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Written by Ellie Sterenberg ‘17            

On Monday, October 19, Trinity welcomed artist and filmmaker Evan Koons, joined by conference speaker, mentor, and former pastor John Armstrong. Through film, conversation, and a game of Frisbee-toss, they set out to answer the questions that many students and working people find themselves asking: what is work, and how can one find joy in it?

Koons first presented episode three of his For the Life of the World series. Entitled “Creative Service”, the film demonstrated that work is a gift from God, something much deeper and more sacred than a mode of survival; instead, it has everything to do with relationships.

The episode served as the perfect segue into further discussion about what it means to work for the Triune God whose three persons are in eternal collaboration.

As part of a demonstration, Koons pulled out a Frisbee disc and played catch with Dr. Clay Carlson, an eager volunteer. Throwing the Frisbee, Koons explained, is an excellent metaphor for vocation in the life of a Christian. God will toss us a job, and we can either offer our work back to him or drop it and walk away. Throwing a Frisbee takes practice; in the same way, becoming good at our work takes repetition––we do not need to become frustrated by a lack of skill right away. “There’s no pressure,” said Koons, “it’s just catch.”

Ultimately, said Koons and Armstrong, God desires everything; our successes, failures, and desires should all be offered to him.

“We must never see our work as something impersonal. See it as a divine project of vast creativity. See every object as a touch point for millions of relationships, a reminder that you were never alone and that you were never meant to be.”

Koons and Armstrong closed with a question and answer session and spent additional time visiting classes and engaging students on the subject of vocation.

In the world today, there are approximately 20-30 million victims of human trafficking.  Due to a large demand for cheap goods and commercial sex, men, women, and children are exploited worldwide through prostitution, forced labor, debt bondage, and many more horrific crimes. 

Emily Pasnak-Lapchick, an End Trafficking Officer for the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, called the audience into action at this year’s second worldview series lecture, titled “Working Together to End Trafficking”.  Emily developed a passion to fight against human trafficking as a young girl visiting India with her family.  Her parents let her take in and wrestle with the fact that children her age were out on the streets selling trinkets to survive.  “If I would have been born in a different country, at a different time, or to different parents, that could have been me,” She said.  It could have been any of us.

Emily shocked her listeners when she brought the issue close to home.  Human trafficking is not just an international problem.  This issue has been reported in all 50 U.S. States, and in 2014, the state of Illinois had 140 documented cases of human trafficking.  She urged the audience to help make change by initiating conversations with friends and family, buying fair-trade items such as soaps, chocolate, and sugar, and learning to recognize the signs of human trafficking in our own communities.  Ultimately, she said “This demonstrates the power we can achieve when we work  together…these are long battles of change we’ll be fighting, but not long ago we were discriminating based on skin color and only allowing one gender to vote.”  There is hope if we all work together.

The WorldView 2015 series kicked off with a personal and lively message from Trinity Christian College’s newly-appointed president, Kurt. D. Dykstra. Dykstra began with a fascinating personal bio in which he spoke of the dynamic past that has led him to this position. What began as a career in ministry quickly turned to a career in law and politics. Most recently, Dykstra served as the mayor of the city of Holland, Michigan before accepting the role of President here at Trinity. “We are just so incredibly honored and thrilled to be a part of this family,” he stated.

Dykstra went on to speak deeply about vocation and the role that Trinity plays in the lives of its students. Contrasting Trinity to DuPont University, the fictional school in Tom Wolfe’s novel I am Charlotte Simmons, he emphasized the importance of looking beyond what we believe is best to seeing what’s best for the kingdom of God. “[Trinity] has a special obligation to lead the way, to fill the gap, to brace the culture; and we’re doing that.”

Dykstra will be inaugurated as the eighth President of Trinity Christian College on November 6, 2015, and looks forward to helping students, alongside the faculty and staff, discover what their bright futures hold.  The Trinity community extends a warm welcome to him, his wife Leah, and their two daughters Juliana and Emma-Elisabeth.

