In the News

Graduate students to be featured in final organ series concert

The final concert in the 2016-17 Andover Organ Series at Hesston College will be at 7 p.m., Friday, April 21, at Hesston Mennonite Church on the Hesston College campus. The program will feature University of Kansas (Lawrence) (KU) graduate students Shayla Van Hal and Bethany Johnson. Van Hal and Johnson are students in the Master of Church Music program at KU. Joining them will be saxophonist Nicholas May, also a graduate student at KU, in a work by contemporary composer Luke Mayernik. The concert is free and open to the public.

A reception and chance for the audience to interact with the performers will follow the concert in the Hesston Mennonite Church Community Center.

Johnson is a second year graduate student, studying organ with Michael Bauer. She will graduate in May. She completed her bachelor’s degree in Parish Music and Theology at Concordia University (Mequon, Wisc.), and studied under the direction of John Behnke. Johnson is an organist at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Topeka, Kan., where she also serves as the music director for the handbell and children’s choirs. She is actively involved with the Topeka AGO chapter, records hymns for Church Music Solutions, and is an organist for Higher Things youth conferences. Van Hal is a first-year master’s student studying with James Higdon and the organist at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Overland Park, Kan. She completed her undergraduate studies at Luther College (Decorah, Iowa), studying organ with Dr. Gregory Peterson and Brad Schultz. Throughout her academic career, Van Hal has served actively as a church musician, chorister, accompanist, conductor and tutor.

May has won or been a finalist in numerous state, national and international competitions. He has appeared as a guest artist and soloist with the Omaha (Neb.) Symphony Orchestra, Lincoln (Neb.) Symphony Orchestra, and performs frequently in regional theatre productions as a woodwind artist. Currently a first-year master’s student, May is a graduate teaching assistant and student of Vince Gnojek. He is a member and founder of the Heartland Duo, which promotes new and under-performed music for two saxophones. May earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, studying with Paul Haar.

The Andover Organ Series at Hesston College feature organists from across the world, bringing another form of fine art to south central Kansas. The program is made possible through the generosity of The John Ernest Foundation and the STAR Program (Student Artist Recitals) at the University of Kansas, the Division of Organ and Church Music.

First playwriting festival to feature seven original plays

This spring, Hesston College will debut a play writing festival entitled “From Pen to Paper to Performance,” that features seven original plays by local writers. It’s the first of what Hesston College Theatre Director Rachel Jantzi hopes will become an annual tradition.

“I was pleased with the number of submissions we received for this first-time event, and it was a hard process narrowing down to the final selections,” said Jantzi.

The plays, which each run about 10 minutes in length, will be produced in the final showcase event at 7 p.m., April 28 and 29, in Hesston College’s Helmuth Studio Theatre in Keim Center for Performing Arts Education. Tickets are $8 for adults and seniors, and $4 for students. Tickets will be sold at the door only starting at 6:15 each night. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Seating is limited, so early arrival is encouraged.

Each play will include a cast of Hesston College students, faculty and two community members and will be directed by Jantzi.

“It has been a challenge to direct seven different shows,” said Jantzi. “They may be short, but each has its own distinct style and voice. Thankfully, we have an ensemble of 17 actors who have been working to bring these scripts to life. These local playwrights’ works are being treated with the same respect we would give any show we produce on our stage. I hope they sense that.”

The seven plays to be featured cover a wide range of genres from comedy to drama, and provoke both laughter and strong emotional responses. The content is rated PG-13 for brief language. The featured plays are:

• Talking Donkey by Loretta Baumgartner, Hesston
• Dying Day by Courtney Becker, Hesston
• Cry Animals by Travis Duerksen, Newton
• The Seven Million Club by Travis Duerksen, Newton
• The Frame Shop by Susan Lamb, Hesston
• Unquiet by Andre Swartley, Newton
• Guilty by Donovan Tann, Newton

Each playwright will receive a portion of the box office earnings.

Sybarite5 to perform last HBPA season performance at Hesston Mennonite Church

Rounding out this year’s Hesston-Bethel Arts Performing (HBPA) season is classical music’s most dynamic chamber groups, the string quintet Sybarite5, at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 20, at Hesston Mennonite Church on the Hesston College campus.

Members of Sybarite5 will also present a pre-concert talk from 6:15 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. in the Hesston Mennonite Church Sanctuary. Community members can enjoy a come and go pre-concert pie dessert in the church Community Center from 6:15 p.m. to 7:15 p.m..

