By Elizabeth Wolbrink
Staff writer

This fall, prospective students will receive more than just an ordinary booklet about Cornerstone University; they will receive a 3-D viewbook.

by Rachel Watson

Sometimes it’s almost as if a chapel speaker holds his listeners by the throat, commanding their attention.

Last week, CU students and faculty members fixed their eyes and ears on guest speaker Dan Kimball, founding member and pastor at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, Calif.

Kimball’s published works include “The Emerging Church,” “They Like Jesus but not the Church” and “Emerging Worship.”

He is known as one of the leaders of the Emerging Church movement and has popularized the idea of “vintage faith,” returning to the historical message of the Gospel.

He came to speak in chapel at Cornerstone April 14 and 15.

“I grew up outside the Christian world,” Kimball said as he began his message the first day. “I knew nothing about the church except George Washington supposedly went there, because that’s what I heard every time I went.”

Despite his unfamiliarity with the Christian message in his youth, Kimball eventually became a Christian, and said he now has a passion for communicating the truth about Jesus.

To illustrate that everyone has biases, he asked students to pick one of two options on a series of three PowerPoint slides: country music vs. hip-hop, Windows vs. Mac and poodles vs. Chihuahuas.

Students engaged with Kimball, laughing at his delivery of the questions, and participating by answering with a show of hands.

After chapel, senior Amy Van Houten shared which elements of Kimball’s delivery stood out to her.

“I liked his untraditional approach to speaking — and his pictures,” she said.

During the message, Kimball said he used the three PowerPoint questions to show that when people come to Jesus, it should be about him, “not about my biases or my prejudices.”

He cited the example of Christ to direct how we should respond in compassion to unbelievers.

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd,” Kimball quoted from Matthew 9:36.

“The word compassion means ‘to have the bowels yearn’ … ‘Angst from the gut’,” Kimball said. “Jesus felt that feeling because he knew they weren’t following the one true Shepherd.”

Kimball said one thing he has noticed in ministry is that “the harvest is plentiful,” meaning people are ready to hear the Gospel. He also said he notices most Christians tend to think of missions in terms of going overseas and reaching out to people in Third World countries, which is only part of its meaning.

“Mission fields are overseas AND here in the USA,” Kimball said. “If we were to scan suburban America for a minute, what would we see?”

Christians, he said, need to use a different missions approach for each culture we enter.

The second half of Kimball’s message focused on the dichotomy between the way non-Christians view Jesus and the way they view his followers.

He conducted “Man on the Street” type interviews on the topic in Santa Cruz and showed the video in chapel. He pointed out that when people were asked about Jesus, their eyes lit up and their tones softened. When they were asked about Christians, the light went out and the door closed down.

Senior Katie Vanderwal was particularly struck by the video.

“I thought the contrast between the two views was really eye opening,” she said. “I know there’s a stereotype of the contrast between the way Christians talk and they way they act, but I didn’t realize it was that real and prevalent.”

In the last few minutes of his message, Kimball said the problem is that as our culture has changed, Christians have not learned how to exist within the change and still be effective messengers of the Gospel.

“Instead of engaging the new culture, we make our own subculture,” he said.

Kimble said if we ever want to share Jesus to the 22-year-old unbeliever at the gym, we will have to break out of that bubble.

CU students lined up to write the Bible for the Bible Across America tour on March 27.

The Bible Across America’s Web site said the tour is a promotional celebration of the 30th anniversary of the New International Version of the Bible published by Zondervan, the world’s leading Bible publisher. The NIV is the most widely read and translated version of the Bible.

The Web site said the tour is traveling the country attempting to collect the 31,173 Scripture verses needed to create a handwritten version of the Bible. With the handwritten verses, two transcripts will be published. One will be donated to the Smithsonian and the other auctioned off to benefit the International Bible Society.

Launching in September of last year from Zondervan’s headquarters in Grand Rapid, the tour has parked its 42-foot motor home donated by Spartan Motors in over 90 cities within 44 states, the Web site said.

Even though only 44 states were visited, contributions from the remaining states were made as well. Cities visited ranged from the deep south of Mobile, Ala., to the windy city of Chicago to the Emerald city of Seattle, Wash., the Web site said.

The seven-month tour was initially supposed to be five months but was extended due to a shortage of contributions, said Emily Kuczynski, public relations associate for Lambert Edwards & Associates. The firm is Zondervan’s public relations firm and is helping with the tour.

Throughout the day, students and area residents stood before a long sheet of white paper placed on an illuminator box and handed a pen and an index card with a Bible verse printed on it. The paper did not have lines but the illuminator box did and was used to help people write in a straight line on the sheet, Kuczynski said.

One by one, students leaned over and showed off their penmanship as each verse was recorded twice on two sheets of paper. Afterwards, students received tour information and a card with their name and the date and Scripture verse they wrote to indicate they just made history as part of the 31,173 contributors.

“It’s a way of uniting Christians from all over America,” Kuczynski said.

Kuczynski said the end product will result in a book called “America’s NIV” and it will be available for purchase in the fall. Inside the book will be an index listing the names of every person who contributed a handwritten Scripture.

Senior Leia Duncan wrote I Timothy 6:10 and came to the event because of its significance.

“It’s an opportunity. It feels kind of like a part of history,” Duncan said. “To be a Christian and for it to be on our campus. I just think it’s something important.”

Kuczynski said when they write, contributors are asked to “take their time and write slowly because it is in pen.” Even so, mistakes do happen. And when they do, volunteers just grab some white-out and the writer rewrites.

Freshman Matt Miller made a mistake when he was writing I Timothy 6:13. He wrote Jesus Christ instead of Christ Jesus. But all was corrected, and he received his history contribution card along with sophomore Rosie Pearson who wrote I Timothy 6:12.

Pearson and Miller came because it was a unique opportunity.

“I think it’s a really cool idea to be able to write a Scripture in the Bible,” Pearson said. “It makes it feel more human and rich and a part of history.”

“It’s a cool way to kind of preserve a kind of legacy here,” Miller said.

Senior Kimmi Van Dyke wrote Romans 3:16 and came because she wanted to take part in something bigger than herself.

“I thought it would be cool to be a part of something big, and even though my words aren’t inspired, the words that I’m writing are and could have an impact on someone’s life,” Van Dyke said.

“We love you, pass it on” was the first sign I saw as I walked into this contemporary deli shop. I was shocked that this hand painted sign hung from the ceiling, and honestly, I ended up smiling. I thought to myself, “We need more love in this world, particularly showing Jesus’s love, the perfect example.

On this particular Saturday, the place was packed, which gave me the impression that it must be delicious, but I did not let that persuade me. I wanted to taste the food for myself.

A good friend of mine came with me, and we discovered that the best way to enter Marie Catribs is through the back door, by where you park.

Our wait was about an hour, but it could be drastically reduced if we sat at the counter, so we agreed. We liked sitting at the counter because we got to watch the chefs prepare our food.

If you come during their busiest hours, do not fret. There is plenty to do within walking distance, while you wait for a table at Marie Catribs.

Right across the street is Global Infusion where you can get tea for two, and there are plenty of little clothing, accessory and gifts shops for browsing.

Our waiter was very personable and even gave us advice about what to eat. I ordered the Handyman sandwich, and my friend ordered the Russian [their most famous sandwich].

There was a wide bread selection and they were open to substitution if you did not like something on your sandwich.

The thick bread was matched by the ingredients inside, creating a healthy and delicious lunch. Yes, a rare occurrence; I just combined the words healthy and delicious. Marie Catribs needs the HD certification, (healthy and delicious) which I just made up, but it is so true.

The freshly baked goods did not weigh down our stomachs and left us feeling full, energized and healthy.

Our sandwiches also came with a cucumber pickle, which was a unique contrast compared to the typical dill pickle that is served with most deli sandwiches.

The atmosphere was casual and positive as the young, friendly servers joked with the customers.

I noticed that the ambiance was not typical, and the employees were a large contributor to this.

They did not wear the typical ugly, big uniforms. Instead they expressed their individual style which made me feel like a neighbor having a casual meal instead of a customer.

We even saw Marie herself. She smiled at us and chatted with numerous customers, making sure everyone was satisfied.

Here are a list of things you must check out when you go: the cucumber pickle, the sugar from Hawaii, the organic fresh food, the wonderful employees, the art and graffiti on the walls, the nice wood tables, and the other baked goods in the deli store!

My one suggestion when you eat at Marie Catribs and have to go to the bathroom is to lock the door behind you. The one stall bathroom doors make it seem like there is more than one stall. Unfortunately, I saw numerous people walk in on others before I used their facilities, so I made sure to lock the door behind me.

I also noticed that Marie Catribs is environmentally and neighborhood friendly. They have the half/full flush toilets that save water, numerous recycling bins, and they even sell some of their cookies and muffins at Global Infusion, just down the road.

The impression I got when I first walked into Marie Catribs was right on target. Many people love Marie’s deli, and even though it was packed, people were willing to wait. I have so many wonderful things I want to write about, but space is tight, so you definitely have to Get Out! for yourself! This restaurant gets my highest rating: a definite 5 out of 5.

