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The Cedarholm Library was a very quiet place at 1:15 p.m. Friday. A handful of workers processed returned books, paying little attention to the only student in the building—a young man in the computer lab wearing a black gown and mortarboard.
Most of the 172 graduates and their friends and family members were eating lunch or driving home while Steven Fine pushed around the mouse of a computer in the library’s computer lab. He was still clothed in the academic garb he had worn 90 minutes earlier while crossing the gymnasium stage to get the diploma that signified his having graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Church Ministries.
“I’m printing out my final paper for Mr. Trainer’s class, Theological Issues in Missions,” Fine (below, right) explained, somewhat sheepishly. “I tend to procrastinate a little … sometimes.”
Fine sent his paper to the printer, heaved a sigh of relief, then joined his family to begin enjoying life as a college graduate.
The crowd that had packed the facility for the morning Convocation service had spilled out onto the area between the gymnasium and Old Main, gradually separating into smaller groups of celebrants. Nursing majors huddled together, having seen little of each other during the second-semester clinicals around the country. Business majors lined up for pictures with Dr. Corey Pfaffe, Chair of the department. All enjoyed a perfect graduation day, one with glorious sunshine and moderate temperatures.
Jordan Brill noted that he is the last Maranatha graduate to earn a bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems, a program being phased out before next year.
“I’m getting married in August and looking for a job in computer programming, Web design—anything IT-related,” Brill said.
Matt Olson, a Biblical Studies major from Cheyenne, Wyo., said he intends to become an evangelist, but not for another year.
“I want to wait for my fiancée (Elisabeth Loggans) to finish next year,” Olson said.
Gary Meador, an Accounting Management major from Watertown, said he hopes to land an accounting job with an insurance company.
“It was a challenge, but a great opportunity to grow in the Lord,” Meador said. “I was only able to overcome those obstacles by the grace of God. Realizing that is a big part of maturing spiritually.”
The Convocation service included the presentation of diplomas as well as the year’s major academic awards.
David Canedy, Deputation Director of Baptist World Mission, gave the commencement address on the true meaning of success as defined by the Bible. He began in Joshua 1.
“God has prepared you, as he prepared Joshua,” Canedy said. “He’ll give you an opportunity, as he did for Joshua, if you are yielded to the will of God.”
Canedy and G.S. McNair (see baccalaureate story below) were given honorary doctor’s degrees.
Accounting Management major Matt Evon, commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army on Friday, was recognized for having the highest grade-point average (3.982) in the senior class. Humanities, Letters major Tim Adam (3.974) was second. Biology major Katelyn Schalmo earned a 4.0 GPA, but spent all but her final semester at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College.
Former Pillsbury President Dr. Greg Huffman was among those attending the ceremony. Huffman said he hopes to soon candidate for a position on the pastoral staff of a large Baptist church in Wisconsin.
Faculty members who had earned graduate degrees in 2008-09 were also recognized. That group included Physical Education Associate Professor Gary Garrison (a second master’s degree, in Education), Biblical Studies Associate Professor Dennis Komis (a second master’s degree, in Biblical Counseling), and Nursing Assistant Professor Sandra Heine (master’s degree in nursing).
Senior Class President Joshua Prather presented the school with a gift from his class, a sound system for Old Main Café.
Nair Delivers Baccalaureate Sermon
G.S. Nair was introduced at Maranatha’s Baccalaureate service Thursday night as “a remarkable man with a remarkable testimony.” Nair, who has been responsible for winning thousands of people to Christ in India, then delivered a remarkable sermon to 172 graduates, their friends and family members, and others who gathered in the college gymnasium.
“When I was an officer with the Indian Army, God blessed me with tuberculosis,” Nair said. “I mean that when I say He blessed me. The Army had a hospital for every other disease. The only hospital that would deal with tuberculosis was one run by Baptist Mid-Missions.”
It was through the witness of hospital personnel that Nair (left), previously a Hindu, accepted Christ. His zeal for witnessing was soon apparent.
“There were 180 residents, and every one of them heard the gospel out of my mouth within two weeks’ time,” Nair said.
Nair would begin a Bible institute in 1980, a Bible college in 1986 and a seminary in 1992. That college now has 1,400 graduates serving churches with a combined membership of 150,000—in a country in which only one percent of people classify themselves as “Christian.” He has also established 17 orphanages.
“India is more closed to missions today than it was then,” Nair said. “In northern India, for instance, Punjab is very open but the two neighboring states have both banned conversion to Christianity.”
Trinity Baptist Church in Concord, New Hampshire, has supported Nair since 1981. Maranatha President Dr. Charles Phelps was pastor of that church when he first met Nair in 1989. Nair has also met former Maranatha presidents Dr. B. Myron Cedarholm and Dr. Arno Q. Weniger.
“I would consider Dr. Phelps a kindred spirit,” Nair said, adding that Phelps has been a blessing to his congregation during all three visits to India.
Cameras flashed as the graduates made their way up the aisles and to the chairs in the front of the auditorium during the processional,” Like a River Glorious.” The Madrigal and Handbell Choir, two of its members wearing gowns and mortarboards, sang “All Creatures of Our God and King.”
Media Services Director Rex Munyon watched three monitors in a room at the back of the facility as he coordinated the movements of three handheld video cameras recording the event.
After Phelps concluded with a benediction prayer, the graduates gathered on the lawn and steps on the east side of the gym for pictures with their families and each other. Some planned informal farewell get-togethers for later that evening, while others planned simply for a good night’s sleep to prepare for Friday morning’s Commencement.
Nair, meanwhile, plans to preach in at least eight churches before returning to India in mid-June.
“We need to trust in God alone,” Nair said. “We need to cling to the Lord and build an inseparable relationship.”
