In the News

Excel Industries’ gift to Erb Hall rooted in father’s philosophy of business, giving

Brothers Bob and Paul Mullet remember well the station wagon that brought their family to Hesston in 1958. Their parents, Roy and Bess Mullet, were moving the family from a farm in Montana to Kansas so their five sons wouldn’t have to commute 25 miles to attend high school in the dead cold of an eastern Montana winter.

At the time, the Mullet family attended Red Top Mennonite Church in Bloomfield, Mont., where Bob estimates about 10 percent of the church’s members were attending Hesston Academy or Hesston College. So Roy figured he and Bess could solve the problem of the kids commuting to school by buying a place in Hesston where the sons could be close to family and educational opportunities.

Little did they, or their new neighbors, know the impact the Mullet family would have on their new community. It’s been a half century since the Mullets made that move, and with Roy’s death on Jan. 14, many at the college and in the community are reflecting on the legacy he has left.

The family’s most significant influence has come by way of Excel Industries, a manufacturer of industrial and residential lawnmowers located in Hesston. In addition to being one of the largest employers in Harvey County, Excel has established a charitable foundation that allows the company to give roughly 10 percent of its profits each year to philanthropic efforts – most of which are focused in the local community.

Excel made the lead gift of $500,000 for the Erb Hall Renovation Project, and it’s a gift that reflects the long-standing relationship between the Mullet family, Hesston College and Excel Industries. The connection goes beyond all five of Roy and Bess’s sons attending either the academy or the college. The college played a role in getting Roy connected with the company back in 1960.

After working at the local turkey plant and Hesston Corporation, among other places, Roy decided to enroll in classes at Hesston College. It had been 20 years since he graduated high school. Roy was quite the senior to many of his classmates and only two years ahead of his oldest son, Dave, but still he persisted and took his coursework seriously.

One of Roy’s instructors, Dr. Cal Redekop, was working with a local group of men who were establishing what would become Excel. Cal was impressed by Roy, and the two became more like friends than professor and student, Bob says.

“It was through that connection with Cal that Dad got involved at Excel,” said Bob, now vice president at Excel. “We still run the company with the same philosophy Dad and Cal established in the beginning. Even though we’re not totally family owned, we strive to be a family oriented company that has maintained a philosophy of giving and a connection to Hesston College.”

With the start of the campaign to raise funds for the renovation of dorm rooms and lounges in Erb Hall, Hesston College President Howard Keim and Vice President for Advancement Yvonne Sieber contacted Excel’s foundation about making a gift.

“The timing was right,” said Paul, President and CEO at Excel. “We had a buildup of funds that we wanted to give and use for something that really needed to get done.”

Though none of the Mullets lived in Erb Hall (it wasn’t the norm for “townies,” or local kids, to live on campus back then), Bob and Paul each have positive memories connected with Erb. Plus, a show-and-tell featuring crumbling, rusty pipes with Hesston’s Campus Facilities Director Jim Mason convinced them of the project’s importance.

“The need really struck a chord with me,” Bob says. “This is more my personal philosophy, but Hesston College has a unique product in the opportunities it provides for first-year students to be involved in a plethora of activities, and our father always had a philosophy of wanting to support the college. Excel’s gift to this project allowed us to continue his legacy.”

HBPA to feature “the world’s reigning male chorus”

A popular vocal ensemble – which also happens to be known as “the world’s reigning male chorus” (The New Yorker) – makes its fifth appearance in the Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts Series.

Chanticleer comes to the Memorial Hall stage on the Bethel College campus Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 7:30 p.m.

“Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts has a long tradition of presenting the world’s finest choral groups, and Chanticleer forms a significant part of that heritage,” said HBPA director Matthew Schloneger. “They remain the world’s pre-eminent male a cappella chorus, and it is a great privilege and a testament to our community’s love of excellent vocal music that we’ve been able to bring them back so many times.”