According to Michael Young, professor of business and division chair, the emphasis was eliminated from the business department because it did not make it through evaluation by the undergraduate academic council (UAC) in charge of what programs at CU are added or cut.

Part of this evaluation, provost By Baylis said, was the amount of faculty for the degree and “the idea of sports management or marketing could be viewed as part of marketing and management skills.” Since this was the case and there was only one full-time faculty member for the emphasis, eliminating the program was the best choice, he said.

“If you are a good marketing student, and you have a little bit of sports acumen and sports course work, one should be able to be successful in sports marketing and the same for sports management,” Baylis said. Thus, having a specific emphasis is not necessary to have a career in sports management or marketing.

But in the fall 2009 catalogue, a sports management or marketing track will be offered.

“It was felt that it would benefit students if they have some kind of credential,” the provost said. Students could already choose to focus their electives in sports, but by adding the track, it gives the students “some way of identifying what they were doing already,” Baylis said.

The differences between a track and emphasis are few because both are focusing students’ electives in one area and giving it a name for about 12 credit hours, according to Baylis.

But by having a track, “Students will have a way of validating the statement ‘I studied in sports management (or marketing),’” said Baylis.

Young said with this the sports management or marketing track will appear on the student’s transcript. In addition to it showing up on the transcript, students taking the track would focus their electives in four sports courses.

The four courses are Sports Marketing and Sales, Introduction to Sports Management, Sports Media Relations & Event Management and Sports in Society. All of these are new courses at CU except the introduction course, which changed from a kinesiology course to a management course.

While Baylis said it is OK to label what an individual is focusing on, it is more important to gain hands on experience in the field you are studying.

“An internship in that area can be of much greater assistance,” Baylis said.

Dave Grube, athletic director, teaches sports management and marketing classes.

“When he teaches, his class has always required a practicum,” Young said, speaking of Grube. This provides the hands-on experience Baylis is looking for within the track.

In fact, three of the four classes require some sort of practicum. Introduction to Sports Management is the only one that does not require one.

“When being interviewed for a job, it’s good to be able to tell [about your experience],” Young said.

Grube is not the only professor who teaches these courses. Mike Riemersma, CU women’s basketball assistant coach and Champions of Character Representative, also teaches some of these courses.

After giving students the recognition for the area they are studying in, the program was also brought back because around 25 percent of the student body at CU is involved in intercollegiate or intramural sports, Young said.

He said prospective students have also shown an interest in this program. Five students visiting this past fall chose the sports management or marketing track.

Thus, Young said, “I believe there is a demand for this.”

Herald/Robbie Scudder MATT KINGSHOTT: and Kyle Cohen side-bump during pregame introductions

He’s not the superstar of the basketball team - or even on the roster.

But Kyle Cohen takes his role — all 15 seconds of it — just as seriously as any member of the team. And without him, team captain Matt Kingshott would be lost.

Cohen is his personal one-man-warm-up-squad.

Before each home game, he’s the fan who runs out from the student section to shoulder-bump Kingshott in mid-air as part of a pregame introduction routine for the Golden Eagles’ leading scorer and rebounder.

As the starters are introduced, Cohen shakes the jitters out, waiting for Kingshott’s name to be called last. Then he races several steps onto the court and leaps in the air to meet Kingshott near the free throw line three feet above ground level.

“It brings a new level of intensity for me,” Kingshott said. “It gets me ready for the game mentally. This is just another way to get me focused.”

For Cohen, it’s his one moment of glory — his moment of sheer joy and excitement. His 15 seconds of fame. And Cohen, a junior, wouldn’t miss it for anything.

“I was late for work. I was like 15 minutes late,” Cohen said about the recent homecoming game. “I didn’t want to blow off Kingshott, and I thought that would show a sign of … commitment. I don’t want him to get mad before a game, or discouraged.”

Inspired is more like it.

“That’s truly dedicated to the side-bump,” Kingshott said several days after the game when he realized Cohen showed up late for work to squeeze the side-bump into his schedule. “That’s impressive.

“I just see Cohen as a dedicated Cornerstone basketball fan. I think it’s another way for him to get involved in the basketball games. He’s at almost all the games, and he’s always near the front row cheering.”

Cohen spends all day preparing for his moment in the spotlight.

“Yeah, it’s more like I have to focus mentally, you know? And have in my mind what I’m going to do, what it’s going to look like, and make sure I don’t mess anything up.

“I almost did the game before last. My shoes were wet and I slipped on the floor. I seemed to regain my momentum, but it didn’t seem like as good of a shoulder-bump as I wanted it to be.”

He analyzes each shoulder-bump to see how they can improve.

“I noticed that every time we jump, he has his handout and mine are tucked in,” Cohen said. “It would be better if I could work on getting my hands out…”

Like a Golden Eagle soaring?

“Yeah, like that.”

Cohen got the job after the previous side-bumper was late, and he does not want to lose the role.

Cohen said Kingshott used to call the prior bumper, “My boy,” “but now that I’ve been doing it, it kind of raised my level of friendship with him. That’s how Kingshott sees it, anyway.”

And he does.

“Kyle and I are pretty good friends,” Kingshott said. “We get along really well. It’s just a really good friendship that we have, because it’s just really easy going and laidback.”

Every other starter side-bumps with teammate Dennis Jones during the pregame introductions, but at the beginning of the season Kingshott started the relatively new ritual to recognize his fans.

“I just wanted to do something to show that I’m glad that we have fans that come to the games, and I appreciate each one of them,” Kingshott said. “I think the more people you get involved, the more intensity you can bring to the game.”

Ever since, Kingshott has made sure Cohen shows up to each home game.

“I think it’s 50-50 both ways,” Kingshott said. “We both make sure and know that it’s going to happen.”

“If he sees me in person, he’ll ask me,” Cohen said. “But if not, he’ll text me over the phone and say, ‘Yo, shoulder-bump today?’ I’ll say, ‘Yeah, sure.’ If he can’t reach me over the phone, he’ll usually message me on Facebook.”

Cohen said it was “nerve-racking” at first.

“But right before we shoulder-bump, it’s kind of an energy rush,” Cohen said.” It gets me pumped too. It makes me feel special. It makes me feel like I’m kind of part of the team.”

Kingshott agreed.

“Anybody that comes to any of the Cornerstone basketball games and supports us is part of our team,” he said.

Courtesy/Chantal Steggs

Two years of campaigning and strategy paid off for sophomore Joe Steggs earlier this month when he was announced student body president for the 2009-10 school year at Cornerstone.

“I walked up to [Student Body President] Simeon Brace freshmen year, introduced myself and said, ‘Hi, my name’s Joe Steggs, and I’ll be taking your job in two years.’ And that’s this year,” Steggs said. “He gave me a big smile and said that would be great, and we’ve been talking about it ever since.”

The student government (CUSG) elections were held on Friday, Feb. 13. Steggs, who served as class senator, vice president and president in high school, received 57 percent of the vote to defeat sophomore Libby Burton (37 percent). Amanda Smith, who was the only student to run for executive vice president of legislation, received 73 percent of the vote, more than the 10 percent needed to win. 371 students voted.

“I think Joe is definitely experienced in running student governments,” Brace said. “I believe he wants it. I believe he has definite goals. He’s definitely an idea guy.”

Steggs said he wants to “improve the communication flow” at Cornerstone and develop a “more concentrated missions focus.”

“Cornerstone’s stuck in the 1990s as far as communication,” Steggs said. “When we rely solely on emails for communicating with each other it’s time for an update. Visual media is a communication medium of the present and that’s what we need.”

Steggs plans to develop Cornerstone video channels on YouTube and Eagle’s Nest to advertise sporting events, CUSG activities, hall council activities and organizational activities, as part of an effort to improve school spirit.

“It’s definitely high on the priority list,” he said. “Half the people on campus don’t realize when [events are] going to be, and that’s why they don’t go because they don’t know,” Steggs said.

He also plans to designate office hours in each dorm for student government executives.

“That way it would make them more approachable to students,” Steggs said. “Because one compliant I’ve heard is that students don’t feel CUSG is approachable for their concerns about campus life.

“I strongly believe in brining CUSG to the students, instead of making the students come to CUSG.”

John Warren, Associate Dean of Student Services and CUSG adviser, said he is hoping to see Steggs’ administration build on the success that Brace’s administration has established.

“I would like to see them more active and more connected with areas of the campus,” Warren said. “I think this year’s group has some great ideas that I would like to see carried on, and hopefully to transition some of that.”

Brace, who will finish out the semester as student body president, said Steggs’ training will begin immediately.

“I want to have Joe in here as much as possible shadowing me,” Brace said. “And I’ll go over everything that I do. He’ll go with me to meetings. I’ll explain why I do things, how I do things and anything else that comes to mind. I want him to be as best equipped as possible.”

CUSG is looking to fill several positions for next year, including Vice President of Marketing, Vice President of Finance and Records, Vice President of Student Organizations and Vice President of Student Activities. Once Steggs’ cabinet is filled, Brace plans to supervise group bonding activities, as well as have his team walk through the ins-and-outs of the various jobs with Steggs’ team.

Credit: CU Website

Video of Kingsbury’s First Race Back

Credit: CU Athletic Website

Kendra Ross left more than one fingerprint on the Cornerstone community when she passed away in a tragic car accident a year ago today.

