, the bell tower is painted with a soft orange glow. Silence fills the classrooms where students and professors conversed hours before, but campus itself hums with life late into the hours of the night. Fingers dance across piano keys in Hvidsten, Expo
markers
squeak
across
white
boards in the library and the wrapper of a PopTart crinkles in the residence halls.
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Photography by: Sage Larson ’17 studies multimedia journalism and Spanish. She is from Maple Grove, Minn.
Brianne Lee ’16 is a native of Moorhead. She is studying graphic design.
Morgan Schleif ’16 studies graphic design and public relations. She grew up in Brooklyn Park, Minn.
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LEFT: Peer tutoring at the Offutt School of Business goes late into the evening. RIGHT: Students who have studied abroad share their experiences at the annual Global Learning Expo.
Tia Schmitz ’18 stays after hours in an Olin art studio to complete a plaster piece for her 3-D Foundations course.
LEFT: Logan Johnson ’17 spikes the ball to his intramural volleyball teammates in Olson Forum. RIGHT: Students in the Foam Weapon Fighting Club recreate a medieval combat experience in front of the bell tower.
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Sunset over Knutson Campus Center
LEFT: Students take a moment to meditate at Sunday Night at Concordia, an evening worship service run by students. RIGHT: Xao Vang ‘15, a member of the Chinese Club, performs a cultural dance at the Global Learning Expo.
Alex Hopkins ‘17 gets comfortable in her room in Brown Hall as she studies the structure of the human skeleton for anatomy class.
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Students walk out the doors of Grant Center after a long day of studying and classes.
LEFT: Production of The Concordian, the student newspaper, goes late into the night. RIGHT: Night hours often bring students to the Parke Student Leadership Center, where they can find materials to make posters for co-curricular events. Pictured are Brianne Lee ’16 and Kjerstin Engebretson ’16.
At the information desk in Knutson Campus Center, Ali Carlson ‘17 assists Tanner Pederson ‘16 with locating the parking services building.
OPPOSITE: Jordan Degerness ’16 rehearses in Hvidsten Hall of Music.
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Alumni Travel Opportunities We have several trips available for alumni and the entire Concordia family in 2016. Concordia College.edu/alumnitravel feb. 1-14
New Zealand
Absorb the beauty of one of the last lands settled by humans with Dr. Jim Aageson, professor emeritus of religion. june 2-14
Poland and Germany
Follow the events leading to the Reformation and more with Dr. Roy Hammerling, professor of religion. sept. 17-oct. 2
Greece and Turkey
Travel the rugged and beautiful coastline of southwest Turkey and the Corinth Canal with Dr. Jim Aageson.
Mentor a Cobber Become an important connection for students who are interested in your occupation or field of study. For more information, contact Karen Carlson at carlsonk@cord.edu or 218. 299.3734.
Milestone Concordia will celebrate its 125th year in 2016. More details coming. Alumni resources: ConcordiaCollege.edu/alumni
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HOMECOMING 2015 MEMORIES
Alumni were welcomed back to campus amid blue skies and colorful leaves, setting the tone for a vibrant Homecoming 2015. President William and Anne Craft greeted the crowd along Eighth Street and throughout the weekend. â—Š
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CLASS NOTES 1939
1969
Lillian (Syverson) Hackney, Breckenridge, Minn., turned 100 in April.
Paulette (Cary) Callen, Aberdeen, S.D., published a book, “Epiphany: Stories,
1958
Essays, and Meditations on Animals,” Ylva Publishing. // Jeremy Torstveit, Phoenix, completed his 50th mission to Sri Lanka; the open heart children’s program he established in 1992 has grown to be one of the largest in Asia with 2,000 patients receiving surgery each year; Torstveit is completing his sixth term as consul for Sri Lanka in Arizona and is a consultant to the World Health Organization.
Mary (Rasmussen) Jackson, Wayzata, Minn., published a book, “Daughter of the Reformation: A Historical Perspective of the Life and Times of the Wife of Martin Luther,” Huff Publishing Associates. // Clifford Rask, Albert Lea, Minn., was selected as the Freeborn County Fair’s 2015 Outstanding Senior Citizen award winner; among his many volunteer activities, he logged 3,000+ hours as part of Senior Resources of Freeborn County’s ride services.
1962 Loraine Trollope, Urbandale, Iowa, published two books, “In Need of The Doctor” and “Developing Character and Creating Characters,” Xlibris Publishing.
1966 Dean DeKok, Kendall Park, N.J., was inducted into the Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa High School (Belgrade, Minn.) Hall of Fame; he was a three-sport athlete and four-year letter winner in football, basketball, and track and field.
adjunct professor of writing in the English department at the U of Delaware, Newark. // Judy (Walline) Oleson, Clear Lake, S.D., was honored with the Community Service Award by the Clear Lake Community Club for her involvement in cancer walk, nursing home, church and school activities.
1973 Cheryl (Tryhus) Nilsen, Minot, N.D., is dean of the College of Education and Health Sciences for Minot State U.
1975
Ron Nilson, Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich., self-published a book of poetry, “The Circumference of Thought & Other Poems.”
Ruth (Johnson) Buchner, Chippewa Falls, Wis., was named the 2015 Outstanding HOSA-Future Health Professionals Advisor for Wisconsin by the Department of Public Instruction; she is one of two Wisconsin health science occupation teachers selected to attend the 2015 Health Science Master Teacher Institute in Chicago in November. // Thomas Sletto, Des Moines, Iowa, retired from Drake U; he is an adjunct professor of music at Grand View U in Des Moines.
