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At 100, D. C. Wedel bridges Bethel history

At age 100 (as of March 16, 2008), D.C. Wedel is a living bridge of Bethel College history.

When family members and a group of Bethel staff and administrators gathered recently at Bethesda Home in Goessel, where Wedel lives, to celebrate his century mark, he reminisced that he had “shaken the hand of every Bethel president but the first one” (Cornelius H. Wedel, no relation). D.C. Wedel served as Bethel’s sixth president, from 1952-59.

Choir tour to include venue in Canada

The Bethel College Concert Choir will complete an “exchange” with Canadian Mennonite University, whose CMU Singers performed at Bethel two years ago, with a visit to the Winnipeg, Manitoba, campus.

The choir’s concert at CMU is part of the annual spring break tour that will also take the singers to Mennonite churches and schools in Kansas, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska, as well as St. Joseph Cathedral in Sioux Falls, S.D., and the campus of Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn.

New video feature on Bethel web site

Alumni and friends of the college can now get a glimpse of recent events and performances at www.bethelks.edu/bc/video.

Hear and see tenor Arthur Marks ’93, New York, sing during the annual Young Alumnus Award convocation Feb. 11. View senior Adam Gabriel offering reflections at the Martin Luther King Jr. celebration on campus Feb. 13. Experience a bit of Mozart’s opera “The Magic Flute” on the Bethel stage March 7-8: senior Jeff Buller as Sarastro and senior Caitlin Linscheid as Queen of the Night.

Click the play button (start arrow) to run each QuickTime video segment. Check back for more clips of concerts, lectures and other events as they are added.

Three alumni to be honored in May

The Bethel College Alumni Association will honor two alumni and the Bethel Deaconess Hospital/Bethel College Nursing Alumni Association (BDH/BCNAA) will honor an alumna at the annual Alumni Banquet on May 24.

Claudia Limbert ’78, Columbus, Miss., will receive the Distinguished Achievement Award. She majored in elementary education, English and history, and received a bachelor of arts degree from Bethel in May 1978. She is a published writer, educator and respected college administrator, and is currently president of Mississippi University for Women.

Duane Goossen ’78, Topeka, Kan., will receive the Outstanding Alumnus Award. He majored in religious studies and peace studies, and received a bachelor of arts degree from Bethel in May 1978. He has been a business owner and Kansas legislator, and is currently Kansas secretary of administration and state budget director.

Arlene (Peters) Hett ’69, Hillsboro, Kan., will receive the Outstanding Nursing Alumnus Award at the Alumni Banquet and will also be honored by BDH/BCNAA on Friday, Oct. 3, as part of this year’s Fall Festival weekend activities. She has been honored both as Employee of the Month and Employee of the Year at Via Christi - St. Francis, Wichita.

The Alumni Banquet is at 6 p.m. Saturday, May 24, in Memorial Hall. Discount price is $16 per person if paying by May 9, $18 May 10-14. To make a reservation, visit or phone Thresher Bookstore in Schultz Student Center at (316) 284-5205. Payment or credit card information is required when the reservation is made. Those attending receive a personalized nametag at the door, which serves as their banquet ticket.

Kauffman Museum slates three events in April

Polish lecturer to talk on landscape park and Mennonite history

Dr. Jarek Pajakowski, director of the Lower Vistula River Valley Landscape Park headquartered in Swiecie, Poland, will provide two programs in April hosted by Kauffman Museum and the Mennonite Library and Archives. Both programs are free and open to the public.

The first will be at Kauffman Museum April 13 at 3:30 p.m. as part of the Sunday-Afternoon-at-the-Museum series. Titled “Plums, Peat Bogs and Bicycle Paths,” Pajakowski’s multimedia presentation will feature the landscape park. In Poland, such areas function as national parks, protecting areas with natural, historical, cultural and scenic value.

Pajakowski’s second program will be in the Administration Building chapel Thursday, April 17, at 7 p.m. His topic will be “Mennonite Settlers on the Lower Vistula River Valley in the 17th and 18th Centuries.” The presentation is part of the Friends of the Mennonite Library and Archives series.

The Lower Vistula River Valley Landscape Park includes a 238-year old Mennonite farmhouse, which is the symbol and logo of the park. In 2000 a project to reconstruct the historic house in the village of Chrystkowo received second prize in the Preservation of the Natural Environment and Cultural Heritage competition sponsored by Ford Motor Company.

Earth Day Adventure 2008

At 2 p.m. Sunday, April 20, Kauffman Museum will host Earth Day Adventure 2008 at Memorial Grove, located at the northeast edge of the campus. Grove caretaker Bev Goering, Moundridge, will describe the landscaping plan for the area. Then participants will help plant perennials. They will also have the opportunity to plant seeds in containers to take home. The event is free and open to the public. People of all ages are welcome, with families encouraged to attend.

Summer camps for students of all ages

Bethel will again offer camps for students of all ages this summer, including the following:

  • Summer Science Institute, June 1-6
  • a wide variety of sports camps between June 2 and Aug. 9
  • Uncle Carl’s Camps at Kauffman Museum between June 2 and July 18
  • Summer Music Camp, June 8-14
  • Broadway at Bethel, June 15-22

Marty Ward tennis reunion at the U.S. Open

Former players, fans and supporters of the “Marty Ward BC tennis era” are invited to gather at the U.S. Open over Labor Day weekend 2008. Ward, now of Corpus Christi, Texas, and his wife, Carol (Schmidt) Ward ’78, will be there.

When Ward was approached with the idea, his response was, “A tennis reunion at the U.S. Open sounds great to me. I’m pumped!” Those wanting more information should contact Angela (Brodhagen) Bontrager, (316) 288-8103, angelaterryb@hotmail.com.