Handfuls of her fingerprints have poured down all around campus even after her death, and it was never more evident than on the anniversary of her death when the community flooded into the gymnasium for a chapel in her memory.

This time it wasn’t about the chapel credit, or waking up early to get there. It wasn’t about the music, or the special speaker. It was about Kendra. It was about a young woman who left a greater impact on the Cornerstone family than she ever would have imagined.

It’s been a long time since the CU community has fully gathered together so vibrantly. The crowd was completely mesmerized, and each face was awestruck.

But the sad thing is that it shouldn’t take a death to bring us together. We shouldn’t wait for something tragic to happen to embrace what we have. We should celebrate life while we still have a chance with each breath God gives us.

On this day, we mourn a terrible death. But we also witness a miracle.

Kendra Ross wasn’t alone in the car accident. Katey Kingsbury was sitting right next to her with just as little a chance to live. The two track teammates had run their last race as far as doctors were concerned, and even as Kingsbury amazingly pulled through, no one expected her to make a return to the team.

But here she is. And on the anniversary of the accident, she will make one of the most amazing comebacks in Cornerstone history when she competes at Grand Valley State University tonight at 8:10 p.m.

We will never forget Kendra Ross, but we cannot forget to celebrate the miracle God has blessed our campus with in Katey Kingsbury.

– Tim Devaney, Your Sports Editor.

Thirteen other awards The Herald won were 2^nd place Investigative Reporting for Laurie Hekman’s “Campus Safety uses e-bay to solve theft”; 1^st place Overall Newspaper Design; 1^st place News Page Design; 1^st place Feature Page Design; 3^rd place Sports News for Tim Devaney’s “Athletes express remorse for infractions”; Sports News honorable mention for Katherine Wisen’s “Athletes’ drinking policy will be stricter”; 2^nd place Sports Feature for Amena Anderson’s “The faithful team manager”; 1^st and 2^nd place Sports Column for Tim Devaney’s “Impending summer makes for difficult decisions” and Lisa Heasley’s “Facebook photos”; 2^nd and 3^rd place Sports Photos for Helen Andrews’ “The woman behind the team” and Tim Devaney’s “Men’s soccer”; 2^nd place Feature Photo for Tamara Jackson’s “Home away from Kenya”; and 1^st place Column for Steven Lister’s “A ‘Christian’ article.”

Alan Blanchard, associate professor of journalism and The Herald adviser, said he was “blown away” when he heard the news.

“God has been very good to The Herald by providing it with intelligent, hard-working student journalists who continue to improve the quality and credibility of this student newspaper,” he said. “Honestly, when I first learned about the awards I was very excited for last year’s top Herald editors Laurie Hekman and Sarah Heth, who worked tirelessly to make last year’s student newspaper best in appearance and content.”

Blanchard added that Hekman and Heth could not have pulled it off without help from other Herald writers, photographers and editors, including Amena Anderson, Rachel Watson, Melissa Kersjes, Tim Devaney, Lisa Heasley, Katherine Wisen, Lauren Hines and others.

Above all, though, Blanchard said he was humbled to realize The Herald had been named 1^st place winner for General Excellence amid a sea of competitors such as Calvin College, Albion College, Hillsdale College, Ferris State University and Saginaw Valley State University, also Division II weekly newspapers.

When CU Provost By Baylis heard about the awards, he offered his congratulations to The Herald staff.

“Putting a paper together, week after week, and doing a consistently good job takes a high level of dedication, a commitment to excellence, and a devotion to duty,” he said. “Judge after judge commented on the professionalism of writing and appearance. It is nice to have others recognize what we on campus see week after week.”

Michael Cuffman, chair of the Communication and Media Studies Division, also shared his delight about the awards.

“The Herald has won awards in the past several years, but winning the [1^st place General Excellence award] was especially exciting. To see that our students are excelling at that level is just very exciting.”

Cuffman attributed a lot of the success to Blanchard, but also said credit belongs to the students who work so hard. He said he appreciates the role they play in Cornerstone’s culture.

“I think in terms of layout, in terms of quality, The Herald is top notch. It is visually attractive, but it is also timely and relevant,” he said.

“It used to be that The Herald was irrelevant, but in the last 10 years it has become a relevant part of our campus culture, to the point where I would have a hard time thinking about our campus without it,” Cuffman said. “People are enjoying it.”

Knott and his family have lived in Zeeland, Mich. for the past nine years, but he has worked at several organizations before settling in the Midwest. While working as the senior area director at World Vision, Knott oversaw a group of field representatives who covered nine states.

Before Knott worked in fundraising, he served on the pastoral staff at Woodmen Valley Chapel in Colorado Springs, Col. After Knott was done working at the church in 1995, a friend asked him about doing pastoral ministry in another way.
Knott then spent three and a half years as a part of the Focus on the Family’s ministry which involved “going out and being friends to their donors. It was just a natural way for them to raise money,” Knott said.
His transition to fundraising was unconventional.
“I actually kind of came in through the back door,” Knott said. Through his experiences, Knott has gained a local mentality through working with a local church, working on national level with Focus on the Family and then a global level with World Vision. Knott said that God had provided a unique set of skills because of the different opportunities and experiences.

Joe Stowell, president of Cornerstone, viewed Knott’s previous work as beneficial to the institution.

“The fact that [Knott] has worked in Advancement here in West Michigan for 15 years, both with Focus on the Family and World Vision, is a real ‘plus,’” Stowell said in an e-mail. “It means he understands the philanthropic pulse of West Michigan and is highly networked in terms of donor potential.”

Stowell said that Knott has already fit well into the CU Cabinet and his leadership position within advancement.

“Bill stood head and shoulders above other candidates in terms of our profile for the job,” Stowell said. “I’m thrilled that he’s on the team! I’m looking forward to working with Bill, not just on the fundraising front but as a friend and colleague.”

Although Knott has worked with fundraising before, he acknowledged that money can be a sensitive topic but offered solutions.

“Basically all our lives in the kingdom of God are lived in relationships with other people,” Knott said. “We have a responsibility with those relationships to bring our spiritual lives to them in a holistic way. In that, one of the most difficult things to talk about is our financial lives.” Knott said that work in advancement brings together the spiritual side and practical part of financial giving.

Looking toward the future, Knott shared his vision for the future of advancement at Cornerstone.

“From where I sit, what I see is just that a group of dedicated friends of Cornerstone who would come along financially and that God would just use them to give financial help on this extraordinary journey,” Knott said. “That we would be known as a place where generosity is encouraged and that life in Christ is found.”

In order to accomplish this hope for the future, Knott said that it requires students, faculty and staff to communicate what God is doing in their lives. He said that whether someone gives $10 or $10 million, everyone deserves to hear the story about what God is doing.

Five to ten years down the road, Knott hopes to have vibrant, involved alumni that are doing social networking and sending back stories about what God is doing through them.

Despite economic difficulties and political instability, Knott said that now is still a great time to come on board.

“To make a change and be a part of what God is going to do at Cornerstone. This is a faith venture,” Knott said. “Dr. Stowell has very great leadership skills, other people on staff and faculty have excellent skills. It comes down to are we going to rely on our faith in God and see how he works.”

Knott’s new job in advancement offers him a welcomed change with new challenges.

“I think what excites me is what I see in the student life,” Knott said. “I see a great a group of excited men and women who see all the opportunities the world has to offer and how they can contribute to that in the world.

“For me to come in and help them equip their vision, through the great group of friends and donors who have come around Cornerstone over the last 67 years, that is what excites me – to facilitate the dreams, hopes and aspirations of a generation of young adults.”

Wittmer is a professor of systematic theology at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. He started working at GRTS in 1996 as an adjunct professor and became full-time in 2000. Wittmer first had the idea to write this book a couple years ago when he noticed that the questions his students were asking started changing.

He said his students started asking questions about things he used to assume they knew. Wittmer said the questions were “about sin, the Atonement, other religions, Hell, and Scripture.”

He wrote the book to address the questions this generation of students is asking.

Wittmer said that the emergent church believes in order to be a Christian people do not have to necessarily believe Christ as the Son of God; they just need to love.

“It doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you love,” Wittmer said is the mantra of the emergent church. He said that they use “following Jesus as a substitute for believing in Jesus.”

On the other hand, Wittmer said he grew up where all he had to do was “say a prayer and be saved. That’s it,” he said. “Following Jesus [was] optional.”

Wittmer said that his book confronts these opposites and “argues for a third way that transcends both.”

“We should believe like the conservatives say and love like the liberals say,” Wittmer said. “It is a false choice to say believe or love.”

Thus, his book asks 10 key questions that address the above mentioned matters.

Wittmer said every chapter begins with a “fundamentalist extreme” and then discusses a balance between this and the emergent church’s view.

Several examples of these questions are reflected in Wittmer’s chapter titles: “Which Is Worse Homosexuals or the Bigots Who Persecute Them?,” “Is Hell For Real and Forever?” and “Must You Believe Something To Be Saved?”

A couple of Cornerstone faculty members familiar with the book had nothing but good things to say.

Douglas Fagerstrom, president of GRTS, said the book “addresses and initiates a thought provoking dialogue on the emergent/postmodern discussion of the direction of Christ’s church.”