1972
1976
Bruce Heggen, Yuma, Colo., retired from Lutheran Campus Ministry in June 2013; he is an
Mary (Carlson) Stenson, Fargo, N.D., received the YWCA Cass Clay Woman
1970 George Halvorson, Sausalito, Calif., published the book “Three Key Years: Talk-ReadPlay-Sing to Support and Help Every Child in America," InterGroup Institute; the book emphasizes the importance of engaging the brains of young children.
1971
of the Year Community Service award for her work in expanding Sanford Health's volunteer program.
1978 Jeffrey Brown, Yorba Linda, Calif., has been nominated for the 2016 Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, an international award honoring outstanding contributions by individuals or organizations toward solving the world’s water challenges by applying innovative technologies, policies or programs which benefit humanity; he has overseen the operational research activities of the Orange County (Calif.) Sanitation District for 20 years. // Steve Dibb, Stillwater, Minn., is deputy commissioner of education for the Minnesota Department of Education, Roseville.
1980 Thomas Gruhlke, Dassel, Minn., is head wrestling coach for Ridgewater Community College, Willmar, Minn. // Sue (Crammatte) Rutford, White Bear Lake, Minn., is senior software product analyst for Infinite Campus, Blaine, Minn.; she was elected vicemoderator for Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area. // Kevin Scharper, Mason City, Iowa, is the earliest fully vested IPERS (Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System) employee
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ever, retiring in 2013, 30 days before age 55. // Lynn Wagner, Pittsburgh, is product director for Carson Home Accents, Freeport, Pa.
works by Concordia professor Daniel Breedon and Professor Emeritus Thomas Richmond; the CD is dedicated to J. Robert Hanson.
The Best Backdrop Campus makes a beautiful backdrop for the Bjelde family photo: (l-r) Katherine ’15, Scott ’85, Sarah (Sisler) ’83, Elizabeth ’13 and Cobber pup Ada Mae.
1983
1987
Gayle (Ista) Hyde, Fargo, N.D., was named the YWCA Cass Clay Woman of the Year in Education for her contributions in education, particularly working with a multicultural group of students in speech, debate and congressional debate.
A boy, Grant, was born to Rachael and Blair McNea, Boulder, Colo., in March.
Chris Bonnell, Sandy, Utah, is director of Government Relations for Western Governors U, Salt Lake City; he was named chairman of the 2015-16 Hobey Baker Memorial Award Committee, the most coveted award in collegiate hockey named for hockey legend and WWI veteran Hobey Baker. // Hugh Hanson, Pittsburgh, is associate teaching professor for Carnegie Mellon U.
1985
1988
Thomas Hamilton, Duluth, Minn., earned a Doctor of Musical Arts in organ performance and literature from the U of Iowa, Iowa City; he is director of music at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Duluth, and senior lecturer in organ at the U of WisconsinSuperior.
Susan (Leegard) Osterberg, Brentwood, Tenn., is chief administrative officer for Smith Seckman Reid Inc., Nashville.
1984
1986 Neil Mueller, Mt. Pleasant, Mich., recorded “Call and Response,” a CD released by White Pine Music; compositions include
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1989 Norman Achin, Rogers, Ark., is headmaster for Northwest Arkansas Classical Academy, Bentonville.
1990 Linda (Hoag) Dorn, Webster, Minn., was named national chair for the Alumni Development Committee of
Delta Sigma Pi professional business fraternity, Oxford, Ohio. // Wendy (Stamness) Iwerks, Audubon, Minn., received the YWCA Cass Clay Woman of the Year Youth Advocacy award for coordinating and initiating programs at Sanford Health to help children with medical issues. // Ginger (Gillie) Johnson, Talent, Ore., delivered her first TEDx Talk, “A Hammer, Beer & Women,” at TEDxNapaValley. // C. John Larson, Hermiston, Ore., is vice president for the Oregon Education Association, Portland. // Christopher Lehmann, St. Paul, Minn., was appointed a district court judge in Minnesota’s First Judicial District by Gov. Mark Dayton and will be chambered in Hastings, Dakota County; he is a partner at Grannis & Lehmann, P.A. // Scott Maethner, Albuquerque, N.M., retired from the U.S. Air Force after serving 25 years.
1992 Karen (Ekstrum) Evenson, St. Paul, Minn., earned a Master of Divinity in United Methodist studies and pastoral care and counseling from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, where she received the Charlotte L. Matthews Community Leadership Award for outstanding service within the seminary community; she is clergy for the Minnesota Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.
1993 Kris (Guttormson) Foner, St. Louis Park, Minn., is human resources manager for Eureka Recycling, Minneapolis. // Lynne JensenNelson, Prior Lake, Minn., launched Conversion-omics, a
Minneapolis-based company offering sales consulting, training and motivational speaking.
1994 A boy, Caleb, was adopted by Mike ’93 and Kari (Settergren) Wayman, Waconia, Minn., in March; he was born in August 2012.
1995 Kathryn (Anderson) Campbell, Minneapolis, was named the Minnesota Journalism Educator of the Year by the Minnesota High School Press Association. // Meghan Casey, Minneapolis, is lead content strategist for Brain Traffic, a content strategy consulting firm; she published a book, “The Content Strategy Toolkit: Methods, Guidelines, and Templates for Getting Content Right,” New Riders.
1996 A girl, Roslyn, was born to Dawn and Christopher Byars, Washington, Ind.; he is pastor for Good Shepherd Lutheran Church -LCMC. // Brandon Johnson, Saline, Mich., is director of choral activities at Eastern Michigan U, Ypsilanti. // Scott Johnson, Bismarck, N.D., was honored with the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching from the White House for excellence in science teaching for chemistry and anatomy/physiology.
