The Hesston College Centennial Homecoming September 25-27 will include front porch narratives, a history forum, and self-guided tour of historic homes. The front porch narratives will feature Jim Yoder, a 1962 Hesston College graduate and current faculty member, portraying founder T.M. Erb on the porch of Erb’s former home at 300 South Main; and Gerald Brunk, former professor of history at Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Va., portraying Henry G. Brunk at 202 Academy.
T.M. Erb was an entrepreneur, business leader, farmer, and churchman. He was moderator at the conference session of the Kansas-Nebraska Conference when action was taken to found a school in the West. Erb took that resolution to the Mennonite Board of Education, of which he was a member, heard their hearty endorsement and their commission to “get the job done.” And he did, chairing the executive committee and serving as the business manager until his death in 1929. Erb was a serious, no-nonsense leader with a gift for administration that gave Hesston College a solid beginning.
Henry G. Brunk was part of a Brunk-Cooprider dynasty that Hesston historian John Sharp calls “the most fascinating family story” he’s ever heard. “Their family story is full of danger, intrigue, courage, conscience, heartache, determination and faith,” Sharp said. “Two Brunks and two Coopriders who grew up in the same household but were not related married each other. John and Etta Brunk Cooprider were the first in 1909 to move into Green Gables as custodian/grounds keeper and matron/cook.
Henry Brunk’s life included being a Confederate deserter, pioneer on the Kansas prairie, and his untimely death eight days after arriving in Kansas. Susanna Heatwole Brunk, Henry’s widow, remained on the Kansas prairie and married Mathias Cooprider, a Union Civil War veteran who was ordained a Mennonite minister. Susanna and Mathias raised their blended family to become loyal supporters of Mennonite missions and education. Their descendants have become, and remain, important characters in the Hesston College story.
The front porch narratives are scheduled for Friday at 2 and 3 p.m. (Erb) and 3 and 4 p.m. (Brunk) and Saturday at 11 (Erb) and 11:30 a.m. (Brunk). Walking tours will depart from Erb Hall Larks Nest 15 minutes prior to each portrayal. The self-guided house tours will be available throughout the weekend through a brochure listing historic and current faculty and staff homes.
The History Forum-Reflections and Musings on Hesston College and Mennonite Church USA-will take place in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary on Friday at 2 p.m. John Sharp, James Mininger, and Joseph Miller will probe questions around the conference-school partnership that has been integral to the mission of Hesston College. Hesston was founded to educate and train leaders for service to the church and the world, and Hesston’s administrators, teachers, and staff have viewed their work as a calling from the church and have tried to be attentive to the church’s changing needs.
The forum will focus on looking at patterns from the college’s history that can help project the shape of the future, and whether declining conference and denominational loyalty will affect the future of the church-school partnership.
Mininger, a 1961 graduate of the Hesston Academy, was professor of history and humanities and academic dean from 1974-95, and served twice as interim president, 1980-81 and 1992-93. Miller, Hesston College class of 1974, researched Hesston’s history for the 75th anniversary and is pastor of Mellinger Mennonite Church, Lancaster, Pa. Sharp, Hesston College class of 1973, former staff, has since 2005 taught history on Hesston’s faculty and wrote the centennial history of Hesston College. Alumni, friends, and church leaders from across Mennonite Church USA are invited to participate.