Fagerstrom said the book fits well with Dr. Stowell encouraging students to embrace the person, work and word of Jesus.

“This [book] fully engages our young adult culture. It opens up an honest and meaningful conversation,” Fagerstrom said.

Speaking of the content of the book, Fagerstrom said, “I would love to see an open forum of students and faculty coming together to participate in this dialogue.”

“It’s of benefit to the church,” said John Duff, associate professor of Bible, about the book.

“I think it’s well articulated…and accessible to the average reader. It’s not too technical,” he said. This makes the book even easier to grasp for students, not only in content but also in how it reads.

Duff said that Wittmer “wants to say that right belief and right behavior are both emphasized in Scripture.” Duff said he agreed with him.

Duff said, while the book is written primarily for believers, he would encourage everybody to read it.

“It’s very relevant to our community, students and it’s just really relevant to the church in North America,” Duff said.

Duff has used the pre-published book as a supplemental text in his Theology I class and said he might use it in Theology II or Christian Theology. He said the responses that he received from his class were all positive.

“I think the book is timely, and its message reflects the tenor of scripture, that both belief and behavior matter to God,” Duff said.

“Don’t Stop Believing” was not Wittmer’s first book. Wittmer said the first book he wrote, “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” was also a 1980s pop song, and he hopes to write a third book in the future entitled “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” He is still working out the ideas for that book, however.

Wittmer said he wants any book he writes to “have theological depth, but communicate to a general audience.”

“I hope that the book generates a conversation about the essentials of the Christian faith,” Wittmer said.

After three and a half years of solidifying contracts, writing and editing, the book will hit the shelves on Dec. 1.

A byproduct of their admiration for novelist Wendell Berry, Bonzo and Stevens’ work serves as an explanation of Berry’s ideology of life and seeks to explain how it can be applied on three levels: within families, within households and within communities.

“What we were trying to do is to make his work more accessible and more well-known to the churched world,” Bonzo said.

Berry believes that meaningful lives are directly related to healthy communities. Such communities are composed of people intentionally keeping things local. In contrast, the emphasis on global economics and greedy corporations has resulted in fragmented communities, a loss of communal identity and a disregard for environmental responsibility.

“Healthy lives are lived in finite, intelligibly-sized and -shaped communities,” Stevens said, “not anonymously out in a global world at large knowing only my own individual pod, but in intelligible, local communities.”

According to Bonzo, a common misconception is that by making everything “bigger” through corporations and globalization, people are being unified.

“Getting bigger, going corporate is actually more fragmented,” Bonzo said. “Fragmentation is the problem; further fragmentation is not the solution. At some point you have to put it back together again.”

For Bonzo and Stevens, healthy communities are the answer. These are formed through choices such as dependence on local farms rather than large corporations, investment in the lives of others within your community and viewing communities as long-term commitments. However, such choices are only effective if made by all members of the community.

“It has to be a communal activity,” Bonzo said. “I think individuals trying to do it by themselves would fail pretty quickly.”

Practically speaking, this type of activity is seen through choices such as going to local restaurants, sharing meals with other families and becoming involved in community supported farms, such as Bonzo’s own farm in Sand Lake, Mich.

Both writers hope that, through their book, they will be able to encourage the church to be the “nexus of a local community” rather than a “place with a parking lot that a bunch of people drive in and drive out of.”

For Stevens, the current economic crisis has provided an ample opportunity for people in the church to explore Berry’s ideas.

“Instead of thinking things in terms of, ‘Oh my gosh, [we’re having] this tragic fallout’ they could say, ‘Here’s an opportunity to do things better,’” Stevens said. “If we can make the kind of choices that Wendell’s been writing about for 40 years, we might find life bolder rather than empty, tragic and disastrous as people have talked about.”

 “It presents [people] with an alternative,” Bonzo said. “There are ways to conceive of economic exchanges that aren’t rooted in greed, that are actually rooted in care and in an awareness of your local community.”

Ultimately, Bonzo and Stevens believe an emphasis on community is not about affecting people economically but instead improving their quality of life.

“It’s not only better in an economic sense; it’s just a better way to live,” Stevens said. “It’s just more full of life and character and imagination than the sort of modes offered to us in our culture where all the strip malls look the same, every town looks the same, every city looks the same.”

“For me to take my kids up to Bonzo’s farm, run around in the fields, destroy half the stuff and pick some of it, ride in the tractor – it’s a more beautiful way to live than just going to Meijer every week.”

GiveStrong, CUSG’s annual fundraiser, will consist of three drives for which students can volunteer time, money and goods. The event will run from Wednesday, Nov. 19 to Saturday, Dec. 6. Sign-ups for Salvation Army bell ringing will be available Nov. 19-21.

Lindsey Jacobs, CUSG vice president of student organizations, is heading up the fundraiser that focuses on helping three local groups: Salvation Army, Grand Rapids Housing Commission and Safe Haven Ministries.

Salvation Army is the recipient of volunteered time. Students will be able to sign-up to ring bells at different spots around Grand Rapids for the organization’s most prominent fundraising effort.

GiveStrong is also accepting donated goods for the Leonard Terrace Apartments, run by the Grand Rapids Housing Commission. The organization provides apartments to low-income seniors citizens. CUSG will be donating goods like can goods, toiletries, food and laundry detergent.

Safe Haven Ministries is the third organization GiveStrong will support, in this case financially.

“I think they have a wonderful ministry,” said Bethany Henning, president of Socially Aware Students. “It is a refuge place for people saved from domestic abuse or violence…and they can stay as long as they need.”

Jacobs hopes to have all of CU involved.

“I believe it is something that can really unite the campus,” Jacobs said.

Another reason for students to be involved is a celebration at the end of all the work. As a new addition from previous years, Jacobs is planning to end GiveStrong with a dessert and dance on Saturday, Dec. 6.

“We are hoping that speakers can come in from the different organizations we are donating to,” Jacobs said. “It will be a really nice time to celebrate the Christmas season together.”

The three drives offer unique ways to help out the community. 

Most residents of the Leonard Terrace Apartments live on a fixed-income and donating goods to the organization helps fill their pantry, according to Jacobs. People in the apartments who cannot make ends meet often will utilize the resources of the apartment’s pantry.

 Socially Aware Students chose Safe Haven Ministries as one of the organizations to support. Henning said they decided on the ministry because it is less known.

“We chose Safe Haven because that is not too overly broadcasted and not a lot of people know about them,” Henning said. “I think they have a wonderful ministry.” 

Henning also noted that there is a Cornerstone connection with the ministry. Junior Courtney Figgins, a member of Socially Aware Students, has been doing community service for Safe Haven.     

Christmas drives and fundraising during past years at Cornerstone presented conflict because resources were scattered.

“Basically a couple years back around this time, there would be a million drives around campus,” Jacobs said. “Every dorm would have a drive going on, what it meant was that nothing was being raised.”

In order to solve that problem, CUSG decided to consolidate all their efforts into three drives and try to discourage dorms from doing their own. GiveStrong is now a few years old and concentrating its efforts.

Jacobs stressed the unique opportunity for students to be involved.

“I hope they understand that it is really a time to give back to communities at a time when it is really needed and will be really appreciated,” Jacobs said.

Henning also supported students getting involved with GiveStrong.

“I think that it is good for us to take the time out and give back to other things around the community,” Henning said. “We have been blessed in so many areas that we can forget to give back. I think that Christmas is a great time to get involved.”

Mollhagen is back in the states on a short furlough and looking for more support for the children’s home.

The orphanage has many needs.  Currently, OAFA is seeking to purchasing land in which to build an orphanage.  Until now, OAFA has rented buildings in which to house the children. 

Unlike previous years, Mollhagen pushed the need for a partnership between OAFA and Cornerstone.

“This can be like another arm for Cornerstone,” Mollhagen said.  “We want a partnership so they can come teach us.  A one-time thing is not going to cut it.  We want to hold hands together in the knowledge of Christ.”

“Thomas has a heart for Cornerstone and knows the climate here,” said Erin Jewell, senior.  “By just knowing people from Cornerstone, and seeing the character that people possess, that’s why he wants involvement so much.”

“Basically, we are supported by [Cornerstone] students,” Mollhagen said. “We’d like to see Administration get involved.”

Gerald Longjohn, director of ministry development, said he is interested in working with OAFA.

“We are so excited about what Thomas is doing, and we’d love to look at India as a place of partnership for cornerstone,” Longjohn said.

But the partnership is in the “early stages.”

“It has potential,” Longjohn said. “We’d love to continue looking at how we can partner with OAFA… It’s a little early to tell, but I certainly love the entrepreneurial nature of what Thomas is doing.”

Many of the children at OAFA have been molested and experienced abuse both physically and verbally.

“If we can have social workers, we want them to come,” Mollhagen said.

Mollhagen also hopes education majors can come teach the children English.

“The kids need to know English to be successful,” Mollhagen said.

Beyond that, Mollhagen is working to make the orphanage sustainable.

“Our goal is to buy land and build farms that sustain and support it,” Mollhagen said.

According to Mollhagen, “Crossroads Bible Church promised three acres of land,” in which to build housing for the children.