1997 Erin (Egan) Anderson, Excelsior, Minn., is an independent consultant for Rodan & Fields. // Colleen Bertsch, Minneapolis, won a 2015-16 U.S. Fulbright Student Award to Romania; she is spending nine months in the Transylvanian region to conduct fieldwork for
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her dissertation. // A girl, Anna, was born to Maxx and Sherri (TenNapel) Ekobena, Onalaska, Wis., in May. // Andy Hayden, Bloomington, Minn., is owner of United Endoscopy, Minneapolis.
1998 Amy Hewett-Olatunde, St. Paul, Minn., was named Minnesota’s 2015 Teacher of the Year; she teaches at LEAP (Limited English Academic Proficiency) High School, St. Paul. // Jessica Westgard married David Larson in June 2014; they live in Fargo, N.D.
1999 A boy, Elijah, was born to Nina (Gehner) ’98 and Alan Ball, Fridley, Minn., in December 2014. // A boy, Josiah, was born to Jason and Erin (Hewitt) Burggraff, Rochester, Minn., in January. // A girl, Grace, was born to Kathy (Peterson) Hase and Darren Sprute, Big Lake, Minn., in December 2014. // A boy, Mason, was born to Shauna McGillivray and Mark Demarest, Fort Worth, Texas, in August. // Amy (Peotter) Wallgren, New York Mills, Minn., is vice president for Farmers & Merchants State Bank, New York Mills. // Mark Weisbrod, Colorado Springs, Colo., completed a retina fellowship at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami; he is an eye surgeon for Colorado Eye Institute, Colorado Springs.
2000 Carrie (Martinson) Bjorge, Fargo, N.D., was elected board chairperson for The Village Family Service Center; she is a CPA and controller at BlackRidgeBANK, Fargo. // A boy, Charles, was born to Steven and Krista (Herron) Freier, St. Paul, Minn., in March. // Angela (Tufte) Hewett, Sutton
Coldfield, West Midlands, U.K., earned a doctorate in clinical psychology from the U of Liverpool; she is a lecturer in health psychology for Birmingham City U, Birmingham, West Midlands. // A girl, Lilje, was born to Christy Hudson and Carl Knudson, Portland, Ore., in June. // Nathan Naef, Minnetonka, Minn., earned a PK-12 principal’s license from the U of Minnesota, Minneapolis. // Jonathan Stawarski, Somerset, Wis., is vice president of mortgage lending for WESTconsin Credit Union, Eau Claire.
2001 A boy, Lucas, was born to Daniel and Carmen (Magnus) Heinecke, Big Fork, Minn., in July. // Twin girls, Kaitlyn and Madison, were born to Joe and Jennifer (Boettner) Kral, Brush, Colo., in April. // A boy, Patrick, was born to Kevin and Gina (O’Neill) McCusker, Danvers, Mass., in December 2014. // A girl, Lindley, was born to Krista and Peter Mithun, Baxter, Minn., in April. // Kiersten Ronning, Los Angeles, is head costume designer for the new CBS series “Supergirl.” // A boy, Leo, was born to Laurie SandnessBoeshans and James Boeshans, Hawley, Minn., in March.
2002 Twin girls, Mnemosyne and Penelope, were born to David and Cammie (Bruns) Acosta, Rockledge, Fla., in September 2014. // Lesley (Albertson) Dahlseng, Alexandria, Minn., published her debut book, "My Kiss Won't Miss," WhetWord Press; the book has won several literary awards and was named a finalist in the IndieFab Book of the Year Contest. // Mark Egge, Farmington, Minn., was elected to the
board of directors of the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement, an international organization serving professionals in prospect development; he is senior manager of prospect research and management for the Greater Twin Cities United Way. // A girl, Leta, was born to Lindsay MattsBenson and Kent Benson, St. Paul, Minn., in April. // Mari Metzler completed a tour of duty in Europe as an aerospace physiologist in the U.S. Air Force, was promoted to major and made flight commander of the Flight Medicine Clinic; back in the U.S., she is in charge of altitude chamber hypoxia training for F-22 and F-15 pilots. // A girl, Lily, was born to Gregory ’00 and Jessica (Berghuis) Mumm, Brandon, S.D., in May. // A girl, Ruthie, was born to Matt and Rachel (Berg) Scherer in November; they live in Baltimore. // A girl, Kolie, was born to Tally (McEvers) ’03 and John Tinjum, Moorhead, in July; John is a physician in internal medicine at Sanford Health, Moorhead.
Minneapolis, in July. // A boy, Timothy, was born to Andrew and Carrie (Gustafson) Peltier, Cambridge, Minn., in June. // A girl, Britta, was born to Chris and Ericka (Jessen) Phelps, Lakeville, Minn., in December 2014. // Brian Treece married Brenda Boden in June; they live in Minneapolis, where he is a realtor with RE/Max Results.
2003
A boy, Corban, was born to Joseph and Sherri (Dathe) Biewer, Byron, Minn., in December 2014. // Sonja (Vanderpan) Brandt, Grand Forks, N.D., earned a doctorate in teaching and learning from the U of North Dakota. // Kathryn (Borgen) Friberg,
A boy, Cody, was born to Brian and Kelly (Quaal) Atwell, Castle Rock, Colo., in November 2014. // A boy, Zachary, was born to Matt and Elizabeth (Maiers) Cheney, Hutchinson, Minn., in March; Elizabeth is director of community philanthropy for the Southwest Initiative Foundation, Hutchinson. // A boy, Sebastian, was born to Jess Crane-Munoz and Jose Munoz, Vinton, Iowa, in February. // A boy, Lincoln, was born to Jodi (Miller) ’04 and Nathan Hoyt, Sioux Falls, S.D., in September. // A girl, Jeanette, was born to Annie Jacobsen and David Waytz,
future roommates? Future class of 2036 Olivia, the daughter of Joshua and Laura (Espedal) Caroon ’06, Moorhead, and Grace, the daughter of Mike and Amanda (Weber) Mackereth ’04, Isanti, Minn., meet for the first time in December 2014 in the Knutson Campus Center.