In addition to Chanticleer’s concert appearance, the group’s music director, Matthew Oltman, will present a free public choral master class on the Memorial Hall stage from 4-5 p.m. on the day of the concert. Performing ensembles will include Bethel College’s Concert Choir, directed by William Eash, its student-organized male vocal ensemble Open Road, and Hesston College’s Bel Canto Singers, directed by Bradley Kauffman. The master class is free and open to the public.

The San Francisco-based Chanticleer is now in its 33rd concert season and is scheduled to perform more than 100 concerts in 2010-11, in venues such as Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, and the National American Choral Directors Association conference, Chicago. The HBPA event is Chanticleer’s only Kansas concert in the current tour.

Chanticleer – whose name comes from that of “the clear-singing rooster” in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales – is known worldwide as “an orchestra of voices” for its seamless blend of 12 male voices, ranging from soprano (countertenor) to bass, and its original interpretations of vocal literature from Gregorian chant, Renaissance polyphony and Romantic art songs to jazz, gospel, world music and new music.

Some recent highlights for Chanticleer have included being named “Ensemble of the Year” by Musical America in 2008; making its debut tour in China in 2009 and returning to the country in June 2010 as part of the San Francisco delegation to Expo 2010 in Shanghai; appearing on public radio’s “A Prairie Home Companion”; and, during the just-passed Christmas season, releasing A Chanticleer Christmas, a collection of favorite Christmas music from live performances as broadcast by American Public Media.

Chanticleer received the inaugural Dale Warland/Chorus America Commissioning Award in 2008, recognizing the group’s longstanding commitment to commissioning and performing new works. Among the 70 composers that Chanticleer has commissioned throughout its history are Chen Yi, Brent Michael Davids, Guido López-Gavilán, William Hawley, Jeeyoung Kim, Tania León, Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, Tarik O’Regan, Roxanna Panufnik, Shulamit Ran, Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, Jan Sandstrom, Steven Stucky, John Tavener, Augusta Read Thomas and Janike Vandervelde.

Also in 2008, Chanticleer was inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame. It received the Education and Outreach Award from Chorus America in 2010 and is on Billboard magazine’s Top 10 list of best-selling classical artists.

Chanticleer has several Grammy® awards to its credit, including one in 2000, for Best Small Ensemble Performance (with or without a conductor) for the album Colors of Love, and two in 2002, for Classical Best Small Ensemble Performance (with or without a conductor) and Best Classical Contemporary Composition for the world-premiere recording of John Tavener’s Lamentations and Praises.

Tenor Louis Botto founded Chanticleer in 1978, sang in the ensemble until 1989 and served as artistic director until his death in 1997. Music Director Emeritus Joseph Jennings joined Chanticleer as a countertenor in 1983 and shortly thereafter assumed the role of music director, a position he held until he retired in 2008. Jennings has arranged some of Chanticleer’s most popular repertoire, most notably spirituals, gospel songs and jazz standards. Current Music Director Oltman began his tenure in 2008 after singing with the ensemble as a tenor starting in 1999.

Single ticket prices for Chanticleer at Bethel College range from $23 to $19, depending on seating section, with discounts available to students and senior citizens.

Remaining performances in this HBPA season are Lyric Arts Trio (vocal and instrumental), Sunday, Feb. 20, and Three Part Invention (instrumental), Sunday, April 17, both at Hesston Mennonite Church.

For more information or to purchase tickets, call 620-327-8158 (Hesston College) or 316-284-5205 (Bethel College), e-mail hbpa@hesston.edu or visit the Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts Web page.

This program is presented in part by the Kansas Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, which believes a great nation deserves great art, and is supported by Mid-America Arts Alliance, with generous underwriting by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Kansas Arts Commission and foundations, corporations and individuals throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

Hesston College to host week-long Martin Luther King Jr. celebration

The life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be honored with a week of events at Hesston College Jan. 17 to 21.

The week’s events, entitled “United We Stand? Lament and Celebration” will focus on social diversity especially related to Native Americans and African Americans along with social inequality and environmental issues. All events are free and open to the public.