Jewell is passionate about Mollhagen’s mission because of its natural, spirit led beginning.

“It was completely grassroots,” Jewell said.  “That’s why I love it … and I’m sure to that community, that someone of their same ethnicity who left and came back from ‘prosperous America’ is back and helping his own [is huge].  Any ministry class you go in, they always say that the people have the most impact are those who are one of their own.  And that’s what Thomas is doing.  So it’s great.”

While the needs for OAFA are great, everyone can help somehow, whether by going on a trip to India and getting their hands dirty, or by opening their wallets and giving a donation.”

“A chicken costs $2,” Mollhagen said.  “A lot of people can give $2.”

by Jenna Whalley

Waiting in a surprisingly long line Tuesday morning, I found myself contemplating the choice which lay before me. It was simple really, two polarized options, both and neither of which represented my values; by virtue of narrow constraints, a choice of non-choice. I stood, gazing anxiously toward the open church doors, basking in the warm, sunny weather which was more characteristic of a Michigan May than a Michigan November. People around me chatted excitedly and checked their watches. Although listening with great interest, I chose to disengage myself from the political banter peppering the conversations of my fellow Americans also waiting. My decided method of evading the insanity that was the culmination of a year and a half of feverish campaigning, millions spent, propagandist advertising, shameless media hype, and a country divided along lines of its own patriotic colors: “Waiting for Godot”.

For those of you unfamiliar with the play, it has a fairly basic story line. The curtain opens upon two rather rough looking gentlemen who are waiting near the side of a country road (in other words, nowhere in particular). It shortly becomes apparent that they are intending to join a man named Godot (whom they have never met) and that this is not the first time they have waited for him in what they feel mostly certain is the same spot. As the day passes the two toss around somewhat amusing and even less relevant conversational topics, all the while giving the indication each dialogue is previously traversed territory. Strangely, Estragon can never seem to recall the discourses or the events of the day prior; yet his companion, Vladimir, assures him of the repetitious nature of their actions.

As they wait, Estragon, forgetting their purpose, repeatedly makes the suggestion to leave. Valdimir reminds him that they should stay in anticipation of Godot and the ambiguously unexplained salvation of sorts he is expected to bring. Thus, perceiving the choice to be made for them, the two men resign themselves to the only foreseeable thing there is to do: wait. As they wait, various other characters drift through, each somehow more pathetic in their enterprises than the two men who have done naught but sit in a field for an unnamed number of days doing nothing. Near sunset on the day on which Act 1 began, a young messenger arrives. Relayed is an apology that Godot was not able to meet the two main characters that day and also a promise that he would surely meet them during the next.

As night falls, Estragon and Vladimir discuss leaving their desolate location and returning the next morning to wait again for Godot. After they agree upon this plan, Act I ends with the fateful italicized words “they do not move”. Act II repeats all the events of the prior act with only slight variation. Godot, despite the hopes of Vladimir and Estragon and the promises of the young courier, never comes. Again a message is sent with the promise that Godot will instead come the next day. Vladimir and Estragon, seeing nothing to do but wait, discuss leaving but decide against it. Thus, they do not move.

For those of you familiar with the traditional interpretation that Becket is commenting on the overarching meaninglessness of life by giving his characters nothing of value to do but wait for a deliverance which will never come, bear with me. I am going to take a decidedly more exploratory approach. As I stood, waiting, in line at the polls, I couldn’t resist the urge to write down some of the hilarious, clever, awkward, brainless, and downright offensive comments I overheard. Having nothing to write on but the pages of “Waiting for Godot” I was struck with the idea to keep an Election Day journal in the margins of the play. From 7am until Obama’s midnight acceptance speech, I wrote down every political comment I heard, every media advertisement for either candidate, and every personal observation about the process. Now, I have to say, America, I am unimpressed.

I do not believe that the meaninglessness Estragon’s and Vladimir’s existence is imposed upon them. Nor do I believe it is a universal description to be applied to all of reality (as viewed from within the play). The other characters may not have ‘meaning’ in the sense of ‘value’, yet they have context and thus change, potential, and identity. For them there is a coming and a going, a thing behind and a thing ahead. There is no denying, however, that the journey enacted by the characters merely ‘passing through’ is not an appealing one. Perhaps, this is why Vladimir and Estragon find themselves waiting. Maybe there is nothing to do because the world presented nothing of lasting value to be done. Hence, the obvious necessity is to wait for some grander purpose – to wait for Godot.

Vladimir and Estragon, then, are trapped by their own limitations. Pretend for a moment that Godot could come, that he did come, would it not validate the waiting? Yet, Godot will not come; consequently the waiting can have no value. Nevertheless, the two men see only the option of waiting. The choice of leaving, were it possible for them, is merely illuminated by the necessity that they do the opposite. Therefore, the stage, the country spot on the side of the road, embodies the full extent of their consciousness.

The problem is a cyclical one. Despite the discussions of leaving, the boundaries of their perception are not to be preempted. The fact that the two men are unable to transcend themselves forces them to wait; and yet, it is simultaneously the waiting which keeps them from transcendence. In this pervasive blindness lies their fatal flaw. They have no past, no place from which they came; they have no future, no location toward which they are moving. Each day repeats itself, there is no change. Unlike the other characters, with their comings and their goings, Vladimir and Estragon have no context; they are an island to themselves, a nowhere residing amidst an infinite possibility of anywheres. They lead, if anything, a non-existence. For, just as words cannot have meaning without context, so human beings also cannot have existence without a reference point. Surely to leave, in any manner, would be naught but life for them.

As I waited to cast my vote Tuesday morning and watched throughout the rest of the day as results from the massive waves of others who did the same trickled in, I couldn’t help but draw the parallel to Vladimir and Estragon’s self-imposed lingering. How many of us can say we’ve taken substantial practical action toward the betterment of this, our country? Yet, how many of us complain daily that we do not favor the direction in which it is going? What are we, simply puppets along for the ride? Pawns ushered around in a political scheme to grand for our small influence? “I’m the apathetic voter” I heard one American say, “they tell you that your vote matters, but it really doesn’t.”

What, are we so like Estragon that we don’t know our own history? Or are we merely Vladimir in our failure to apply it? Have we forgotten the founding of this country? The great political empire which was thrown off to birth a new nation? Have we so over-fed the executive branch that we have now given ourselves back to such an empire? Whatever happened to “government by the people, for the people”? Where are we, the people, in this equation that our government no longer fears us?

We’ve consigned ourselves to waiting, haven’t we? Perhaps we didn’t like our other options. Maybe we don’t agree with the various avenues through which others have attempted action. Is it possible that involvement itself no longer appeals to us? We’ve come again to a time when “the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot”, in crisis, “shrink from the service or their country”. How sad that our definition of liberty and duty to one’s country is driving 20 minutes to stand in line for a half hour in order to cast a ballot then proceeding to gripe later about how “voting isn’t accessible enough”. But a majority of us don’t vote to make a difference, we vote because we hope that one of the two guys running will be the one to save us from this mess we’ve created.

We’re the cause of our own problem. We’ve raised a selfish, consumeristic, individualistic, hedonistic, narcissistic, greed-driven culture which seems only capable of asking “what can my country do for me?”. We’re so blinded by ourselves we do nothing to stop the decline of our nation. We cannot leave. We fail to think beyond our little grassy knoll on the side of the road. We subconsciously fall in line when “conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth”. We vote. And then we wait and hope the guy who wins will fix it all.

But we as a nation can’t even manage to vote well. I spoke to too many people who readily admitted they had not researched the candidate’s positions before going to the polls. Contrary to popular belief, it is not an adequate excuse to claim “the media tells us how to vote”. This is only true if the citizens of this country are too lazy to dig a little and make their own decision. I should add that it is also not legitimate to scream “this is the media’s fault” when the democratic process does not bestow upon us the president we desired.

How can we be so irresponsible as a nation? To those who said something like “if he’s elected I’m moving to Canada”, will you be a better citizen there? If Canada then discontented you, where would you flee? I do not want to hear one more person say “I voted to get the free coffee” (especially if they’re to add “I don’t even like coffee”). Please, let’s at least show some respect for the freedoms we’re blessed with – they did not come cheaply.

Yet, we’re shameless when it comes to the neglect of our duty as citizens. We enthusiastically declare, “I could have voted today, but I did something better: I prayed.” Have we no political responsibility under God? No accountability to the communities in which we dwell if “we’re just a’ passin’ through?” I speak to you, Christians: are we not to be His hands and feet? We cannot substitute prayer for government. Rather, we should seek God’s will in prayer and then begin the arduous quest of trying to apply it.

Americans, what happened to the values of duty, honor, and country? Furthermore, what about those of faith, hope, and love? On Election Day we stood, not as a common people expressing a shared and deeply valued freedom, but as a nation divided against itself. Along partisan lines we’ve partitioned the flag; blue against red, nihilistic patriotism.

It is unacceptable that, when we should be at our best, participating in a democratic process that should rally us as a nation around our future, we are at our worst, a country painfully divided. Our partisan politics are killing us. We’ve been warned that “a [white] house divided against itself cannot stand”. How sad of a reflection it is upon our country when a child asks his parent “are there other people running beside the two?” and the parent replies, “yes, but they don’t have enough money to matter”.