2004
Bloomington, Minn., is secretary for Redemption Lutheran Church, Bloomington. // Karin (Sanden) Garduno, Elmhurst, Ill., is senior HR manager for CCC Information Services, Chicago. // Rebekah (Hoback) Jorgensen, Roseville, Minn., earned a Master of Education degree in learning and technology from Western Governors U, Salt Lake City. // Emily Judd married Bradley
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Lamson in July 2014; they live in Whitefish, Mont. // A girl, Kendall, was born to Bill and Jodi Maertens, Minneota, Minn., in August. // A girl, Ava, was born to Christopher and Carrie (Wright) McKay, Barnesville, Minn., in April. // Lisa (Hanna) Riddle, Sioux Falls, S.D., is assistant professor of education at the U of Sioux Falls. // A boy, Leif, was born to Tayt and Nathalie (Miller) Rinehardt, Moorhead, in July. // A girl, Maija, was born to Brian and Meghan (Gunderson) Robertson, Cloquet, Minn., in June. // A girl, Skylar, was born to Michael and Allison (Thompson) Walton, St. Cloud, Minn., in May; Allison is a behavior support specialist for St. Cloud School District 742.
2005 Joshua Allmaras married Samantha Maasjo ’10 in April; they live in West Fargo, N.D.; Joshua earned a master's degree in educational leadership from North Dakota State U, Fargo. // A girl, Amelia, was born to Steve and Susie (Kirkham) Boelman, Missoula, Mont., in December 2014. // A boy, David, was born to Owen ’04 and Laura (Anderson) Borchert, Fargo, N.D., in September 2014. // A boy, Manuel, was born to Josh and Trisha (LaBine) Chadduck, Argusville, N.D., in May. // Krista Degerness, Highlands Ranch, Colo., is spending four months in Ek Phnom, Cambodia, to establish a special education and behavioral intervention program for the Children’s Future International School. // A boy, Declan, was born to Ian ’03 and Elizabeth (Connor) Dobson, St. Paul, Minn., in April. // A girl, Amelia, was born to Michael and Amanda
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(Bjornson) Gill, Bismarck, N.D., in August. // A boy, Eric, was born to Julie and Andrew Gunderson, Rockford, Mich., in February. // Rachel Horn married Andy Aplikowski in November 2014; they live in Andover, Minn. // Katherine Somerfeld married Andrew Rogers in August 2014; they live in Baltimore. // A girl, Madelyn, was born to Mike and Brooke (Lee) Torkelson, Moorhead, in April. // A girl, Grace, was born to Ryan and Shannon (Rogers) Wohlman, Eagan, Minn., in December 2014; Shannon is a mental health practitioner for Life Development Resources, Lakeville, Minn. // Heidi (Young) Worker, Tustin, Calif., was named vice chairman of the We Promise Foundation for her contributions to the organization, whose mission is to make once-in-a-lifetime dreams come true for children battling life-threatening illnesses.
2006 A girl, Carol, was born to Clara and Ryan Johnson, Northfield, Minn., in March. // Brittany Lowe married Sam Jacobson in March; they live in Watertown, S.D.; Brittany is international HR coordinator
niblet makes a new friend Already recruiting for the class of 2036, Niblet is shown with Madelyn, the daughter of Zach and Kendra (Lee) Willard ’06.
for Daktronics, Brookings. // A girl, Madelyn, was born to Zach and Kendra (Lee) Willard, Mobile, Ala., in July 2014.
2007 A girl, Katherine, was born to Ashley and Douglas Anderson, Urbandale, Iowa, in January; Douglas is an actuarial associate with Global Atlantic, Des Moines. // A boy, Jordy, was born to Josh and Marie (Flagstad) Brewers, Burnsville, Minn., in June. // Erin Conley, Los Angeles, is project organizer for the American Federation of Teachers and California Federation of Teachers. // A boy, Gregory, was born to Casey and Christine (Otis) DeLanghe, Menomonie, Wis., in August 2014. // Becky Duehn married Reid Strand in March; they live in Worthington, Minn. // A boy, Vincent, was born to Hilario and Sarah (Cobb) Guzman, Maple Grove, Minn., in January; Sarah is the volunteer director for Presbyterian Homes & Services Optage, Roseville, Minn. // Sarah Hoffbeck, Fergus Falls, Minn., took second place in Web and Social MediaWriting for the Web from the National Federation of Press Women 2014 Communications Contest; she also took four first places, one second, four third and one honorable mention in the North Dakota Professional Communicators 2015 Communications Contest. // Tasha (Dunn) Rennels, Sioux Falls, S.D., earned a doctorate in communication from the U of South Florida, Tampa; she is assistant professor of communication at Augustana College, Sioux Falls. // A boy, Jonas, was born to Maicon and Rachel (Yoos) Rigo, Oak
Grove, Minn., in March. // Meredith (Larson) Sikorski, Omaha, Neb., is a thirdgrade dual language teacher – Spanish for Omaha Public Schools. // A girl, Olivia, was born to Nicholas and Laura (Schoeneberger) Silkey, Fargo, N.D., in February.