Each fall, students and community members alike enjoy an evening of dressing up, going out with friends, and listening to great music at Trinity’s annual jazz night. This year’s event on September 25 featured a new “stardust” theme and opened with a pre-concert reception.

The Kevin Brown Quartet was the featured performer, and Trinity’s Jazz Ensemble added to the incredible line up of music.

Brown, an adjunct professor at Trinity, has performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival, the Iowa City Jazz Festival, and at some of Chicago’s top jazz venues. He also performs freelance in classical, flamenco, and jazz, and has released three albums of original jazz with the Chicago group Mosaik. At Trinity, he teaches composition, orchestration and composition lessons.

The reception in the Grand Lobby included delicious treats from the local Doughs Guys Bakery, refreshments, and a photo booth.

Stardust Jazz Night was free and open to the public, providing another excellent music event that brought together students, faculty and staff, and the community.

Upcoming music events in October

• Fall Instrumental Concert—Friday, October 23, 7 p.m., Ozinga Chapel
• Fall Choral Concert—Saturday, October 24, 7:30 p.m., Ozinga Chapel

The events are free and open to the public. Call 708.597.3000 for more information.

Moving up four spots from the previous year, Trinity Christian College has been ranked 24^th among Regional Colleges—Midwest by U.S.News & World Report in “Best Colleges” for 2016. A total of 363 colleges are ranked in the entire Regional category.

In addition, the College was ranked 17^th among Regional Colleges—Midwest in the category of “Best Colleges for Veterans.” This category includes the top-ranked schools that offer benefits that help make a college education more affordable for veterans. Trinity was also included in the 11 Regional Colleges designated as “A+ Schools for B Students,” a category for institutions providing an environment in which determined and hard-working students can thrive.

“We are honored to be recognized as a college that excels in academics and offers an exceptional learning experience for a diverse student body,” said President Kurt Dykstra. “We at Trinity look forward to an outstanding year that lives up to and, quite frankly, exceeds these respected rankings.”

The U.S. News rankings are based on several criteria, including peer assessment, graduation and freshmen retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving.

Trinity stands among other institutions in the Regional Colleges category that offer a wide range of degree programs in the liberal arts and in fields such as business, education, and nursing. This fall, the college added a number of new majors, including Bioinformatics, Digital Design, Environmental Science, and Music Production.

Other recent rankings

Trinity Ranked One of the Top Colleges for the Money

Trinity Named One of the Top 25 Christian Colleges for Social Work

For the first time in the program’s five year history, the men’s golf team will be participating in the NCCAA National Championship. The team earned honor with a first place finish in the NCCAA North Central Region Tournament at Big Run Golf Club in Lockport, Illinois.  The Trolls came out on top with a team score of 638, beating out the second place team by 14 strokes. The national tournament will be held in Panama City Beach, Florida, on October 19-21.

After the first day of competition the Trolls were in a good position as they came in with the lowest team score. They posted a 323 and were three strokes ahead of Bethel College at 326 and eight strokes ahead of Judson University at 331. The team came back even stronger for the second 18 holes and pulled away for the victory.

Overall the Trolls ended with four golfers in the top six in the field of 16 competitors.  Jonathan Zandstra and Steven Massey ended with a 158 total and tied for 3rd place.  After the first day they were both in group tied in 5th place, but they improved their position on day two.  Massey shot an 80 and a 78 and Zandstra shot s 82 and a 76.

Evan Eissens was just one stroke back with a 159 total and in 5th place overall.  With a 78 on day one he was in a tie for second, but followed with an 81 to fall a couple of spots.

Alek Svabek showed an improvement from the first 18 to the second. He had an 83 on Friday and an 80 on Saturday for a 163 and 6th place.

The final golfer for the team was Cody Tiesman who ended with a 172 and in 14th place.

The Trolls have one regular season match left on their fall schedule. They will host the Troll Classic on October 5.

