Poet and social activist Mama Brenda Matthews will speak at Hesston College February 18-19. She is the fifth speaker in the Melva Kauffman Lecture Series that began in 2005.

Matthews, who lives in Chicago, is a poet and dynamic speaker whose purpose is to plant seeds of change in the hearts of those who have fallen through the cracks. She has founded several organizations to help high risk youth, and has delivered her message of change throughout the U.S. and Africa. She spoke to Mennonite youth during Mennonite Church USA youth conventions in Charlotte, N.C., in 2005 and in San Jose, Calif., in 2007.

Matthews will speak during the 11 a.m. chapel, Wednesday, February 18, on the topic “Why I Write.” That evening at 7 p.m., she will lecture on the topic “Poetry: God’s tool for young people who are kingdom builders and world changers.”

Both sessions, held in the sanctuary of Hesston Mennonite Church, are free and open to the public.

Melva Kauffman was an English and education instructor at Hesston College from 1944-77. She graduated from Hesston Academy in 1936 and from Hesston College in 1939.

Kauffman’s family established the annual lecture series following her death in 2003 to preserve her memory and contribution to Hesston College and to continue her lifelong interests in learning and the humanities. With an annual lecture series, students, faculty, staff, and the community benefit from her generosity.