2008 A girl, Elin, was born to Yichong and Erik Berg, Chaska, Minn., in May. // A girl, Charlotte, was born to Emma (Morvay) and Benjamin Chiles, Plymouth, Minn., in March. // Berit Christensen married Brent Dockter in May; they live in Silver Spring, Md.; Berit earned a Master of Public Policy degree in health policy from the U of Maryland Baltimore County. // A boy, Lucas, was born to Randy and Jackie (Hildahl) Klefsaas, Fargo, N.D., in April. // A girl, Harper, was born to Scott ’07 and Abigail (Anderson) Masten, Hawley, Minn., in March. // Emily Paskewitz, Knoxville, Tenn., earned a doctorate in communication from North Dakota State U, Fargo; she is assistant professor of communication studies for the U of Tennessee, Knoxville. // Christine Schaefers married James Hamilton in June; they live in Columbus, Ohio.
2009 A girl, Emelyn, was born to Stacy (Holden) and Robert Jenson, Crookston, Minn., in March. // A girl, Amelia, was born to Stephen and Marin (Mooberry) Kowal, Albuquerque, N.M., in May. // A boy, Marek, was born to Jake ’10 and Kaley (Hanson) Krause, Richfield, Minn., in May. // Julia (Freyberg) Lamon, New York, earned a Master of Music degree in classical voice performance from the Manhattan School
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of Music, New York. // Michael Lamon, New York, was honored with a Presidential Management Fellowship from the U.S. Government, Washington, D.C.; he earned a Master of Public Administration degree in international economic policy from Columbia U, School of International and Public Affairs, New York; he is a Presidential Management Fellow for Voice of America, New York. // Britta Lund married David Willenbring in November 2014; they live in Kandiyohi, Minn. // Meg Stolte married Joseph Mueller in June; they live in Shakopee, Minn.; Meg is a kindergarten Spanish immersion teacher for Minnetonka Public Schools. // A girl, Tilda, was born to Joey and Emma (Hertsgaard) Schmit, Fargo, N.D., in May. // A girl, Charlotte, was born to Elizabeth (Elton) and Scott Schumacher, West Fargo, N.D., in March.
2010 Nathan Boler, Jackson, Miss., earned a master’s in educational leadership from Concordia U; he is a teacher for Jackson County Central Schools. // Alison Brennan, Fargo, N.D., earned a Master of Science degree in human development and family science from North Dakota State U. // Jeffrey Eliason married Rebecca Petersen in July; they live in St. Paul, Minn.; Jeffrey earned a doctorate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge; Rebecca earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the U of Minnesota School of Dentistry and is a dentist for Metro Dentalcare, St. Paul. // Alyssa Graber, Columbus, Ohio, earned a Master of
Music Education degree in music therapy from the U of Kansas, Lawrence. // Megan Knox, East Grand Forks, Minn., is research coordinator for Mengo Hospital, Global Health Corps, Kampala, Uganda. // A boy, Oliver, was born to Heidi (Cameron) ’11 and Jake Muszynski, Waterloo, Iowa, in April. // A girl, Nora, was born to Kendra (Larson) and Ben Saunders, Willmar, Minn., in March. // Rachel Sykes married Derek Goebel in September; they live in Grand Forks, N.D.; Rachel earned a Master of Public Health degree from the U of North Dakota and is a social worker for Valley Eldercare Center. // Cristina (Morris) Winchester, Denver, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Denver School of Nursing.
2011 A girl, Olivia, was born to Mitchell and Katie (Gallup) Crawford, West Fargo, N.D., in March. // A girl, Harper, was born to Jeremy and Lacey (Bremer) Dancer, Freeland, Mich., in April; Lacey is a registered nurse for MidMichigan Medical Center, Midland. // Katrina (Corcoran) Holman, Baxter, Minn., resigned from her teaching position to live with her husband, who travels for work. // A girl, Brooke, was born to Tyler and Kylie (Machart) Kunkel, Bismarck, N.D., in July 2014. // A boy, Daniel, was born to Sarah and David Morse, Moorhead, in July. // A boy, Carter, was born to Mitch ’10 and Lyndsi (Tufte) Paumen, Atlanta, in May; Lyndsi earned her medical degree from U of Alabama School of Medicine; she is a pediatric resident at Emory U and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. // Joseph Perron, Fort
a cobber wedding Cobber friends celebrating the wedding of Joseph Mueller and Meg Stolte ’09, Shakopee, Minn., include (l-r) Stephanie Boehmer ’09, St. Paul, Minn.; Allison (Rehling) Gronseth ’09, Fargo, N.D.; Angie (Perreault) ’09 and Kevin Elton ’08, Hutchinson, Minn.; Linette (Lundeen) Schwartz ’09, Thief River Falls, Minn.; Trisha (Debilzen) ’09 and David Bowman ’11, Woodbury, Minn.; Emilie Dalbec ’07, Plymouth, Minn.; Lindsey (Poush) Clark ’09, Lakeville, Minn.; Heather Weniger ’09, Waconia, Minn.; Adam Clark ’08, Lakeville; Becky Shepherd ’09, Burnsville, Minn.; and Kayla Axtman ’09, Mandan, N.D. The bride is holding Harrison, the son of Nate and Allison Gronseth.
Collins, Colo., earned a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from DePaul U, Chicago; he is a music teacher for Weld RE-4 School District, Windsor, Colo. // Kallie Swedin married Joe Marion ’12 in June; they live in Omaha, Neb. // Katherine Thompson married Matthew Bonham in August; they live in Sauk Rapids, Minn.; Katherine is a licensed outpatient mental health provider for Nystrom and Associates Ltd., St. Cloud, Minn.
