Two alumni reunions in Japan in mid-October offered former Japanese students at Hesston College the opportunity to reconnect with each other and with the college. Dave Osborne, international student director at the college since 1986, along with the Hesston College Alumni Association, organized an alumni gathering in Osaka Saturday, October 18, and in Tokyo, Sunday, October 19.

According to Osborne, about 200 Japanese students are alumni of Hesston College, the largest alumni group of Hesston’s international students. He deems it important for the college to maintain contact with the group. “These are people who invested a significant amount of time and money to come to Hesston College,” he said. “They don’t have other ways of naturally connecting, like we do through gatherings like church conferences. So it only happens when we put it together.” He organized similar reunions in Osaka and Tokyo in October 2003.

“They value the opportunity to reconnect with each other,” he said, “because in their daily lives, they’re not thinking about Hesston or the U.S., they’re focused on their families and occupations. So getting together gives them a chance to renew a chapter of their lives that they value and that is quite different from their daily lives today.”

Osborne said several small groups of former students who attended Hesston at the same time do meet occasionally. In fact, he knows that three alumni came to Tokyo earlier in the day and spent time together. Another group of eight gathered after the reunion in Tokyo.

“People in Japan do have a tradition of maintaining a social network of peers all their lives,” he said. “I know of four or five groups of Japanese alumni who are doing that together.”

Having begun a Hesston College Japan network directory after Japan reunions in Osaka and Tokyo five years ago, Osborne plans to again update the directory, adding former students who want to be included. “I’d like to update that directory periodically so that it’s current,” he added, “then send the directory to everyone listed.”

Osborne noted that Hesston College is also interested in knowing the careers the Japanese alumni have ventured into. “We also want to know what place their Hesston experience has played in their careers,” he said. “That’s one way we can gain a window into the benefits of the Japanese students coming to Hesston. And it helps me in recruiting.”

The largest number of Japanese alumni work in careers related to the computer industry. “Nearly every computer-related business requires some English language skills,” he noted. “They may not be computer experts, but they got their jobs because of the English skills they gained at Hesston.”

The second largest number of Japanese alumni teach the English language as a second language to Japanese. Auto industries, tourism businesses, and communication companies are among the careers of other Hesston alumni now working in Japan.

Howard Keim, Hesston College president, and Vonnie Sieber, vice president of Development, accompanied Osborne for the Japan leg of his trip. Keim gave a brief update about the college, while Sieber spoke briefly at both reunions.

Hesston College faculty member Tony Brown, who with his wife Erica Shinya is on sabbatical this fall in Japan, also spoke at both reunions. “I asked him to talk about his experience in Japan and what he values about the time he has spent in the country,” Osborne said. Brown teaches sociology at Hesston College and is an internationally-acclaimed baritone.

Osborne served as host of both reunions, with 26 alumni attending the Tokyo reunion, while seven were present in Osaka. Osborne said several others had registered, but were unable to attend.

Osborne said alumni asked about professors at Hesston College, often inquiring about specific ones. “They’re also interested in hearing about developments on campus, including new and renovated buildings,” he said.

Osborne acknowledges that one of the reasons some of the alumni come to the reunions was to see him. “These reunions are very personal for me, too,” he said. “I really like to stay in touch with our international alumni. Unfortunately, the reunions don’t give me enough time to visit with each one like I’d really like to.”

Keim and Sieber also were delighted to meet the Japanese alumni and to hear about their experiences as students at Hesston College. “I appreciated the opportunity to connect with these alumni,” Keim said. “They had such positive experiences as students at Hesston.”

“They also expressed appreciation for the reunion and that the college reached out to them in this way,” Sieber continued. “They were especially thrilled that President Keim came.”

Another reason some of the Japanese alumni came to the Tokyo reunion was to see Jay Kabira, a 1984 Hesston graduate who is a well-known entertainment figure in the country. Osborne said he’s an actor in Broadway-style productions, a TV personality, and has been a World Cup soccer commentator for Japanese television, in addition to having had his own weekly TV soccer program.

Kabira talked about his work, then emphasized the importance of his experience at Hesston College from 1982-84. “I’m proud to be a Hesston College graduate,” he said. “My two years at Hesston helped me define who I was as a person. I learned to respect others and myself at Hesston” Then he added, “I hope that all of you here in this room will consider sending your children to Hesston College.”

“Jay expressed appreciation for the positive influence soccer coach Gerry Sieber had on him as a soccer player and as a student,” President Keim said.

“It was great to hear of the impact Gerry had on his (Jay’s) life,” Vonnie Sieber added. “That’s often true of our faculty and coaches.”

Aside from the reunions, Osborne spent an additional three days in recruitment, visiting several study-abroad agencies, talking with parents of several current students, and speaking with several prospective students.

At the Tokyo reunion, Howard Keim, president, and Dave Osborne, international student director, posed for a photo with a group of Japanese alumni who were all at Hesston College in 1996. This group of eight meet occasionally, and continued their conversations at a local restaurant after the Hesston alumni reunion.