M ESSAGE Grove City College
F ROM
THE
PRES ID EN T
THE POWER OF A VISION
“T
he power of a vision.” That’s an ideal caption for football coach Andrew DiDonato’s post-game speech to his championship winning team on Oct. 28, 2023. With hundreds of thousands of views, the video of this historic moment has gone viral – scan the QR code below to watch it. In it, Coach DiDonato ’10 implores the players to think about how the team’s vision has impacted the program since his appointment as head coach in 2016. This vision, which has been steadfastly embraced by his past teams regardless of their won-lost record, is to glorify God in the pursuit of earning a degree, building lasting relationships, and competing for conference championships. He reminds them that “a vision keeps you focused; a vision keeps you fueled; and a vision helps you finish.” Indeed, this bold vision, skillfully articulated by a passionate young coach, has been at the heart of a eight-year transformation from 0-10 to 10-0. Grove City College has always understood the importance of bold vision. Our founder Isaac Ketler was another young untested leader who, along with Joseph Newton Pew and the help of Andrew Carnegie, envisioned an academically-excellent Christian college with a beautiful campus on the other side of Wolf Creek (what we now call upper campus). Their two sons, Weir and J. Howard, teamed up with names such as Harbison, Crawford, and Babcock, to bring this vision to reality in the form of collegiate-gothic buildings surrounding a central “quad.” And think about the vision of Albert Hopeman and Charles MacKenzie a half century later as they stood their ground against the unwarranted demands of the federal government. Grove City College’s muchadmired independence is the fruit of their courageous vision. As we approach the College’s 150th anniversary, vision remains critically important. There is much work to be done, and we must do it in faithfulness to the principles we have always championed. If glorifying God in competing for championships is an obvious outlier in the world of sports, imagine the distinctiveness in higher education of a vision “grounded in permanent ideas and conservative values.” In addition to being highly distinctive, it has also proven to be a successful identity worthy of our unwavering commitment. Sustaining the College’s vision for another 150 years will require the faithful and generous support of thousands of alumni, friends, and kindred spirits. The success of the Impact 150 campaign is essential because it seeks to fund the priorities and projects most needed at this point in the school’s extraordinary history. Lord willing, Grove City College’s tremendous vision to “develop leaders of the highest proficiency, purpose, and principles ready to advance the common good” will motivate all of us to achieve historic success. Finally, we should note that not all visions are equal. Many visions are misguided, and some are even diabolical. The King James Version of Proverbs 29:18 reads in part, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Though some have sought to hijack this wisdom for political purposes, Solomon is referring to prophetic wisdom. We are being reminded that the best visions are those anchored in the unfailing hope only found in the revelation of God. From the earliest days of Ketler and Pew to the recent years of David Rathburn ’79 and Ed Breen ’78, Grove City College’s vision has embraced this redemptive calling. This is the true power of our vision that will guide us in the years to come. In this Advent season, Brenda and I pray that your vision will be one of hope and joy, inspired by the peace embodied in the manger.
EDITORIAL BOARD Jeffrey Prokovich ’89 Vice President for Advancement Melissa (Trifaro ’96) MacLeod Senior Director of Alumni and College Relations Jacki Muller Senior Director of Marketing and Communications EDITOR Nick Hildebrand Senior Editor, Marketing and Communications ASSOCIATE EDITOR Joanie Baumgartner Director of Advancement Communications DESIGN Justin Harbaugh Art Director/Graphic Designer CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Janice (Zinsner ’87) Inman Advancement Communications Coordinator Amy Evans Associate Director of Advancement Communications Brad Isles Website Manager/Content Coordinator OFFICE OF ALUMNI & COLLEGE RELATIONS Tricia Corey Charlene (Griffin ’83) Shaw Mandy Sposato ’00 Michelle (Jeffries ’19) Vogt COLLEGE ARCHIVES AND GALLERIES Hilary (Lewis ’09) Walczak OFFICE OF DEVELOPMENT Brian Powell ’03 Doug Angle ’20 Jason Burtt ’00 Elizabeth (Smith ’81) Hanley Zach Jew ’11 Randall LaBrie ’20
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION James Dudt ’07 President Steve DeCaspers ’97 Vice President Interior photography by Jason Jones, Justin Harbaugh, Nick Hildebrand, Brad Isles, Kiley (Hajek ’19) Miranda, Gracie Turnbaugh ’23, Grace David ’24, Mia Campagna ’25, Will Hearn ’26, Tiffany Wolfe, Maggie (Williams ’22) Miller
Paul J. McNulty ’80 President Grove City College 100 Campus Drive
Scan this QR code to view the inspiration message from Coach Andrew DiDonato Or visit twitter.com/GCC_FB
Grove City, PA 16127 724.458.2300 888.GCC.GRAD alumni.gcc.edu
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