The S.A.L.T. program hosted an adventurous two-week Alaskan trip at the beginning of September. Led by Johannes and Lynda Witte of Witte Travel, a total of 41 alumni, staff, faculty and friends of the college were in attendance.

The trip began in Vancouver, Canada, where the group boarded a cruise ship that took them through the inner passage of the Pacific coastline. Throughout this part of the voyage, they enjoyed magnificent scenery, charming towns and a lot of American history.

“It was such a blessing to share God’s magnificent, unspoiled creation with Trinity travelers,” Salt Director Ruth De Bruyn said.

Once in Alaska, the ship cruised through beautiful sights of Glacier Bay National Park and College Fjord. On land, a Direct-to-the-Wilderness train took the group to Talkeetna, where they stayed at a nearby lodge. From there, they visited Denali National Park, enjoyed the sight of Mount McKinley, and took a riverboat cruise in Fairbanks.

Local cuisine, native wildlife, rich history and majestic landscape made the trip one to remember.

“Everyone, including S.A.L.T. students, board members, professors and friends of the college were drawn closer to God and all His glory as a result of this once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Ruth De Bruyn said. “We are thankful for great weather and safe travels.”

Poet and alumnus John Terpstra ’73 of Hamilton, Ontario, visited campus from September 16 to 18 for a series of readings.

Over the three days, members of the Trinity community enjoyed hearing Terpstra read from his memoir, The Boys: or, Waiting for the Electrician’s Daughter and his recent book The House with the Parapet Wall. On Friday, Terpstra read several poems, accompanied by Dr. Mark Jones, professor of English, playing jazz on the piano.

Students had the opportunity to discuss poetry and life as a poet on Wednesday when Terpstra visited Dr. Mike Vander Weele’s poetry and drama class. Students especially interested in the art of poetry also received feedback on their own work in a master’s class led by Terpstra.

“I was able to see my poems from the perspective of an accomplished poet, who picked up on the nuances I was trying to convey and showed me what could be changed to improve them,” said Adam Krestan ’18 of Ozawkie, Kansas. “It was just plain fun to talk to him about poetry.”

Terpstra has received regional and national recognition for his work, including a poem in the 20^th anniversary edition of Image magazine. His repertoire includes nine books of poetry, four books of creative nonfiction, and one CD.

Nursing alumni, faculty, and students gathered on September 14 for the annual Commitment to Caring Ceremony to recognize and pray for junior nursing students beginning their clinical rotations in area hospitals.

Following the opening prayer by Nurses Student Organization (NSO) Vice President Azel Dizon ’15 of Oak Forest, Illinois, Nursing Department Chair Tina Decker ’06 introduced nursing faculty and staff.

Guest speaker Lauren (Bultema) Janchenko ’12, a pediatric ICU nurse at Advocate Children’s Hospital, openly discussed the challenges faced by both nursing students and nursing professionals; but she emphasized the rewards of the “amazing career” awaiting future Trinity nursing graduates.

Sharing some of the most dramatic moments in her career thus far, Janchenko passionately ended her talk with this encouragement: “You will save people, and you will show Christ through your work. You will have that one patient who makes you say, ‘This is why I do this. This is why God called me to be a nurse.’”

After Janchenko’s presentation, NSO President Brittany Miller ’15 of Waukegan, Illinois, offered words of encouragement from the perspective of a senior nursing student.

Completing the ceremony, Chaplain Bill Van Groningen, Ph.D., offered a blessing as those gathered formed a large circle around the junior students, praying for them and the work they are about to undertake.

Learn more about Trinity’s top-notch nursing program.

Jordan Ghiglia is a double major in marketing and communications, with a focus in media. He is the former Editor in Chief of the student newspaper and a partner in the Trinfo.co team. After graduation Ghiglia would like to move back to the Pacific Northwest and work in media and marketing.

“I want to lead because I know that there is work to be done and nothing has ever been achieved by sitting on the sidelines and watching. I would love to see the students get more involved at Trinity and get the most out of their education.”