2012 Jaclyn (Grosz) Brown, Moorhead, earned a Master of Education degree in library and information technologies from Valley City State U, Valley City, N.D.; she is a library media specialist for Fargo South High School. // Amanda Delaney married Robert Stolz in May; they live in Garrison, Mont. // Jake Kohl, Fargo, N.D., is quality assurance engineer for Intelligent InSites. // Brittany
Niehoff married Brennan Michaels in June; they live in Sartell, Minn. // Lauren Wingert married Jon Rice in November 2014; they live in Richfield, Minn.
2013 Matt Hansen, Minneapolis, is marketing and operations assistant for Allodium Investment Consultants. // Kellie Isaacson married Juan Quesada-Olarte in May; they live in Mankato, Minn.; Kellie is a registered nurse for Mayo Clinic Health Systems. // Dustin Johnson, Montevideo, Minn., earned a Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the U of Minnesota, Minneapolis; he is a mechanical engineer for Specialty Systems Engineering, Montevideo.
2014 Christie Gleason, Moorhead, is financial development coordinator for the YMCA of Cass and Clay Counties, Fargo, N.D.
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« class notes
2015 Elizabeth Clapp, Glendive, Mont., is one of 104 volunteers welcomed to a year of service by Lutheran Volunteer Corps; she is serving as policy and research associate at Voices for Children in Nebraska. ◊
1944: Reid Seastrand, 92, Rocklin, Calif., in August. // Helen (Hoxeng) Severson, 93, Yankton, S.D., in April. 1945: John Hoeger, 91, Kissimmee, Fla., in May. 1946: Doris (Brekke) Hansen, 90, Burnsville, Minn., in February.
A whopper of a weekend Cobbers gather on Memorial Day weekend for a fishing trip on Lake of the Woods. They shared sea stories, fair winds and a few walleye (l-r) Roger Chase ’72, Spokane Wash.; Steve Roehrich ’72, Charleston, S.C.; Ron Johnson ’72, Minneapolis; Royce Holland ’72, Park Rapids, Minn.; and Gerry Paulson ’73, Monticello, Minn.
M EMORIALS 1940: Victoria (Bjertness) Becker, 96, Kissimmee, Fla., in May. 1941: Judith (Njaa) Bilstad, 96, Loveland, Colo., in July. // Ruth (Brink) Cords, 95, Franklin, Wis., in October 2014. // Marcelle (Reitan) Horton, 94, Breckenridge, Minn., in April. 1942: Florence (Kjelsberg) Doyle, 94, St. Paul, Minn., in May. // Avis (Bottemiller) Herseth, 95, Oak Park, Ill., in June. 1943: Robert Carriere, 93, Becker, Minn., in September; he is survived by his wife, Eva. // Edith (Lillehaugen) Lovestrom, 94, Evanston, Ill., in May. // Roland Saethre, 94, Pequot Lakes, Minn., in July.
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1947: Alta (Wilcox) Beilke, 90, Fargo, N.D., in August. // Adeline (Moum) Leverson, 89, Fergus Falls, Minn., in September; she is survived by her husband, Lee. // Lois (Lindberg) Myhre, 90, Rolette, N.D., in September; she is survived by her husband, Carl. 1948: David Baarstad, 91, Prescott Valley, Ariz., in August. // Jeanne (Andree) Claypool, 84, Bemidji, Minn., in March 2012. // Wallace Johnson, 93, Spokane, Wash., in August. // Marlys (Buttke) Miller, 88, Casselton, N.D., in May. // Calvin Sebelius, 90, Fargo, N.D., in April; he is survived by his wife, Thelma (Fauske). 1949: (Bertheuson)
Dorothy Cooper, 87,
Arlington Heights, Ill., in May. // Joel Lunde, 88, Fergus Falls, Minn., in March; he is survived by his wife, Alice. // James Mortenson, 91, Fargo, N.D., in May. // LaVanche “Lovey” (Erickson) Stenvold, 88, Grand Forks, N.D., in June. // Dorothea (Lund) Swanstrom, Lemon Grove, Calif., in July. 1950: I. Bernice (Hanson) Albertson, 87, St. Paul, Minn., in July. // Aletta “Bonnie” (Larson) Brady, 86, Minneapolis, in September; she is survived by her husband, Clay. // Janice (Nelson) Leithe, 86, St. Paul, Minn., in June. // Clarice (Undhjem) Walters, 86, Belgrade, Mont., in June; she is survived by her husband, Donald. 1951: Devonne (Engel) Crick, 85, San Luis Obispo, Calif., in March. // Dean Erickson, 86, Fergus Falls, Minn., in April; he is survived by his wife, Elaine. // Gloria (Puckett) Votapka, 85, Pelican Rapids, Minn., in April. 1952: Cecil Johnson, 88, Crystal, Minn., in April. // Beverly (Henning) Peterson, 84, Bismarck, N.D., in September. // Audrey (Berg) Weiss, 84, Rockford, Ill., in December 2014; she is survived by her husband, Edward. 1953: Wesley Haugen, 84, Moorhead, in September; he is survived by his wife, LuAnn (Turmo) ’54. 1954: Eileen (Vaughan) Hahn, 82, Billings, Mont., in April. // Odell Johnson, 83, Fargo, N.D., in September; he is survived by his wife, Arlene. // Orpha (Solwold) Prather, 84, Tioga, N.D., in July. // Duane Sorum, 84, Mandan, N.D., in September.