Rosina Phillippe, a nationally recognized human rights and environmental activist will be the keynote speaker Jan. 17 and 18.

Phillippe is a lifetime resident of Grand Bayou, La. She is an advocate for the preservation of cultural and heritage practices of marginalized families making their living through fishing, including her Atakapa-Ishak tribe who has lived on the Louisiana bayou for more than 1,000 years. Phillippe has partnered with leaders of faith-based and non-profit organizations to work for sustainability for affected families along the Gulf Coast and across the country. Her work addressing issues of Fair Trade marketing, racial injustice, economic instability and coastal restoration has been featured on CNN and the National Geographic Daily News.

Phillippe became acquainted with Hesston College through Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS), a volunteer service of various Anabaptist churches which helps people affected by disasters clean up, repair and rebuild, and rebuilt Phillipe’s home after it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Hesston College offers a degree in Disaster Management in cooperation with MDS.

Points of focus during Martin Luther King Jr. Week include the Gulf Coast oil spill, how it affects people and the involvement of Hesston College in that area through the Disaster Management Program and Mennonite Disaster Service.

“We want to remember the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the week,” said organizer Dwight Roth. “Dr. King had points of emphasis that overlap with Mennonite and Anabaptist values such as peace and service. The week will be a celebration of social diversity and a lamentation of the injustices that occur as we move toward making Dr. King’s dream a reality.”

Phillippe will speak on “Surviving Disasters: A Louisiana Story” during Hesston College chapel Jan. 17 at 11 a.m. She will speak again at 7 p.m. on “The Atakapa-Ishak Nation Along the Louisiana Coast: A Story of Survival.” Both presentations will be in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary.

Other events during the week include a concert of gospel music by Voices of Joy, the Dell Rose United Methodist Church choir of Wichita at 7 p.m. Jan. 18 in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary. The concert will be followed by a presentation by faculty members Marion Bontrager and Lorna Harder at 8 p.m. entitled “Civil Rights or Opposition to War? Exploring the Events Surrounding King’s Assassination.”

The Wichita African-American Council of Elders will reflect on the life and work of King at 7 p.m. Jan. 19 in Kropf Center room 150 (this event cancelled due to weather). The Council is a collective made up of concerned elders from the Wichita African-American community who have come together to share what they have seen and learned to help the entire Wichita community grow stronger.

History instructor John Sharp will present “Rethinking Worldviews: Where are Native Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, and Women in the Master Narrative?” at 7 p.m. Jan. 20 in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary. Faculty member Laura Kraybill will follow the presentation with a dance of response.

Hesston College and community celebrate the life of Elam Peachey

Elam J. Peachey, Development Officer and Planned Giving Advisor at Hesston College, born April 4, 1940, passed away suddenly Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011 at the age of 70.

Elam was hired as a Development Officer at Hesston College in September 1990. He was named Director of Development in January 1995 after the previous director stepped down. Under his direction, the college reached a record of raising $1 million for the Annual Fund for the 1997-98 academic year.

“Elam was as insightful, supportive, positive and honest to work for as any employee could ask for in a supervisor,” said Director of Alumni and Church Relations Dallas Stutzman. “His previous and extensive work as an administrator helped provide keen insight and big picture thinking that provided quality leadership and direction for Hesston College.”

Due to a new administrative structure in 2000, Elam was named Executive Vice President for Advancement. The new department included Admissions, Alumni Relations, Communications and Development. He served in this role until 2006 at which point he moved to a part-time role of Development Officer and focused his efforts on raising funds for the college and building relationships with constituents in the eastern United States. In 2010 Elam took on the role of Planned Giving Advisor. He worked with Hesston College alumni and friends across the United States in understanding and arranging gift planning.

“Elam’s understanding of planned giving and philanthropy was a gift to the college and many whom he worked with,” said Vice President of Advancement Yvonne Sieber.

“Elam was a faithful servant of Jesus Christ and the church,” said President Howard Keim. “We will miss his dedication to the mission of the college, his careful work, his kindness and generosity. I will personally miss his genuine care for individual people, his encouragement and his optimistic spirit.”