America, we cannot continue to divide ourselves in this way. There is a point at which sub-groups cease to be beneficial and begin to choke off the unity of the whole. This is not a statement calling for like-mindedness. By all means, let’s celebrate diversity. Let us understand, however, that we, in our various levels of community, belong to larger bodies. Consider a Biblical example: Israel as a nation was never intended to lift its tribal identity above the purpose for which it was set aside: to ultimately be a blessing to all peoples. Similarly, we cannot hold our identity as a democrat or a republican (or someone in the middle) higher than our identity as an American. And please, while we’re at it, let’s not forget that as a nation it is a failing to pursue merely our own self interest when first and foremost our duty as people is to humanity.

Our party politics have driven a wedge through the heart of this nation. We use the terms “democrat” and “republican” as if they’re mutually exclusive and yet so ubiquitous as to fully encompass the identity of each candidate and voter. In our war against the other we further extremism, each party trying to differentiate itself from “the enemy” pulling further and further from the middle. We leave America not just divided, but torn between two polarized positions with no moderate form of expression. We make a messiah of one party’s candidate and a devil the other, crying “I hope he is assassinated” in the event that the later is elected.

Thus, we find ourselves fettered by the very system we’ve created, torn and dysfunctional. One individual claimed that if their favored candidate was not elected they would “lock [themselves] in a vault for four years and only come out for the next election.” Seriously, do we hear ourselves? If our hero is not elected, if the current president is not the one to ‘deliver’ us, we’ll neglect the next four years until we can try again for a better redeemer?

This is our grand solution, merely to vote and wait on the right guy? To make a choice between the most agreeable of two extremes and end our involvement there? Our efforts stop short of addressing the real issue. Or vision is too narrow. We simply vote and then we wait. We wait for the president elect to vindicate our waiting by with some magnificent entrance in which, with one fell swoop, he’ll deliver us from the traps of our own indolence.

Do you see what this is? We’ve taken ourselves right out of the equation. We’ve created our own comfortable nowhere, our own little spot of meaningless countryside along the road. America, have you forgotten that from which you came? Have you, America, forgotten those lofty ideals toward which you were to strive? How can we so forsake past and future to merely sit and wait for someone to deliver us? I have news for you, America, Godot is not coming. The political savior for whom you wait is never going to come. One person did not devastate this country and one person will certainly not save it.

It is true, we find ourselves in the mists of quite a predicament; perhaps you’ve heard, “character is much easier kept than recovered.” But, we have some recovering to do. The choice is not made for us; “every generation needs a new revolution”. So pull yourselves up from your non-existence back into the context of learning from our past and fighting for our future. Let us regain our reference point. Surely reclaiming this context, this movement, (any context, any movement!) can be naught but life for us. Hence, let us leave, quit our waiting, and not let those fateful italicized words “they do not move” appear at the end of our narrative.

Obama received 349 of the 512 electoral votes, leaving McCain with only 163.  However, the election didn’t always look like a sure-fire win for either side.  In fact, this election was one of the most controversial the United States has seen in decades, especially on Cornerstone’s campus.

Many students voiced their opinion in classes, conversations in the Corum and even on the “Corner Stone.”  Now, with the polls closed and the winner announced, the debate has changed from ‘who will win’ to ‘was the right man chosen.’

“It will be interesting to see what happens,” said Laurie McLaughlin, senior.  “I hope the change that is promised is a good one.”

Many students are confident that Obama will follow through on his commitments and are looking forward to the changes that will result.

“I’m looking forward to the beginning of the pendulum swinging back the other way from the Republican [dominance] that America has been in the past,” said Jon Shotwell, senior.

Also, now the House and the Senate are democratically dominant.  Shotwell looks forward to the change that will bring as well, specifically in the area of poverty.

“I think that having the majority of Democrats [in the House and the Senate], it will shrink the poverty gap between the rich and poor,” Shotwell said.  “When Republicans are dominating the House and the Senate, the poverty gap increases; when Democrats are running the show, poverty decreases.”

Ryan Kielbasa, former Cornerstone student, was able to attend the rally for Obama in Chicago on Tuesday.  He said being there was “almost unreal.”

“You could feel in the air that something amazing had just happened,” Kielbasa said.  “I saw people of different minorities; they had hope in their eyes.  It’s clear to them that he symbolized just how far we’ve come in our country.”

On the other end of the spectrum, some of the students who voted for McCain are worried about what the next four years will bring.

“I don’t know how a senator with no experience who spent a good portion of his life not in the U.S. is going to help our country,” said Ashley DeWitt, junior.

Other students question what will happen to the moral structure of the country.

“The majority of politicians who were elected seem to lean in the opposite direction of my moral code,” said Lauren Root, sophomore.  “I’m just afraid of certain things I believe this country was founded on being completely ripped from us.”

Regardless of if we are satisfied with our new president, we must come together and truly remain the “United” States of America.

In his CUBE posting, President Stowell addressed this issue.

“For all of us, he is our president, and as such, it is time to put our own preferences behind us and to rally in support of our country’s choice,” Stowell said.

It was a long journey sparked by team chemistry and a bit of fan spirit. But it came down to determination.

“This group really had been denied the year before,” head coach Kim Elders said. “They were bound-and-determined to get there this season.”

“They only picked us to finish third in the [Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference] in the preseason rankings,” center Mark Zichterman said. “We took it as a slap in the face. We were on a mission and really wanted respect.”

In early February the Golden Eagles got that respect, as the team moved to No. 1 in the NAIA Division II national rankings for the first time in team history. The team was glowing with excitement, but also a little bit of inexperience. 

“It became extremely tough the rest of the season,” Elders said. “Everyone wanted to knock us off. We knew people were after us because we were No. 1, so every game was a battle.”

The Golden Eagles had more than their share of close calls the rest of the season. In a home game against Tri-State the team pulled out a 65-64 victory, thanks to several heroic plays.

“It was packed,” Elders said. “We trailed and then we had two huge plays late in the game. Both were [on missed] free throws. We missed the free throw and Matt Mekkes tipped that in. A few plays later Luke Moord did the same thing, except Luke was falling backwards when he tipped it. I think that one actually was the game winner.”

Elders is still amazed at how loud the crowd was. That was back when the basketball teams played in the blue gym, because the new one had not been built.

“I just remember the noise level of that particular game and that play [by Moord],” he said. “It was louder than I’ve ever experienced before. It was just unbelievable the noise level in that small gym. I don’t remember a lot, but that one just stands out because I cannot believe how loud it got on that particular play [by Moord].”

“I remember after we beat them in the tournament game their coach said, ‘This team’s going to win it all.’ He just was very impressed with our team,” Elders said.  

The team persevered through the rest of the season though, riding a 23-game winning streak to the trophy. They became the first team in WHAC history to go undefeated (14-0) during the conference season.

Senior point guard Brad Tilma credits it to the team’s chemistry.

“We weren’t the most athletic team, but we had chemistry,” Tilma said. “All we cared about was winning. We wanted to get a ring. We knew each other’s games. Everyone knew their role.”

The starters were sophomore Zichterman, senior Matt Mekkes (forward), senior Mike Long (forward), sophomore Jason Currie (guard) and Tilma. Senior Al Gortmaker filled the sixth-man position.

The rest of the team included juniors John Lanser, Luke Moord, Chad Musch and Dave Buikema; sophomores Andrew Swadling and Brian Robinson; freshmen Todd Negoshian and Brad Gray; and coaches Elders, Jared Crandell and Bo Comer.

“As we were climbing up in the rankings and clicking on all cylinders, it started to dawn on us [coaches] we could do it with this team,” Elders said. “As a coaching staff, we just sat back and watched them play. They had great chemistry. Phenomenal chemistry. They were great competitors.”

Long led the team with 18 points (ppg) and 6 rebounds (rpg) per game. Gortmaker contributed 16 ppg and Zichterman had 6.5 rpg.  

“The championship created an awareness of our team,” Tilma said. “It gave Cornerstone the respect it deserved.”

“It was one of the greatest experiences of my life playing here and winning the championship,” Tilma said. “Not a lot of people end their careers on a win.”

“They needed us to cheer,” said Paul Koutz, assistant track coach and 2001 grad, “they needed us to help them along.”

Koutz was part of a bus load of Cornerstone students who took a 37-hour ride through a snow storm to Idaho and slept on a church floor in order to attend the National Championship Tournament.

 “It was hot, it was smelly, and it was cramped,” said Koutz about the trip, but it was worth it.

For the first time in CU men’s basketball history the team had made it to the NAIA tournament with a 37-3 season and dominated a week that ended with the Golden Eagles clinching the championship and dethroning two-time defending champs Bethel University, 113-109 in overtime.

“Cornerstone was the new kid on the block, and Bethel was well-known for having a good program every year, so a lot of people didn’t know what to expect from Cornerstone,” said Grand Rapids Press sports writer Gary Bond, who covered the tournament.

“That win put them on the map as far as being a program that people would recognize year after year,” he said, “and they are still on the map because of what they accomplished that year.”