1955: Thomas Savereide, 82, Hudson, Wis., in April; he is survived by his wife, Ellie. 1956: Sylvia Bratrud, 80, Minneapolis, in August. // Oscar Stene, 89, Fulda, Minn., in May; he is survived by his wife, Pearl (Knudson). 1957: Charles Eidum, 80, Burnsville, Minn., in September; he is survived by his wife, Edna. // Alvin Siegle, 82, Pelican Rapids, Minn., in August; he is survived by his wife, Faye (Solberg). // Alvin Traaseth, 79, Dilworth, Minn., in July; he is survived by his wife, Janet. // Karl Williams, 84, Eagan, Minn., in March; he is survived by his wife, Shirley. 1958: Donna (Dauner) Johnson, 84, Green Valley, Ariz., in September; she is survived by her husband, Richard. 1959: William Coffing, 82, New Brighton, Minn., in April; he is survived by his wife, Ella (Bjornstad). // Ann (Drummond) Hughes, 79, Portland, Maine, in February; she is survived by her husband, Philip. 1960: Wayne Johnson, 77, Bowling Green, Ohio, in May; he is survived by his wife, Marie (Peterson) ’61. 1961: Dorothy (Anderson) Johnson, 75, Minnetonka, Minn., in March; she is survived by her husband, Richard. // The magazine erroneously published the death of Sharon (Feuerherm) Branson in Spring 2015. Thankfully, she is alive and well. We regret the error. 1962: Roger Leopold, 78, Fargo, N.D., in September; he is survived by his wife, Dana.
class notes »
1963: Robert Hanson, 76, Lindstrom, Minn., in May; he is survived by his wife, Katsy. 1965: Lois Lindstrom, 71, St. Cloud, Minn., in May. 1966: Barbara Holth, 70, Maple Grove, Minn., in June. // Stephen Rendahl, 71, Thompson, N.D., in July; he is survived by his wife, Robbin (Maves) ’68. // Timothy Solberg, 70, Minneapolis, in February; he is survived by his wife, Kathleen (Bailey). 1968: Frank Goeson, 70, Colorado Springs, Colo., in September; he is survived by his wife, Ann. // John Tallaksen, 69, St. Paul, Minn., in September. 1971: Darwin Bruesewitz, 66, Isle, Minn., in September; he is survived by his wife, Jeannine (Tonneson). // Dianne (Gudrun) Chase, 66, Spokane, Wash., in April. 1979: Rhonda (Jordheim) Macdonald, 57, Vienna, Va., in March; she is survived by her husband, Jeffrey. 1981: Kristi (Elton) Montplaisir, 56, Gilbert, Ariz., in August; she is survived by her husband, Larry. 1983: Cynthia (Kollar) Smith, 57, Palm Beach, Fla., in June; she is survived by her husband, Don. // Jane (Nelson) Snyder, 54, Moorhead, in June; she is survived by her husband, James. 1986: Mark Dahlberg, 50, Moorhead, in September. 1989: Solveig Haugland, 48, Lafayette, Colo., in August. 2002: Carmen Lalum, 34, Rock Lake, N.D., in April. ◊
IN MEMORIAM
Dr. Clifford Harrison, 84, West Milford, N.J., died July 26. Harrison served as professor and chair of the department of economics and business administration at Concordia from 1986-97. During his tenure, he traveled to Shanghai, Beijing, Xian, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong to meet with Chinese leaders, studying leadership development to enrich a course he taught. In 1991, he participated in a conference on Soviet-American Trade and Economic Cooperation, held at the Kremlin in Moscow to further develop bilateral trade relations. Harrison graduated from Warner Pacific College in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, earned an MBA from the University of Portland in 1962, and a Doctor of Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1986. He spent 31 years employed by Nabisco at its Portland, Ore., plant, ending his career as director of corporate personnel administration at corporate headquarters. He was also professor of management/human resources at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh for two years before joining Concordia’s faculty. He created and directed the Moorhead Police Volunteers program and served as Moorhead police commissioner. He established similar programs in Fargo and Bismarck, N.D. A devoted husband and father, Harrison enjoyed golf and woodworking. He was preceded in death by his wife, Marilyn. He is survived by his daughter, Pamela Adams (Richard); sons, Bradley (Janet) and Gregory (Elona); four grandchildren; and two great-granddaughters. Dr. E. Daniel McKenna, 83, Moorhead, died July 26. McKenna served as Concordia’s director of cooperative education from 1976 until his retirement in 1995. He received the Herman Schneider Award from the international Cooperative Education Association in recognition of his outstanding contributions and accomplishments in the field of cooperative education. After beginning his studies at Valley City State Teacher’s College (now Valley City State University), McKenna enlisted in the Air Force, spending his time in Japan until discharge in 1954. He returned to Valley City State, earning a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and math. He also earned a chemistry degree from North Dakota State University (then Agricultural School), a master’s from Duke University and a doctorate in science education from the University of Georgia. He worked as a chemist for Shell Oil in the '50s in Wood River, Ill., and taught high school chemistry in Kenosha, Wis. He was active in scouting, Camp Fire and PTA. McKenna loved fishing and boating during summers spent at Leaf Lake in Minnesota. He is survived by his wife, Mary Ann; sons, Daniel (Teri) and Patrick (Kristi); daughters, Kathleen Just (Kenley) and Ann Suits ’88 (David); and eight grandchildren. Dr. Daryl Ostercamp, 83, Moorhead, died Sept. 6. He served as professor of chemistry at Concordia from 1960 to 2002. Highly regarded for his research and publication, he received support from the National Science Foundation, the Bush Foundation, and the Concordia Centennial Scholars program. Beyond Concordia, he taught in Saudi Arabia; was an NSF Faculty Fellow at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England; was a Fulbright lecturer at Mosul in Iraq; and a research scholar at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv. His passion for justice led to his leadership of the Joseph Thompson Middle East Lectureship. After attending Waldorf Junior College, Forest City, Iowa, he graduated from St. Olaf College with majors in chemistry and mathematics. He earned a master's in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota, where he was an NSF Graduate Fellow. He was an instructor at Luther College and spent a year as a postdoctoral fellow at Penn State University. Ostercamp received the 1967 Mondamin Teacher of the Year, Nere Sundet Professor of Chemistry and the Flaat Distinguished Scholarship awards from Concordia. He enjoyed gardening, raising gladiolus, making sauce from apples from his backyard tree and doing crossword puzzles. He is survived by his wife, Janet; sons, Stephen (Marie-Francoise) and Daniel (Kristin); and four grandchildren. ◊