Elam built relationships with many Hesston College Partners and donors in his 20 years at Hesston College, and maintained connections with churches and other constituents. Working with John Griffin, Sr., Elam was at the forefront of establishing planned giving as part of the college’s development efforts.

“Elam and Nancy took a personal interest in the friends of Hesston College as well as those he worked with each day,” said Keim. “He made great contributions to fundraising, including capital projects and many partners around the United States.”

From 1995 to the time of his death, Elam served on and chaired the board for the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, which is owned by the college. He also served as co-chair of the Centennial Planning Committee for the college’s centennial celebration in 2009.

Elam had a deep love for Hesston College and the broader Mennonite church. He enjoyed his relationships with colleagues, alumni, partners, donors, churches and students. Elam and his wife, Nancy, graciously opened their home to international students over the years, providing them with a home in the summers and during holidays.

“I appreciated getting to know Elam and Nancy while I was a student at Hesston,” said Moon Jiayi Yu, a former student from China, currently living in Lincoln, Neb. “They frequently invited international students for Sunday meals, and Elam shared stories from his life and academic experiences. His teaching will always be a part of my life.”

“Elam as a person embodied the spirit of community that is Hesston College,” said Stutzman. “He maintained high quality relationships within the college and also across the college’s many constituencies and the Mennonite church. He was a father-figure during my years at Hesston, having lost my own father at an early age. For that I will be always grateful. His untimely death is a great loss to the college, Hesston and broader church community.”

Prior to his work at Hesston College, Elam spent 23 years teaching at Christopher Dock Mennonite High School (Lansdale, Pa.). He served as Principal at Christopher Dock from 1979 to 1989. He also served as Director of Agricultural Missions in Costa Rica through Rosedale Missions from 1962 to 1964.

Elam served on other various church conference and education boards and committees before arriving at Hesston as well.

Elam grew up in the Belleville, Pa., area. He graduated from Belleville Mennonite School in 1958 and from Eastern Mennonite College (Harrisonburg, Va.) with a B.S. in biology and sociology in 1962. He then attended Pennsylvania State University (State College), earning his secondary education certificate in 1965 and his M. Ed. in earth science education in 1969. He earned his Ed.D. in educational administration from Temple University (Philadelphia) in 1986.

Elam was an active member of Whitestone Mennonite Church in Hesston where he served as elder. He also enjoyed working in his garden with his wife, playing with and teaching the grandkids in the backyard and finding unique and interesting places to visit.

“The word that comes to mind most often as I think of Elam is ‘gracious,’” said Sieber. “We experienced him to be kind, honorable and gracious in his work at Hesston College.”

Elam is survived by his wife, Nancy; three daughters Shana Peachey Boshart and her husband David, of Parnell, Iowa; Cheryl Peachey Stoner and her husband, Robert, of Hesston; and Leigh Ann Peachey O’Halloran and her husband, Keith, of Hesston; nine grandsons, one granddaughter-in-law, and one great-granddaughter. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Sharon (French) Peachey.

Visitation will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 9, at Hesston Mennonite Church on the Hesston College Campus. A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 10, at Whitestone Mennonite Church. In lieu of flowers, memorials have been established for Hesston College and with the Mennonite Church USA Racial/Ethnic Leadership Education fund. Family and friends also may sign an online guestbook and view the memorial service live through the Hesston College website.

College mourns the loss of Elam Peachey

The Hesston College campus community was shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Elam J. Peachey from a heart attack Thursday morning, Jan. 6.

Elam worked at Hesston College in various roles in Development since September 1990, including Development Officer, Director of Development and Executive Vice President for Advancement. At the time of his death he was a part-time Development Officer and Planned Giving Advisor. He also served as board chair for the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains and as co-chair for the college’s centennial celebration in 2009.

It is estimated that Elam had a relationship with many of Hesston College’s Partners and donors, and even wider connections with churches and other constituents.