Nurse Pinning Emphasizes Service to Others
Maranatha President Dr. Charles Phelps said he takes the school’s nursing program “very seriously.”
“I am the son of a nurse,” Phelps noted during Thursday afternoon’s pinning ceremony at the Maranatha gymnasium. “I thought I was done hearing disgusting stories at the dinner table. Then my younger sister became a nurse … then my baby sister … then my brother-in-law. I still get no peace at the dinner table.”
The 21 members of the second graduating class will soon have plenty of dinnertime stories to tell. Many already have jobs promised to them, pending their passing of the nursing board examinations this summer.
Barb Gerlach’s parents came from San Francisco to witness the ceremony. She plans to face the testing in June, then work at a trauma center in Denver. Jessica Biechy plans to work on the medical/surgical floor of a hospital in Reading, Pa.
“These girls have put in more than 1,000 nursing hours,” said Kelly Crum, who will replace Peggy Sutherland as department Chair this summer. “That includes 315 hours of clinical experience in a hospital for their practicum, working 8-to-12 hour shifts. There has been a lot of laughter, tears, and hard work.”
Phelps gave a short message from Matthew 5:16, emphasizing the need for Christian nurses with compassion who can serve both in the U.S. and on the mission field. Sutherland then presented Biechy with the Florence Nightingale Award.
“It was totally a surprise,” said Biechy (right), who was even more surprised to later find out that a $100 prize accompanies the award.
The graduates were called to the front, two at a time, to have their pins affixed by a family member. The candles in their white ceramic lamps were then lit by a nursing faculty member.
When all the graduates had received their pins and lamps, they recited the “Nightingale Pledge.” The pledge, written in 1893, begins with a promise “before God and in the presence of this assembly” to “pass my life in purity and to practice my profession faithfully.”
Testimonies, 'PhT' Degrees Highlight Senior Chapel
Melissa Abrahamson walked out of Maranatha’s gymnasium Thursday morning using one hand to help carry 11-month-old daughter Maelyn and holding her PhT certificate in the other.
The PhT (Pushing Hubby Through or Pushing Honey Through) documents were given to spouses of graduates at the conclusion of the Senior Chapel. Melissa and Maelyn were there with husband Matt, who will be awarded his bachelor’s degree in Biblical Counseling.
“I worked the first three years and stayed home with Maelyn this year,” Melissa said. “It’s been hard, definitely. But I’ve seen God leading in our lives all along. We wouldn’t change a thing.”
Matt Abrahamson, 33, (left) was working at a factory four years ago when he believed God had called him to learn more about the Bible. He also works at First Baptist Church in Hartford.
“I am just waiting to see what God has for me next,” Matt said, “but I feel like I now have the tools to minister to a much wider range of people.”
The Senior Chapel, for graduating seniors and their families, included two sessions of testimonies. One of the most compelling was by Elementary Teacher Education major Jennifer Scates. Her father, Lester, was injured in a serious car accident in April. He was able to join his daughter and other family members in the gym on Thursday, however.
“The Lord really blessed,” said Lester, who accepted Christ when Jennifer (right) was a sophomore.
Jennifer’s mother, Phyllis, recalled dropping her daughter off at Maranatha as a freshman—then leaving for home in Downers Grove, Ill., a day earlier than scheduled because she felt completely at peace with the Christian environment on campus.
“I realized she was right where God wanted her to be,” Phyllis Scates said. “I want to thank the people at Maranatha for how we’ve been able to see Jennifer grow and how you’ve helped us grow as a family.”
Senior Biblical Studies major Jasper Shivers recalled how he came to college as a freshman with no money. Yet, somehow, God had provided funds for him through all four years.
“Without God’s help, I wouldn’t have even completed my first semester,” Shivers said.
One mother noted that her son had spent six years at Maranatha, twice changing majors.
“He might not have had the highest GPA, but he might be the one with the most credits,” she said.
Joe Haynes expressed thanks for a smooth transition for his daughter, Emily. The senior Piano Pedagogy major transferred to Maranatha in January after Pillsbury Baptist Bible College closed. She performed her senior recital in Burkhart Hall.
“I was so grateful for the way this college opened its arms to the students from Pillsbury,” Haynes said.
Dr. John Brock, Vice President for Academic Affairs, noted how highly the seniors had scored in standardized testing compared to those at other colleges in the same liberal arts category. Director of Alumni Services John Davis presented the benefits of belonging to the Alumni Association.
Maranatha President Dr. Charles Phelps brought a message from Hebrews 12:1-4, noting that “I quit” are two of the easiest words to speak, but two of the most difficult to live with in terms of consequences. He also spoke of the “relay race of faith,” the passing of the baton of Biblical truth from generation to generation.
Dean of Students Doug Richards thanked the seniors for their prayers during a difficult year while his wife, Kris, battled cancer.
“We can have confidence in Him,” Richards said. “God does not change.”
--Posted by Andrew Call, 5-7-09
Graduation 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
- Graduation Chapel: 10:30 a.m. (Gym)
- Graduation Luncheon: 12-1:30 p.m. (DC)
- Graduation Rehearsal: 1:30 p.m. (Gym)
- Nurse Pinning Ceremony: 4 p.m.
- Baccalaureate: 7 p.m.
Friday, May 8, 2009
- Official Graduation Photos: 8:45 a.m. (DC lower level)
- Commencement: 10 a.m. (Gym)
Everyone is invited to lunch in the Dining Complex after Commencement. Dorm students are still on the meal plan; cost for everyone else is $4.75 for adults, $3 for children ages 3 to 9, and free for ages 2 and under. Tickets may be pre-purchased at the Welcome Center.
Graduation Information
List of Graduate Candidates
Tickets
Parking
Nursery
Graduation 2008
Graduation 2007 More information for graduating seniorsRegalia request form for faculty