In the News

Prayer labyrinth dedicated as a campus sacred space

Hesston College and the local community now have a new place to go for quiet contemplation or prayer with the completion of Hesston College’s prayer labyrinth.

With candles lighting the path, the labyrinth was dedicated Oct. 30. Bible and ministry faculty member Michele Hershberger led participants through the labyrinth in prayer while local musician Ben Regier set the mood with guitar and mandolin music.

“The labyrinth provides a place to let go of resentments, worries and emotional hurts while walking towards the center of the labyrinth and then to receive God’s love and peace while walking away from the center,” said Hershberger.

Prayer labyrinths offer a way of praying that brings a person’s whole body into the prayer. Individuals walk toward the center of the labyrinth and back out – a physical action that serves as a reminder of the spiritual action they are taking.

“Our physical bodies and spiritual beings are interconnected,” said Clay Stauffer, Hesston College exercise science faculty and labyrinth committee member. “The labyrinth, with its walking and praying, activates this interconnectedness.”

The idea for a prayer labyrinth on the Hesston College campus started in 2002 when former physical education instructor Jen LeFevre returned from a sabbatical where she experienced a prayer labyrinth and thought it would fit well with campus values. LeFevre taught a physical education class called prayer walking where students walked around the campus and town focusing on contemplation, meditation and prayer.

By chance, at a meeting of Hesston College Partners, LeFevre was approached and given a donation that became seed money to build a labyrinth. Over the years, LeFevre and students in the recreational leadership class also channeled proceeds from the annual class-organized Thanksgiving Weekend Howard Hustle Two-mile Run/Walk for the project as well.

As funds were raised, a committee of faculty and staff including Hershberger, LeFevre, Stauffer, physical education instructor and women’s soccer coach Bryan Kehr, Campus Facilities Director Jim Mason and psychology instructor Kevin Wilder was formed to manage the planning and construction.

In 2013, the committee found materials at a reasonable rate to finally begin the process of constructing a campus labyrinth. In the spring of 2014, the location behind Northlawn was selected and construction took place in September during the college’s First-year Experience Service Week. First-year Experience students and the Hesston College women’s soccer team built the labyrinth under the supervision of Miller Construction, owned by Hesston graduate Jordan Miller.

The committee chose a variation of the Santa Rosa labyrinth design. The design is a seven-circuit labyrinth divided into four quadrants including a unique space called the “heart space,” which is an area not walked but serving as a sacred vessel for holding symbols of an individual’s issues, needs or celebrations.

The Hesston College prayer labyrinth is open for the college community, local residents and visitors to use at any time.

“We hope that this labyrinth will be a sacred space to be used for prayer by the college community and the larger Hesston community,” said Kehr.

College thanks local community with free event

Hesston College will host its annual Community Night during early season home basketball games on Wednesday, Nov. 12. The teams will face Region VI foe Labette Community College, Parsons, Kan., with women’s tip off at 6 p.m. and the men at 8 p.m. in Yost Center. Admission is free for all.

The evening will include performances from the Hesston High School dance teams, and pep bands from Hesston High and Hesston College. Free basic haircuts by 2003 Hesston College alumna Christy Pickerill of Snip n’ Clip Hair Shop, Newton, Kan., a pop-a-shot game for kids, halftime contests and Larks tattoos will add to the fun.

“We have a great evening of entertainment and athletic competition lined up,” said Director of Alumni and Church Relations Dallas Stutzman. “We hope this free event is a small way to say thanks for the support that is given to the college and its athletic programs from alumni and the community each year.”

In addition, the Admissions office will host high school students for a Faith and Sports devotional and pizza supper led by men’s basketball coach Dustin Galyon at 6:30 p.m. in Bontrager Student Center on the Hesston campus. All Hesston area youth are invited, either with their church youth group or individually. RSVP to the Admissions office by Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 620-327-4221 or admissions@hesston.edu.

Hesston College talent among singers to perform with Broadway stars

Local singers, including three from the Hesston College community, will perform with five Broadway stars on stage when Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts features Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 7 at Bethel College’s Memorial Hall (North Newton, Kan.).

The two winners and six runners up were chosen through video audition by a panel of industry professionals for the show’s Singing with the Broadway Stars promotion.

Three of the runners up – Bethany Miller (Hesston), Nathan Patron (North Newton) and Eleya Raim (Oxford, Iowa) – represent Hesston College. Miller is an Admissions Counselor. Patron and Raim are both freshman and members of the Hesston College Bel Canto Singers under the direction of Bradley Kauffman and voice students of Matthew Schloneger.

Winners are Kate Freeland, a senior interdisciplinary studies major at Emporia (Kan.) State University, and Michael Parker (Salina, Kan.), an educator and performer with degrees in secondary education and theatre performance from Kansas State University (Manhattan). Freeland and Parker will both sing a solo in the show finale.