Elam had a deep love for Hesston College and the broader Mennonite church. He enjoyed his relationships with colleagues and constituents, as well as Hesston College students. Elam and his wife, Nancy, graciously opened their home to international students over the years, providing them with a home in the summers and during holidays.

Administration, faculty and staff at the college join Elam’s family in mourning this tremendous loss.

Elam is survived by his wife, Nancy; three daughters Shana Peachey Boshart and her husband, David, of Parnell, Iowa; Cheryl Peachey Stoner and her husband, Robert, of Hesston; and Leigh Ann Peachey O’Halloran and her husband, Keith, of Hesston; nine grandsons, one granddaughter-in-law, and one great-granddaughter.

Funeral arrangements will be announced as they are made available.

Hesston College student Kirsti Graffenberger realizes future goals

Kirsti Graffenberger almost didn’t come to Hesston College. It’s not that she didn’t like the campus and people when she visited. It’s just that Oregon is a really long way from Kansas.

Now, having finished her third semester at Hesston College with only one more to go before graduating in May and transferring to the next college of her choice, Kirsti realizes what she would have missed if she had decided to forego Kansas. She would have never known the faculty members who have encouraged her to find her passion, she wouldn’t have taken a Spring Break service trip to Haiti with five of her closest friends and she wouldn’t have had the same opportunity to get hands-on experience in her field of study as a sophomore.

When Kirsti arrived on campus she was still deciding on a major. Since then, she has chosen nutrition and dietetics and has recently completed a semester-long cooperative education placement at Schowalter Villa where she shadowed the nursing home’s dietician and learned the ins and outs of the job.

“I chose Hesston because both of my parents came here and encouraged me to visit,” said Kirsti. “On my campus visit I told everyone I probably wasn’t going to come. When I got home, I told my parents I liked the college, the community and the campus life, but it was too far away.”

A couple of weeks before she graduated from her Albany, Ore., high school in 2009, something changed Kirsti’s mind, and she told her parents she was going to Hesston College.

Kirsti job shadowed a dietician in high school, which introduced to the field. The experience she has gained since becoming a Hesston student has allowed her to test that option and reinforce the ideas for her future.

Spring break 2010 took Kirsti and five other Hesston College students to Haiti only two months after the island nation’s devastating earthquake. The students took food and other supplies to the survivors and spent time working in an orphanage.

“Coming to college, I wanted to help in other countries and major in something that can be taken globally,” said Kirsti. “Going to Haiti allowed me to see what an issue hunger is in so many places. I want to help stop it, and dietetics is a place to start. A lot of organizations are looking for dieticians to help people find affordable and nutritious food no matter their situation or location.”

The fall 2010 semester cooperative education placement allowed her to gain practical knowledge and experience in the daily work of a dietician. Kirsti worked side-by-side with Schowalter Villa’s dietician Carole Stevens for one day a week. She observed daily processes and meal rounds, learned how to read charts, assessed patients and helped plan diets for individual residents. She also went with Stevens to Hunter Health Clinic Diabetes Care Center, a clinic in Wichita for uninsured or under insured diabetics. There she observed direct counsel with clients on how to eat healthier to treat their disease.

When a resident at the Villa started a monthly nutrition class for other residents, Kirsti helped with one of the month’s presentations on rutabagas. She researched the benefits of the vegetable, found recipes for the nursing home kitchen to prepare and presented her findings to the residents and a group of daycare children.

“The co-op placement has helped me figure out what I want to pursue,” she said. “Until I had this opportunity I didn’t know exactly what being a dietician entailed. It has been an eye opening experience, but has confirmed that I am heading in the right direction.”

Kirsti’s placement was set up with help from her academic advisor Deb Roth after seeing her excitement and confirmation of purpose upon returning from Haiti.

“Nutrition is a field in which Kirsti can experience an intersection of her interest and the needs of the world,” said Roth. “She was very enthused to have a hands-on opportunity. I knew she would represent Hesston College well in this role and that the Villa would love having her observe and work with residents.”