note: Class notes and photographs may be submitted online at ConcordiaCollege.edu/classnotes. Deadline for the next issue is March 1, 2016. editor's
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Reformation renovation B y er i n h em m e f r os l i e
ack in October 1517, Martin Luther stomped his way to the Castle Church in the small, university town of Wittenberg, Germany, and did what any frustrated young scholar of the time would do – he posted his protest to the university bulletin board, the church’s north door. As I stood in front of that door in May, I imagined Luther furiously nailing his 95 Theses to the wood and then turning away with an indignant smirk on his face. (Cue: “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”) In a less dramatic scene that also ran through my head, he smashes his thumb, says a choice phrase or two under his breath and quietly returns to his living quarters. Either way, Luther didn’t intend to start a new denomination or even encourage a split from the Catholic church with his actions. And he certainly didn’t expect his arguments would spark a religious, political, intellectual and cultural revolution. But they did – and because of that moment, I’m a Lutheran along with millions of others around the world. Luther was fed up with church leaders of his time and their insistence on selling indulgences to parishioners who hoped to buy their way into heaven (and finance the building of St. Peter’s
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in the process). Today, I like to think, Luther would’ve taken to Twitter: Tired of Purgatory? 95 Reasons to Burn Your Indulgences #HereIStand Thankfully, a door in Germany is a lot more fun to visit than a tweet on my smartphone. And that is why I found myself standing in the shadows of history. In honor of the Reformation’s 500th anniversary, Concordia’s Dovre Center supported the first of two Lutheran Heritage tours in 2015; the second will be in 2017. The purpose of the seminars is to provide the college’s faculty and staff an opportunity to explore the traditions that form the college’s heritage. The experience also encourages participants to consider the ongoing relevance of the Reformation. I traveled with colleagues to many of the famous Luther sites in Germany: Wartburg castle where Luther translated the New Testament into German; the monastery in Erfurt where he lived as a monk; the church in Halle where his death mask can be viewed. And, of course, there was the birthplace of the Reformation, Wittenberg. It’s here that Luther received his doctorate in theology from the university. He befriended educator Philipp Melanchthon and prolific
“ As I stood in front of that door in May, I imagined Luther furiously nailing his 95 Theses to the wood and then turning away with an indignant smirk on his face.”
artist Lucas Cranach the Elder – two movers and shakers that prove it does matter with whom one drinks beer. Luther lived, taught and preached in Wittenberg. He and his wife, Katharina von Bora, raised a family and provided for a steady stream of students and guests who stayed with them. Their home – a wedding gift of a monastery – is now the world’s largest Reformation museum. And, yes, Wittenberg is home to Castle Church, home to Luther’s final resting place and one of the most photographed doors in Europe – even if the originals, which burned in 1760, were replaced with commemorative bronze doors. Our group knew early on that much of Castle Church would be inaccessible during our visit. As the world looks to observe the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017, Wittenberg will play a central role. A metal globe placed in the town’s market square counts down the seconds to the opening observances. Large banners printed with Luther’s likeness hang from the highest towers. Like any welcoming host in the international spotlight, Wittenberg wants to look its best. As a result, many of its historical sites were shrouded in plastic and surrounded with scaffolding. Tours of the city
were punctuated with the echoes of jackhammers and pounding. We were able to visit the Luther House, the Melanchthon House and the Town Church. Castle Church was under construction. Some of the spiffing up in the sleepy village is complete. The Cranach altar painting in the Town Church has been cleaned, and I was told it is more stunning and brighter than before. But there is a lot more to be done in the next two years. So when we arrived at the Castle Church door, we shouldn’t have been completely surprised to find the doors surrounded by fencing. As I was imagining a young Luther pounding his theses, metal grates obstructed my view of history. By strategically placing my camera lens, I took pictures of the door without any signs of construction, an attempt to rewrite my own history.
Wittenberg is under construction as it prepares to host Reformation observances in 2017.
As a group, we stood and snapped the obligatory photo. Luther’s words were engraved on the doors behind us. A wider view of the scene included reminders to wear a hard hat – a wordless sign understandable in any language. As we viewed the historical site, I couldn’t help but think that history is never finished, our heritage is never unchanging. That maybe Luther would’ve found some humor in hard hats. That maybe renovation is what Reformation is all about. ◊
More images from the Lutheran Heritage seminar: ConcordiaCollege.edu/luther
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World-traveling Niblet took to the skies on a sky-diving adventure with Quinn Anderson ’16, Litchfield, Minn. Photo: Quinn Anderson
More Niblet photos: ConcordiaCollege.edu/niblettravels
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