ROBERT BOLT ’52 | History | 1930–2020 Making the past come alive was the goal for Robert Bolt, who served as a professor in the Calvin history department for 30 years. “History is interesting because you’re talking about people all of the time,” Bolt said in a 1995 interview with Spark. “Who would want to go to Fredericksburg, Virginia, and stand on a ridge staring at a stone wall if it wasn’t for the history there, as Ambrose Burnside tried six times to go up and take those heights during the Civil War?” Bolt, who spent three decades at his alma mater, died March 23. He was 89. He was known for bringing vibrance to the personalities of history. His research interests included both the religions of great American leaders like Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, and Woodrow Wilson, and their humor. Beyond history, all in the department knew of Bolt’s affection for the Detroit Tigers. “Bob and I loved baseball, and he even came to forgive me for being a Red Sox fan,” said Ron Wells, a former colleague.
“He and I were ardent Detroit Tigers fans who had to uphold the team’s honor against the Red Sox and Yankee interlopers who befouled our discussions in the department lounge come spring training season,” added Jim Bratt, another former colleague. Upon his retirement from teaching, Bolt joined the staff at Heritage Hall, where he would spend an additional 22 years working to collect and preserve records for the Christian Reformed Church. “Perhaps the greatest tribute I can give: In all the years we were colleagues in history and continuing in his post-retirement work in Heritage Hall is that I never heard Bob say a negative word about or to anyone,” said former colleague Bert de Vries. “Robert Bolt was truly a man of peace.” Bolt is survived by his children, Jim (Elizabeth) Bolt, Bob (Carol) Bolt, Lynn (Larry) Rosendale, Tim Bolt, Kristin (Scott) VanderHoning; 10 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his
ELSA CORTINA | Spanish | 1926–2020 In the early days of the Calvin Spanish department, finding qualified teachers was a challenge; finding native speakers of the language was a coup that few universities achieved. When Elsa Cortina providentially showed up at Calvin in 1965, far from her home in Camaguey, Cuba, it was clearly a perfect match. Cortina would spend more than 30 years serving the department. Starting as a part-time instructor, she would later chair the department from which she retired in 1990. Cortina, 94, died May 2 in Miami, Florida. As a young married couple, Cortina and her husband, Carlos, were forced to flee Cuba as refugees to America. Eventually, they moved to Grand Rapids so Carlos could attend Calvin Theological Seminary. While in Grand Rapids, Elsa began washing dishes at a local hospital, but her teaching abilities soon earned her a position at a local high school and eventually Calvin.
wife, Carolyn. “She was quickly noted as an excellent teacher,” said Marilyn Bierling, a former student
IN MEMORIAM
and colleague of Cortina’s. “I remember being greatly inspired by her and learning a huge amount. It was especially helpful that she was a native speaker of Spanish, who could also teach us about her culture.” It was Cortina who initiated Calvin’s first semester abroad program in 1983, leading the way for many more to follow. Cortina remained deeply committed to Calvin following her retirement. For many years she continued to teach in the semester abroad program. Later, she was the focus of the “Elsa Cortina Project,” which was developed by Calvin professors Marcie Pyper and Cynthia Slagter as a teaching aid for Spanish students. “She was a godly woman, highly esteemed and dearly loved by her colleagues and students at Calvin,” said Pyper. “I owe so much of my life direction to her faithful influence in my life.” Cortina is survived by her daughter, Elsa Kramer; three grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Carlos.
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