The concert is made possible through a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

A Sarasota (Fla.) Herald Tribune review said the group’s “rock star status is well deserved. Their classically honed technique mixed with grit and all out passionate attack transfixes the audience…” With a repertoire ranging from Mozart to Radiohead, Sybarite5 is the first string quintet to win the Concert Artists Guild International Competition.

Comprised of Sami Merdinian and Sarah Whitney, violins; Angela Pickett, viola; Laura Metcalf, cello; and Louis Levitt, bass, Sybarite5 has changed the perception of chamber music performance. Based in New York City, the group got its start at the Aspen (Colo.) Music Festival, and was the first string quintet admitted to the Aspen Advanced String Quartet Studies program. It later became the official AMFS alumni ensemble for four seasons.

In 2015, Sybarite5 gave the shared world premiere of BEATBOX by acclaimed American composer Dan Visconti, the first concerto written for string quintet and orchestra. The commissioning orchestras included Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra (Minn.), South Carolina Philharmonic and the Midland Symphony (Mich.).

The group has also toured to 41 states and across the globe to perform are some of the world’s best-known stages.

Along with their deep commitment to performance, Sybarite5 is also devoted to education and outreach. They have presented materclasses and workshops to over 25,000 students and have worked closely with the composition departments of colleges and universities such as Penn State, Samford University and Luther College to give students first-hand experience writing for a string quintet in a popular program called “So You Think You Can Compose.”

Thanks to generous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Hesston Community Foundation, Sybarite5 will engage the community in a three-day residency from Tuesday, April 18 through Thursday, April 20. Activities will include a strings masterclass, free and open to the public, at the Bethel College Chapel in North Newton from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 18. Sybarite5 will also perform educational outreach concerts at Hesston Elementary School, Newton High School, Slate Creek Elementary School, Hesston’s Schowalter Villa retirement community and pop-up concerts on the Bethel College and Hesston College campuses.

Reserved seating and general admission tickets for Sybarite5 are available at hesstonbethel.org or by calling 620-327-8158. Single tickets are for sale at Bethel College’s Thresher Shop in Schultz Student Center and in the Hesston College Bookstore during regular business hours. Ticket prices range from $17 to $20 with discounts available for students and senior citizens. Individual tickets for the pre-concert pie dessert are $5.

Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts is funded in part by the Hesston Convention and Visitors Bureau, the City of North Newton, Excel Industries/Hustler Turf Equipment (Hesston), the Hesston Community Foundation, the North Newton Community Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and area business.

Larkfest to celebrate student achievement and service

The community is invited to join Hesston College in taking a day off from classes Thursday, April 20, for the annual Larkfest event which highlights student work and achievements.

David LeVan, business faculty, says, “Larkfest was created to highlight two important values of Hesston College — academic excellence and service to others. On Larkfest, the community comes together to celebrate the best of Hesston College.”

In the morning, on-campus students will participate in service projects in the Hesston community and surrounding communities, followed by an awards ceremony in celebration of student academic and extracurricular achievement at 11:15 a.m., at Hesston Mennonite Church. The afternoon includes student presentations showcasing academic work, beginning at 1 p.m., in Kropf Center, Charles Hall, Hesston Mennonite Church and Keim Center. The public is invited to attend the awards ceremony and presentations.

The presentation schedule will be posted on site the day of the event.

Body found in Democratic Republic of Congo confirmed as son of instructor

On the evening of March 28, the body of Michael “M.J.” Sharp, son of Hesston College Bible and history instructor John Sharp, was confirmed as one found in a shallow grave March 27 in the Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. John Sharp confirmed the report.

M.J. was part of a UN panel of experts investigating ongoing conflicts and government abuses in the region. He was kidnapped by an unidentified militia group on March 12, along with his companions, UN colleague Zaida Catalan of Sweden, and three Congolese nationals, interpreter Betu Tshintela, driver Isaac Kabuayi, and two unnamed motorbike drivers. The bodies of Catalan and Tshintela were found along with Sharp’s. The search for the remaining three missing continues.

Hesston College Interim President, Ben Sprunger, issued the following statement:

“We mourn with John and Michele Sharp in the death of their son, M.J., who was killed as he worked to bring more peace to a hurting world. M.J.’s life and work reflected his deeply rooted beliefs of peace for all humanity, and we are grateful for the example he set of what it looks like to offer hope in place of despair and replace war and conflict with peace. We recognize the risks to those who work for peace, and we are grateful for their service. Our prayers and support are with the Sharp family in the difficult days ahead, as well as the families of Zaida Catalan, Betu Tshintela, and the three companions who remain missing. We also pray for the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country with deep and painful divides, that it would come to find peace and relief.