The long red banner that hangs high above the court in the Mol Arena that reads simply: NAIA National Basketball Champions marks the signature athletic event in Cornerstone history and the 2008-2009 men’s season, which kicks off next week with a Tuesday game at Kuyper College, marks the 10^th anniversary of the National Championship season.

That red banner also signifies a time when excitement reigned, spirits were high and everybody…..students, faculty, staff and administration….joined together to share the momentum and excitement of this memorable event and plans are underway to mark the milestone in a big way.

Dave Grube, CU athletic director, said February 14, 2009 will mark the men’s and women’s basketball homecoming. The day will include an alumni basketball game, the men’s and women’s basketball games against Davenport and a time to recognize the players of the 1999 championship.

“The day will be about connecting with our alumni and connecting with our current Cornerstone University community to celebrate the anniversary of the national championship,” Grube said.

During the 1998-1999 season, the games invigorated the campus and Cornerstone connected with the outer community like never before.

 “Our gym was packed in those days,” said Bob Fortosis, former athletic director. “We had a loud, very good pep band, we had cheerleaders, we had a great PA announcer and students would just pour in.”

Before the Hansen Center was built, the fieldhouse was the gym, and it was standing room because of the huge fan support.

“People would stand outside and literally try to look through people to get a view of the gym,” said Koutz, who would go to the game early to get a seat.

After the BHAC was built, Fortosis wondered whether or not it was big enough.

“In those days, I started to think that maybe we had not put enough seating in because, for the games, that gym was pretty packed,” he said.

“Older folks would complain to me about how loud it was in the gym,” Fortosis said. “In those days, the Hansen Center was rockin.”

Koutz continued that over-abundantly passionate CU spirit with the other students at the NAIA championship.

“We were a bunch of rowdy students just yelling and screaming right in their ear the entire basketball game,” he said.

Back in Grand Rapids, as many as1,000 students, faculty, staff, and people from the outside community filled the CU fieldhouse to watch a closed-circuit telecast of the National Championship game on two huge television sets at each end of the court.

“It was like we were all right there with the team,” said Bible professor Andy Smith who was watching the game in the gym. “We were hanging on to every play, every bounce of the ball, it seemed like.”

The game went back and forth and ended with a heart-stopping three pointer from Bethel that was eventually nullified when officials ruled the shooter had stepped out of bounds.

“It seemed like, to me, that the gym went completely quiet,” Smith said.

“It was like you could hear a pin drop in the Cornerstone section,” Koutz said about the atmosphere at the game after the three-pointer.  And then, the points were taken off the board.

“The place went bonkers,” Koutz said.

Ben Peterson, 1996 CU grad and alumni director, saw a different reaction from Bethel. 

“It was hotly contested,” Peterson said. He was sitting a row away from Bethel fans after the three-point shot was waived off.

Mike Long, 1999 NAIA most valuable player who scored 35 points in the championship game, was under the basket, so while he didn’t see the shot, he did see the ball go through the basket.

“I was like, aw crap, we just did all this work and now we lost,” he said.

But Fortosis was sitting courtside, and he saw the Bethel player step on the line.

“I had a pretty strong suspicion that the referee had seen what I saw,” he said. “And that the player did step out of bounds before he shot.”

“It was probably a second, but it seemed like eternity,” Long said about the moments between the shot and the disqualification. “But, then the whistle blew and [the referee] said that he was out of bounds and that shot didn’t count.”

After the game, Long and some of the other players lingered in the gym as everyone was leaving.

“We just sat there on the court and we kind of took it all in for a moment,” he said. “We said ‘Wow, we just accomplished what we’ve been working on for four years.’”

When the team returned back to Grand Rapids, there was a throng of people waiting for them at the airport.

“There were just gobs of people, just standing out in the lobby,” said head coach Kim Elders. “As soon as we got off the plane, there were just a ton of Cornerstone fans there just congratulating us and hugging us.”

And when they approached campus, there were fans lining East Beltline and winding through campus to the gymnasium.

“The Beltline was just lined with students,” Long said. “We had tons of people out there, and as we pulled in, they all ran from where they were standing to greet us.”

“That is probably one of the coolest memories of my life right there,” he added.

“That was a special season,” Elders said. “Not just because of the National Championship, but because it was such a wild time on campus.”

“Teams hated to come here to play us because our fans were so loud and supportive,” he said. “We almost never lost a home game. It would be nice if can’t get to that point again.”

What do you get when you combine the brains of a technical engineer and a creative business woman?  According to Brad Porter, 2008 Cornerstone University graduate, you get a media-savvy son.

When he was just a teenager, Porter began working with media. 

“I’d make James Bond movies with my dad’s camera,” Porter said. 

But he didn’t take it seriously until high school.

“It really picked up the summer going into my junior year of high school,” Porter said.

Porter attended Compass Arts Film Academy.  While studying there, Porter met Dave Anderson, associate professor of media studies.  The two developed a close relationship.

“When it came time to pick a college, I asked Dave what he recommended,” Porter said.  “He said Cornerstone.”

At Cornerstone, Porter’s passion for film continued to grow.  And his biggest inspiration was “the people here.”

“Since the department was so new and changing, everyone was open,” Porter said.  “And since it was small enough, everyone knew each other.  So professors can have a huge impact on you outside of the classroom.  That’s where all the learning happens anyway.”

While Porter’s education in all aspects of media has made him capable of working in many areas of media, he specializes in directing and shooting.  He is passionate about telling stories in a visual and effect way.

“I can’t think of a better way to connect with an audience,” Porter said.

According to Porter, creating films is the “best way to communicate a message.” 

And unfortunately, Christian films have a notorious bed reputation for low quality films.

“We have this message we are trying to communicate- the love of Christ- and I can’t think of a better way to communicate that than a story form,” Porter said.

Even though Porter graduated last spring, his face is still frequently seen on campus.  He was recently hired to help run CAMS.

Porter says the transition was smooth, but “odd at first.”  Previously, Porter’s relationship with the media faculty had been student and professor, rather than employer and employee.

“The curtain kind of drew back and I saw the gears of how this operation runs, which got me even more passionate about what’s happening here,” Porter said.

And now, Porter can help “alleviate some pressure,” in the media department.

“I can step in and help teach a class when someone needs to do something else,” Porter said.  “I can help students rather than Pete [Muir] having to do it.”

Pete Muir, assistant professor of media, agrees.

“Teaching, plus running CAMS has been pretty demanding on my time,” Muir said.  “So having Brad on staff will allow us to up our quality of service in CAMS and allow me to spend a little more time specializing in my area of post-production …”

And Muir doesn’t take Porter’s skills for granted.

 “[Brad] is an extremely talented film maker with an amazing future ahead,” Muir said.  “I’m pretty honored that he decided to stay for a while when he could have probably walked into a Hollywood internship or job.”

In fact, Porter had initially considered moving to Los Angeles to start his career.

“The way the business works is that you climb the ranks,” Porter said.  “So I wanted to go out there and get more hands-on experience.  LA has a lot more working opportunities …”

However, when the offer was made in March for Porter to stay, he chose to take it.  And since he is only on a one-year contract, Porter says once his contract is up, he will “re-evaluate.”

So while Porter doesn’t know with certainty where his career is headed, he is sure of one thing: he will continue to pursue his passion of telling stories.

“As soon as there’s a better way to [tell stories], I’ll do that,” Porter said.

When Joe Stowell took his role as president, he was eager to look for changes to improve the school.  One such change was extending students’ summer break until after Labor Day.  So a task force was assembled of various faculty members, division chairs, cabinet members and a representative from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary to make it become a feasible reality. 

This committee met several times with various departments on campus, including Spiritual Formation, faculty groups, division chairs, enrollment management and campus services in order to work through various issues until a workable schedule was established.

According to Timothy Detwiler, associate provost for traditional programming, there were several reasons the later start was desired.

“This will allow students to work longer in the summer,” Detwiler said. 

This past year, incoming freshman arrived on August 9 for Leadership Journey.  For student leaders, such as resident assistants, it was August 2, “which is way too early,” Detwiler said.

In order for the later start to work, a few changes had to be implemented.  Classes that meet on Monday, Wednesday and Friday will now be a full hour, rather than 50 minutes.  Similarly, classes on Tuesday and Thursday will meet for an hour and a half, rather than an hour and 15 minutes.  Furthermore, the times that classes meet will change as well, with Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes starting at 7:40 am and Tuesday, Thursday classes starting at 8:20 am.

Brent Rudin, associate vice president for university communications, doesn’t think that this will prove to be an issue with students.

“I don’t know that adding 10 minutes to a class will be horrible,” said Rudin.  “It will just take some getting used to.”

Another change is that Christmas break will be a week shorter than it has been in the past.  And Rudin thinks that students will actually prefer this.

“We have found that students who don’t do J-term are ready to come back before classes begin,” Rudin said.

However, these, essentially, will be the only changes due to the post Labor Day start.  More importantly than the changes, there were several key features of the current calendar that the task force was adamant about maintaining.

“We wanted to protect fall break,” said Detwiler.  In addition, the committee wanted to keep the “three-day Thanksgiving break.”

It was also important that the seat minutes for students were not affected.

“For every hour a student gets credit, they have to be in their seat in class for a certain amount of time,” said Detwiler.