Once she finishes her degree, Kirsti thinks she will look for her first job as a dietician in a hospital or similar environment. She most enjoys working directly with patients and counseling them in good nutritional practices. Eventually she hopes to end up with an organization and working with people overseas.

Stevens, Kirsti’s placement supervisor, was pleased with the natural ability she had to communicate with residents, and believes she will be successful in her future endeavors.

“I appreciated Kirsti’s ability to interact with people of all walks of life,” said Stevens. “I look forward to a few years when she will be a colleague in the field of dietetics.”

Kirsti doesn’t have any definite decisions made for after Hesston at this point. She knows she will continue her education, but her two years in Kansas have made distance much less of a factor this time around as she is considering schools in Pennsylvania, Oregon, Ohio and Washington.

“Hesston College has prepared me well,” said Kirsti. “Even my most basic classes have been challenging. I like the small classes where I can get so much more help. I have gotten the help I need here – whether it is in the tutoring lab or directly from a professor. I don’t know if I would feel as comfortable asking a professor for help anywhere else.”

by Rachel Schlegel

Nursing program receives re-approval

The nursing program at Hesston College was formally granted re-approval by the Kansas State Board of Nursing (KSBN) at a Dec. 13 and 14 meeting in Topeka.

The Board’s recommendation came from a two day visit to the Hesston campus in late September. After visiting with nursing faculty and assessing the program’s facilities, curriculum and resources, the program was recommended for re-approval for the full eight years. The next survey will be coordinated with the visit from the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission in spring 2018.

“Nursing faculty, staff and students feel affirmed by the recent KSBN site visit, report and formal action to grant full approval,” said Hesston College Director of Nursing Bonnie Sowers. “We are pleased that our nursing program was found to be in full compliance with all relevant state regulations and that many program strengths were noted.”

Among the regulations the Board assessed and named as strengths to Hesston’s program are professional and efficient faculty and positive and satisfied graduates.

The program’s strengths agree with those of the wider college, which was named the number 2 two-year college in the country in terms of student success rate by Washington Monthly magazine in August.

Since Hesston College’s first class of nursing graduates in 1968, 98.6 percent of the program’s graduates have passed the national licensure exam to become registered nurses. More than 1,300 nurses have gone through the program in its 44 years of existence.

“None of this would have been possible without the strong curriculum standards that have been in place at Hesston College over time, as well as the incredible focus, effort and abilities invested in the nursing program by our faculty, staff and students,” said Sowers. “In the end, it is the patients of our graduates who will benefit from the program’s high standards and our faculty’s emphasis on caring and competence.”

Photo release: Hesston College students attend business convention

Several members of the Hesston College community, including five sophomore business students and two instructors traveled to Calgary, Alberta, Canada Nov. 4 to 7 for the 2010 Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) convention. “MEDA was such a good experience,” said student Sarah Lederman. “We were able to talk with Mennonite business professionals and learn how they have brought their faith into their businesses.” Pictured from left are Hesston College Vice President of Advancement Yvonne Sieber; John Oyer, Hesston, Kan.; Luci Eash, Haven, Kan.; instructor David LeVan; Laura Unruh, Newton, Kan.; Masaki Kato, Tokyo, Japan; Sarah Lederman, Middlebury, Ind.; instructor Vickie Andres; and Hesston College volunteers Sid and Peg Burkey, Milford, Neb.

Photo release: Professor donates hairstyle for student’s service trip

Kevin Wilder, Hesston College psychology and youth ministry instructor, and Saralyn Mast, a freshman from Ephrata, Pa., show off Wilder’s new hairstyle “The Mr. T.” Wilder, who is also Mast’s academic advisor, donated his hairstyle as a fundraiser for a service trip to Haiti during Christmas break where she will spend a week working with orphan girls at a school. The unusual cut was one of four options which students, faculty and staff could vote on with their monetary gifts. Mast and Wilder hoped to raise half of the funds for the trip through the Hesston College community and exceeded their goal by $46.80. Mast is a member of Ephrata Mennonite Church and the daughter of David and Karen Mast.