M.J.’s career of more than 10 years was devoted to humanitarian work and service. He had worked for the UN in the Congo since 2015. Prior to that, he served for three years as Mennonite Central Committee’s (MCC) Eastern Congo coordinator, working to facilitate repatriation of Rwandan refugees and negotiating with militia leaders. From 2005-08, he served as a Mennonite Mission Network worker with the German Mennonite Peace Committee where he was director of the Military Counseling Network assisting U.S. service members pursuing conscientious objector status.

During the two-week search for M.J., John and his wife, Michele Miller Sharp, reflected through news reports and social media updates on who M.J. was, why he pursued humanitarian work and what he believed.

In a March 14 article in the Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, John was quoted as saying: “MJ is committed to finding nonviolent ways to resolve conflict. He is aware that 20 years of violence in eastern Congo has solved nothing – he was working to find a better way.”

Like their son, John and Michele’s reflections exemplified a spirit of peace and compassion for all.

In a March 14 interview with the Mennonite World Review, John was quoted: “I have said on more than one occasion that we peacemakers should be willing to risk our lives as those who join the military do. Now it’s no longer theory.”

Likewise, in a March 18 Facebook post, John shared: “We continue to wait in hope for M.J., Zaida and their four Congolese companions. Please pray also for the captors who are also victims of the violence that has taken six million lives and has made millions more homeless. They have families, too.”

Hesston College chapel on Wednesday, March 29, will be a time for the community to come together to hear more information, reflect on the situation and worship with one another through song and prayer. All are welcome.

Further services of remembrance are being planned and details will be shared as they come available.

M.J. was a 2001 graduate of Bethany Christian School (Goshen, Ind.), and a 2005 graduate of Eastern Mennonite University (Harrisonburg, Va.).

Spring concert to feature three groups

The Hesston College Chamber Orchestra, Women’s Chorus and Men’s Chorus will be featured in a concert at 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 4, at Hesston Mennonite Church on the Hesston College campus. The concert is free and open to the public.

The groups will perform sacred and secular selections.

Women’s Chorus and Men’s Chorus are directed by Ken Rodgers, and Chamber Orchestra is directed by Rebecca Schloneger.

Beloved Director of Nursing to step down following academic year

After 37 years as director of the Hesston College Nursing program, Bonnie Sowers announced that she will step down from the role on June 30.

In addition to her years as director, Sowers has served in other roles within the nursing program for a total of about 45 years of the program’s 50-year history.

“It is not an understatement to say that Bonnie is essentially synonymous with the nursing program at Hesston College,” said Brent Yoder, Vice President of Academics. “We will certainly miss the outstanding leadership and holistic care that she has brought to the program for many years.”

Sowers attended Hesston College for one year in 1966, the same year the college’s two-year associate degree nursing program was launched. After earning her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Goshen (Ind.) College, she returned to Hesston in 1970 to serve as nursing instructor. She spent one year at Ohio State University (Columbus) to earn her master’s degree, and then returned in 1975 to become the assistant director of nursing. She assumed the role of director in 1980 and has held the position continuously since 1985.

Under her leadership, Hesston College Nursing has established itself as a highly successful and respected program. In its 50-year history, more than 1,600 individuals have graduated from the program, with more than 98 percent of graduates passing the NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses) and becoming registered nurses.

Most recently, Sowers and her team of faculty and staff were instrumental in launching the college’s four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program in 2015. An RN to BSN completion program was added in January 2017, and an LPN to BSN program will begin with the fall 2017 semester.

Sowers will end her tenure as director just following the college’s celebration of the 50th graduating nursing class, and the first graduating BSN class.

Nursing students and alumni regularly credit Sowers’ encouragement and guidance, along with that of other nursing faculty members, as formative in their nursing education and success.

“Bonnie has a quiet, respectful, Christ-like way of building relationships,” said Marcy Renollet, a 1995 Hesston College graduate who is now a unit director at Via Christi Health in Newton, Kan. “Throughout my nursing career, I’ve drawn on my memory of how Bonnie was present in our conversations, of her nonjudgmental attitude and her ability to see the positive in any situation.”

Sowers’ work has also reached beyond the nursing department to other areas of campus. She served as interim academic dean on two separate occasions, and as an associate academic dean for about 20 years.

Vocal instructor wins national fellowship award

Hesston College music faculty member Matthew Schloneger, Ph.D., was selected as one of two winners nationally for the Van L. Lawrence Fellowship, recognizing a combined commitment to excellence in teaching and voice science. The Fellowship and $2,000 award are intended to provide opportunities for the Fellow to become more thoroughly acquainted with practices, techniques, technology and people involved in laryngology and voice science.