Perhaps the biggest obstacle for the task force to overcome was the classroom utilization needs.  The schedule had to ensure that there were enough classrooms where classes could be held.

“It’s a huge puzzle piece to put together,” said Rudin.

It was also important that extra pressure was not added to administration offices.  Rudin said that offices such as financial aid has “specific deadlines” they have to meet, and the new schedule could not interfere with those.

Also, according to Detwiler there were “Cornerstone University variables that were unique” to making the schedule work, mainly the Leadership Journey program.

“We find [Leadership Journey] to be a very important part of a freshman’s experience,” Detwiler said. 

With the new scheduled start of classes, the Leadership Journey program allows freshman to maintain nearly the entire month of August for their summer break before arriving on campus.

And Cornerstone isn’t the only school implementing the later start.

“The governor, maybe two years ago said ‘all public schools are going to start after Labor Day,’” said Rudin.  “We’re following suit now.”

Cornerstone President Joe Stowell smiles as he sings these words from the famous Cubs anthem, written by Chicago folk legend Steve Goodman.

“There’s no fans like Cubs fans; they always pack out Wrigley field,” Stowell said. “’Go Cubs Go;’ all the fans sing it after they win a game. The whole place sways.”

It’s obvious from the way Stowell talks about this team that he loves the Cubs. But his passion for Chicago baseball wasn’t always there.

“I grew up in New Jersey, just outside of New York. I was a raving fan of the New York Yankees in the good old days,” Stowell said.

In fact, Stowell’s favorite sports story doesn’t involve a Cubs player, but his hero Mickey Mantle from the Yankees.

“I idolized Mickey Mantle. Every time I played sports I chose seven. I used to want his autograph, but I never got it,” Stowell said.  He’s shared the story of wanting Mantle’s autograph so many times, he now has three baseballs autographed by Mickey Mantle. According to Stowell, it’s because people felt sorry for him.

But the best part about Stowell’s hero was that he became a Christian.

Before Mantle died, Stowell’s friend Bobby Richardson shared some incredible news with him. Richardson, who knew Mantle, led him to the Lord before he passed away.

“I heard he accepted the Lord two weeks before he died. When I go to heaven, I want to go there for Jesus but maybe when He’s busy someday…” Stowell trailed off with a laugh.

After moving to Chicago and living there for 22 years, his love for the Yankees began to turn over into a passion for the Cubs.

“Slowly but surely in Chicago I became a Cubs fan. If you live in Chicago and you like baseball, the Cubs are more fun. Wrigley Field is like a classic baseball stadium,” Stowell said.

Even when the Cubbies are losing, he, along with all the fans, remain faithful. He remembered the curse of the goat, as all Cubs fans do, which began in 1945. Of course, some of the team’s woes are attributed to the curse, but the fans are steadfast.

“There’s a certain something about Cubs fans, they all share in common rooting for losing teams. They wouldn’t be our Cubs anymore if they won!” he exclaimed, laughing.

His favorite Cubs memory was when one of his favorite players, first-baseman Derrek Lee, hit a grand-slam to win a game last season.

“Last season the Cubs were in a terrible slump,” Stowell said. “I was at the game and we were behind by three runs in the ninth, bases loaded with two outs. It was Lee’s first day off the disabled list and who should come out of the dugout? The place went wild.”

And then, he hit a grand slam and the fans really erupted, Stowell said.

Kind of like the city would if both its teams went to the championship.

“Chicago would just go crazy. There would be riots if the Sox and Cubs went to the World Series,” he said.
“If you’re a Cubs fan, you hate the Sox. It’s a north-side, south-side (rivalry). Cubs are the north-side, more white collar. Sox are working class,” Stowell said. “When the Sox played in the ’05 World Series, not many Cubs fans rooted for them. If the Cubs make it to the Series, Sox fans wouldn’t care or watch.”

This of course translates into a good-natured rivalry between Stowell and Dr. Tweitmeyer, an avid White Sox fan.

“I’m worried about him and his spirituality. I’m worried about having a faculty member with this poor judgement,” Stowell joked.

With season tickets, Stowell is hoping for the Cubs to go all the way, since he will still have his seats for the playoffs and World Series.

So if Cornerstone is missing its president in a month, it can only mean one thing: the Cubs have finally made it to the World Series.

Chicago boasts two teams that will be playing this year in the White Sox and the Cubs. The cross-town rivals are 3-3 in their games this year and the Chicago faithful are anxiously awaiting another match-up to see who will break the tie.

For Dr. Trenton Tweitmeyer, professor of kinesiology, his hopes and dreams lie with the south-side team: the White Sox.

Sitting in a chair in his office and wearing a gray t-shirt with “White Sox World Champions” written on the front, it’s obvious where Twietmeyer’s loyalty lies.

Born and raised on the west side of Chicago, Twietmeyer has been a White Sox fan all his life. The youngest of four brothers, his father, uncles and brothers all taught him which team was best.

“They’re all still White Sox fans” Twietmeyer said of his family. He elaborated on a big part of the reason why Sox and Cubs fans are such rivals.

“The north side (Cubs side) is richer; that’s where the high palootin’ people are from,” Twietmeyer said.  “In the south side, when I was a kid the steel mills were still there, the Chicago ampitheater and the slaughterhouses too. It’s an uptown, downtown sort of a thing and that’s why the fans don’t like each other.”

Twietmeyer recalled playing Chicago-style softball at the playgrounds when he was a child, using a big ball and pitching underhand.  The ball itself was 16 inches and unique to the Chicago area, according to Tweitmeyer. The boys also played without gloves. He compared his younger days of playing to the movie “The Sandlot,” where the boys played baseball non-stop.

“The school across the street had a big open area. We’d play Cubs against Sox all day long and the ball would get all meaty so we’d have to go get the dads of one of the kids to get us a (new) ball,” he said.
Twietmeyer has been to approximately 150 White Sox games and even caught a foul ball. He smiled as he recalled catching that ball as one of his most memorable moments. When the Sox were out of town, he and his friends watched the Cubs play. There wasn’t much cheering going on though.

“We’d boo them,” Tweitmeyer said with a smile.

One of Tweitmeyer’s favorite memories of baseball was traveling to New York with his son, Nate, to visit the baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. It was a graduation gift for his son, and he said the two had a great time looking at all of the memorabilia of past legends of the game.

As for favorite players, right-fielder Harold Baines tops Twietmeyer’s list. Baines was “a gentleman,” according to Twietmeyer, and is still with the White Sox as a coach. Currently, his favorite player is first-baseman Paul Konerko.

“He’s been a fine player for us. He was instrumental when we won the World Series,” he said.
When president Joe Stowell arrived at Cornerstone, Twietmeyer found out he was a Cubs fan “shortly after he got here.”

“I wanted to give him the gospel of baseball,” he said with a laugh. But Stowell would have none of Tweitmeyer’s White Sox ways. He admits they both razz each other about their teams when they meet on campus, but it’s good-natured. Tweitmeyer doesn’t hold the fact that Stowell is a Cubs fan against him, at least not too much.

Ah, the beauty of sports rivalries and the beauty of autumn. Many people will be enjoying both this October.
For some, like Tweitmeyer, the joy of the fall season would be that much greater if another championship is claimed by the White Sox.

Attention Cornerstone! Does something look different about The Herald? With a bigger size, all renamed sections, bright, revitalized colors and various additional fonts and features, this is your new student newspaper.

The Herald’s adviser, Alan Blanchard, assistant professor of journalism, explained that he arranged for Krista Babbitt of the Holland Sentinel to redesign the paper for the students.

“Because the student newspaper is a newspaper that primarily serves the students,” Blanchard said, “we want it to reflect the interests of the students themselves.” He said the only initial change he and Babbitt had in mind was to change the paper’s size from its original tabloid size to a size called broadsheet, which most public newspapers use.

“It really jumps out,” Blanchard said, referring to the new look. “People are going to be really surprised.”

Babbitt described how students got involved in the redesign process. “I sat down with a group of students who were in the graphic design class and asked them what they wanted to see in their student newspaper,” she said. “I sent them to their roommates, friends, students and co-workers, and had them report back to me.”

That was last September. Since then, Babbitt, with the help of the graphic design class and The Herald staff, has recreated The Herald section by section. Now there are features such as student and staff spotlights, fact boxes, recipes, more news briefs and a community calendar.

“I hope they find it easier to use… [and] are more encouraged to read their student newspaper,” Babbitt said. “It’s such an important part of any community. Hopefully the design draws them in and makes them want to [read it].”

Laurie Hekman, The Herald managing editor, said one aspect of the paper especially pops out. “I think [students will love] seeing the faces of their fellow students and peers and classmates,” she said. “I think [they will enjoy] seeing … more stories that relate to them as students.”

Along the same lines, Sarah Heth, assistant managing editor, said that the community calendar on the back page will be helpful for students. “It was something that was lacking in the newspaper before,” she said. “I really like how you can just at-a-glance see what’s going on around campus.”

Blanchard said the paper will serve students overall, especially the students majoring in journalism. “I thought that with the recent introduction of the journalism major,” he said, “it would be helpful to have students working on a paper that would more closely mirror what they would be working on when they graduate.”

Heth summed it all up. “It’s something that the students will have,” she said, “for years and years to come.”