USF Sunday

By: Ben Wollmuth

Homecoming week is often a big week for many schools and universities. It is a time to celebrate the school, new and former students, and the start of the new academic year. For many schools, the events of homecoming culminate in a football game between the home team and one of their rivals. At USF, however, homecoming ends with a church service and a choral performance at the church where USF began.

In 1883, USF was born in the basement of the First Baptist

Church Sioux Falls, only a few blocks away from where the campus would be standing over 100 years later.

USF’s professor of music and director of choral activities, David DeHoogh-Kliewer, says that that bond makes USF Sunday far more than just a celebration of the school itself.

“USF Sunday is a celebration of the foundational relationship between our school and USF’s mother church,” says DeHoogh-Kliewer. “The fact that USF’s homecoming activities conclude with a set of worship services is not only significant [but also] unique among colleges.”

USF Sunday typically features two worship services: one traditional service and one contemporary service. Both services provide a choral performance by USF’s Concert Chorale under the direction of DeHoogh-Kliewer, an annual occurrence that, according to DeHoogh-Kliewer, has been happening for around a century. This year, in preparation for their fall concert on November 6, the Concert Chorale performed four songs. The service began with a greeting and a hymn, which was followed by a three-song set, including “Haleluya! Pelo Tsa Rona,” “His Eye Is on the Sparrow,” and “John the Revelator.” At the end of the service, the Chorale performed “Peace I Leave With You,” a benediction song that acted as a peaceful send-off to those in attendance.

While much of the University of Sioux Falls has changed since it began in the First Baptist basement, including a change in name and a very recent change in logo, USF Sunday has stayed the same. However, the day’s importance is not only recognized by USF students and faculty. “The congregation of First Baptist (Sioux Falls) is engaged in the life of the university,” says DeHoogh-Kliewer. “As our founding church, the congregants of First Baptist Church support the university through prayer, attending university events, and financial provision.” Moreover, USF Sunday shows faculty, students, and supporters just what it means to be part of the school.

“The university’s mission,” says DeHoogh-Kliewer, “is demonstrated in a special way during these worship services, placing our first priority on engaging Christ in a secular world.”

If you happened to miss USF Sunday this year, you will be able to see the Concert Chorale’s continued celebration of USF and its relationship with First Baptist and Christ at the fall concert at First Baptist on November 6.