Other runners up are Da’Merius Ford, a sophomore musical theatre major at Wichita (Kan.) State University; Elizabeth Fulcher, a sophomore at Goodland (Kan.) High School; and Maili Kee, a sophomore music and theatre major at Barton County Community College (Great Bend). The runners up will join the stars on stage to sing “Seasons of Love” from Rent.

Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway features Broadway stars from shows including Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Jekyll and Hyde, Fiddler on the Roof, Wonderful Town, Tarzan, Cats, The Woman in White and It Ain’t Nothin’ but the Blues singing the finest hit songs of the last 100 years of Broadway musicals.

Tickets for the show can be purchased by calling 620-327-8158 or at hesstonbethel.org.

Simulation exercise to explore Native American experiences

Hesston College will offer an opportunity to learn about the history of Native American tribes from the surrounding area and across the country through a simulation exercise called “The Loss of Turtle Island” at 7 p.m., Monday, Nov. 10 in the Hesston Mennonite Church Community Center on the Hesston College campus.

Erica Littlewolf, coordinator of Mennonite Central Committee’s Central States Indigenous Vision Center, will lead the exercise. The event is free and open to the public.

The exercise interactively explores the historic relationship between Europeans – specifically Mennonites in the Central States region – and the indigenous nations who inhabit what is now the United States of America.

“The Loss of Turtle Island exercise is designed to educate people about their connection with the history of Native Americans,” said Littlewolf.

Since its formation two years ago, the Indigenous Vision Center has been focusing on building relationships with and among indigenous people for the purpose of addressing systematic injustices.

Littlewolf is from the Northern Cheyenne tribe of southeastern Montana and lives in Albuquerque, N.M. She has bachelor’s degrees in psychology and American Indian studies and applies her schooling to social justice issues and how they affect indigenous people. Littlewolf is a member of White River Cheyenne Mennonite Church (Busby, Mont.). She serves on Mennonite Church USA’s Women in Leadership Steering Committee, Peace and Justice Support Network and Roots of Justice Accountability Circle.

Howard Hustle offers day-after-Thanksgiving exercise

Instead of remaining sedentary on the sofa, Hesston College offers an opportunity for exercise and fun with the 23rd annual Thanksgiving Weekend Howard Hustle Two-Mile Run/Walk at 11 a.m., Friday, Nov. 28.

The event has become a tradition both of Hesston College’s Thanksgiving Weekend celebration and also within the local community, offering a scenic tour through and around the Hesston College campus and Dyck Arboretum of the Plains.

Early entry until Nov. 20 is $20. Entry after Nov. 20 is $25. The entry fee includes a long-sleeved tech shirt and race number. Race proceeds will be donated to Hesston College’s Exercise Science Equipment Project in support of the new exercise science program of study.

Medals will be awarded to overall and age group winners. Participants will also have several chances to win door prizes. Registration can be found here.

The day of the race, race packets may be picked up and on-site registration completed from 9 to 10:45 a.m. in front of Hesston College’s Bontrager Student Center.

For questions or more information, contact Clay Stauffer at 620-327-8260 or clays@hesston.edu.

El Cerrito partners with college for preschool fundraiser

Every Tuesday in November, El Cerrito Mexican Restaurant in Hesston will donate 15 percent of daily meal proceeds to the Hesston College Preschool Scholarship Fund.

“This event came about because I was looking for a creative way to keep our preschool scholarship fund replenished,” said Larisa Miller Lawrence, the Hesston College Preschool Director.

“I thought of El Cerrito because owner, Juan Gomez, has had a relationship with the preschool for some time,” Miller Lawrence said. “We discussed different options and he generously offered to donate part of meal proceeds. I was very excited about his offer and knew this would be a great way to raise money for the preschool and benefit his business.”

This is the preschool’s first year to offer a scholarship to families who would like quality early education experiences for their child, but may not be able to pay the full tuition cost. Last spring the preschool received a one-time grant for scholarships from the Hesston Community Foundation. The foundation encouraged Hesston College preschool to collaborate with others in the community to keep the fund going.

“Our hope at Hesston College Preschool is that all young children will have the opportunity to attend preschool allowing them to get a good start in life,” said Miller Lawrence.

Students place at 2014 NATS regional singing competition

Hesston College voice students competed among the best collegiate vocalists in a four-state region at the annual National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) West Central Region Vocal Competition Oct. 24 to 25 in Denver. Thirteen students represented Hesston College during the weekend competition with five advancing to at least the semifinal round and three placing.

Earning second place finishes were Galed Krisjayanta (Sukarta, Indonesia) in the Sophomore Men’s Classical Division, Taylor Zehr (Archbold, Ohio) in the Freshman and Sophomore Women’s Musical Theatre Division and Nathan Patron (North Newton, Kan.) in the Freshman Men’s Classical Division. The top three places in each division are eligible to compete in the NATS National Competition at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, in July.

Krisjayanta, Zehr and Patron were also selected to sing in master classes at the convention.

Students who advanced to the semifinal round were sophomore Bryce Elder (Ottawa, Kan.) in the Sophomore Men’s Classical Division and freshman Lorren Oesch (Caldwell, Idaho) in the Freshman Women’s Classical Division.