Schloneger has served as a voice instructor at Hesston since 2001, and currently serves as Chair of the Fine Arts Department. He earned a doctorate in vocal pedagogy from the University of Kansas (Lawrence), where his research interests focused on singers’ health. He holds a master of music degree in voice from the University of Cincinnati (Ohio) College-Conservatory of Music, a bachelor’s in music and sociology from Goshen (Ind.) College and an associate of arts from Hesston College. He completed post-graduate studies at the Civica Scuola di Musica di Milano in Milan, Italy, where he was a Rotary Scholar, and has a certificate in French language from the Sorbonne in Paris, France.

As a Van Lawrence Fellow, Schloneger will complete a research project over the next year to be presented at The Voice Foundation’s 2018 Symposium on Care of the Professional Voice and expedited publication in the “Journal of Voice” or “Journal of Singing.”

His project will involve the use of voice dosimetry, newly developed technology designed to assess the vocal load acquired by singers over a period of time. Schloneger describes the technology as “a Fitbit for the voice.” Schloneger wrote: “As a singing voice pedagogue, I want to continue exploring ways in which voice dosimetry can be of direct assistance to singing teachers.” The project will work to quantify the tessituras and vocal load of specific vocal repertoire, and will involve collaborative work with the National Center for Voice and Speech, Michigan State University and Westminster Choir College.

Schloneger, whose research has focused on the relationships between singer voice use and vocal health will also present at The Voice Foundation’s 2017 Symposium on June 4, in Philadelphia, a joint effort on “Vocal Dose, Hearing Dose, and Voice Changes of Karaoke Singer: A Case Study.”

Schloneger is a two-time runner up for the Fellowship in 2013 and 2016.

The Van L. Lawrence Fellowship was created to honor Van L. Lawrence, M.D. for his outstanding contribution to voice, and particularly to recognize the importance of the interdisciplinary education he fostered among laryngologists and singing teachers. It is awarded jointly by The Voice Foundation and National Association of Teachers of Singing Foundation.

Indiana organist and instructor to be featured in Andover Organ Series

The second of three concerts in the Andover Organ Series at Hesston College will be at 7 p.m., Tuesday, March 21, at Hesston Mennonite Church on the Hesston College campus. The concert will feature Kevin J. Vaughn, director of music and organist at Gloria Dei Lutheran church (South Bend, Ind.), instructor of organ at Goshen (Ind.) College, and adjunct assistant professor of piano and organ at the University of Notre Dame (Ind.).

Vaughn’s program, which takes place on J.S. Bach’s 332nd birthday, will include the music Bach, Vierne, Krebs, Brahms and Martinson. A reception following the concert will feature birthday cake in honor of Bach. The concert is free and open to the public.

Vaughn performs regularly across the country as a solo organ recitalist, and in collaborative programs of sacred music for voice and organ with baritone Stephen Lancaster. Recent engagements include lecture recitals at the University of Notre Dame and Valparaiso (Ind.) University, and for various American Guild of Organists chapters. He also enjoys performing as soloist for Haydn and Handel organ concerti and as organist for major choral works, most recently Duruflé’s Requiem Faure’s Requiem, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass.

A semifinalist in the 2013-14 cycle of the National Young Artist Competition in Organ Performance sponsored by the American Guild of Organists, Vaught won first prize in the Immanuel Lutheran Church Organ Scholar Competition in Evanston, Ill., in February 2015. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in piano, organ and sacred music, including the first Doctor of Musical Arts degree in organ performance conferred by the University of Notre Dame. His former instructors include Phyllis Warner, Gail Walton and Craig Cramer.

An Active member of the American Guild of Organists, Vaughn serves as Dean of the St. Joseph Valley (Ind.) Chapter and holds the Guild’s Colleague certificate. He also maintains active membership in the American Musicological Society, the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians and the Organ Historical Society.

Vaughn’s scholarly research and lecture recitals focus on French organist/composer Gaston Litaize (1909-91), especially his organ Masses, as well as twentieth-century French liturgical music for solo organ more broadly. Of particular interest are genre designations, compositional techniques and reception of Litaize’s and other composers’ works after World War II.

The Andover Organ Series at Hesston College feature organists from across the world, bringing another form of fine art to south central Kansas. The series is funded by the John Ernest Foundation.

The final concert in the series will be at 7 p.m., Friday, April 21, and will feature Shayla Van Hal and Bethany Johnson, graduate students at the University of Kansas (Lawrence).