Other Hesston College students who competed were Rachelle Adrian (Mountain Lake, Minn.), Mary Bender (Harrisonburg, Va.), Molly Bruner (Wauseon, Ohio), Havela Lehman (Keizer, Ore.), Elliott Leichty (Harrisonburg, Va.), Anna Martin (Harleysville, Pa.), Casey Perez (Kalona, Iowa), Caleb Schrock-Hurst (Harrisonburg, Va.) and Andry Stutzman (Harrisonburg, Va.).

All of the Hesston College participants are voice students of faculty member Matthew Schloneger or adjunct faculty member Holly Swartzendruber. Schloneger was also a clinician for the convention’s high school master class.

Hesston College music faculty member Ken Rodgers and staff member Karen Unruh provided accompaniment for competing students.

The NATS Vocal Competition pits students against one another based on their age level and gender in either classical or musical theatre. Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming compete with students from colleges and universities of all sizes.

Alumna’s paintings featured in Regier Friesen Gallery

Hesston College alumna Ashley Sauder Miller shares the joy she finds through her mixed media paintings featured in Hesston College’s Regier Friesen Gallery, located in the Friesen Center for Visual Arts, through Dec. 9. “I draw inspiration from a wide range of sources: my children’s mark making and drawings, design, objects and color from significant memories, motherhood and the body,” Sauder Miller explains. The paintings in her show “The Keeping One” capture two subjects: one series’ subject is a chair, either ones she has collected and refinished or ones from significant memories. The other collection centers on imagery of containers such as a pod or bowl. Sauder Miller graduated from Hesston College in 2001 and received her undergraduate at Eastern Mennonite University (Harrisonburg, Va.). She received a master’s of fine arts with an emphasis in drawing and painting from James Madison University (Harrisonburg). She now works from her home studio in Harrisonburg while caring for her four young children. Sauder Miller’s paintings can also be viewed online at www.ashleysaudermiller.com. The Reiger Friesen Gallery is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Some of Broadway’s best on stage for second HBPA event

The common term for a show like Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway, on the Bethel College stage Nov. 7, is “musical revue.”

But at least one reviewer says that term doesn’t do the show justice, describing it as “a gorgeous guided tour of the American art form that is musical theater.”

Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway is the second event in the 2014-15 season of Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts. It will be at 7:30 p.m. in Memorial Hall on the Bethel campus.

With five singers and a top-notch New York band – no elaborate costumes or sets – Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway brings together stars with the songs they made famous from musicals such as The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Jesus Christ Superstar, CATS and Jekyll & Hyde.

The scheduled cast (subject to change upon possible Broadway and touring developments) is: Sandra Joseph, best known for her starring role as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera; Richard Todd Adams, who has toured nationally in some of the most sought-after roles in musical theater, including the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera and Jean Valjean in Les Misérables; Jeannette Bayardelle, who has starred in the revival production of Hair as Dionne and in The Color Purple as Celie; Carter Calvert, best known for originating her role in the Tony-nominated It Ain’t Nothin’ but the Blues on Broadway; and Danny Zolli, who has starred as Jesus and Judas in more than 23 productions of Jesus Christ Superstar.

The star-studded cast will be backed by musical director and pianist Neil Berg, Roger Cohen on drums/percussion and Abe Saenz on bass and drums.

Berg also serves as a narrator, weaving stories about artists, musicals and the history of the Broadway musical throughout the show.

Berg has produced more than 1,000 Broadway concert shows worldwide with his company Leftfield Productions. He has arranged, composed and written lyrics for musicals on and off Broadway, including The Prince and the Pauper, the rock musical The 12 and, currently in development, a musical version of Grumpy Old Men.

A special addition to the HBPA version of Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway will be the presence of local singers for several of the numbers.

Auditions were invited through Oct. 31. A panel of industry professionals will select up to two winners and 10 runners-up, to be announced Nov. 4.

The singer with the winning entry will have a solo part in the show finale, and runners-up will sing one chorus number with the stars.

Reserved-seating and general admissions tickets for Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway are available at the Hesston College Bookstore (620-327-8158) or through the HBPA website, hesstonbethel.org.

Three events remain in the 2014-15 HBPA season, all taking place on the Hesston College campus: the St. Louis Brass (Jan. 29, 2015, Hesston Mennonite Church), The King’s Singers (Feb. 23, Yost Center) and Trio Voronezh (April 15, Hesston Mennonite Church).

Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway is funded in part by the cities of Hesston and North Newton; Excel Industries and Hustler Turf Equipment (Hesston); the Hesston Community Foundation; the North Newton Community Foundation; Hesston AmericInn; other area businesses and patrons; the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission (KCAIC), which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and the NEA itself.

The Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts series started in 1982 as Hesston Performing Arts (HPA) with funding and planning provided by Hesston College and the Hesston community. In 1998, HPA planners launched a partnership with Bethel College, and the series name changed to Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts. Hesston College in Hesston and Bethel College in North Newton host performances each year.