AU Alumni News, January 2021

A note from AU Alumni Council Member Phil Martinez BA ’09, MBA ’10 (pictured with his wife Jaime (Kuhnle) BA ’09 and their children)

For the past several months, my wife and I have been trying to explain God and Heaven to our daughter who turned 4 in September. At some point, we fumbled the conversation by introducing the concept of death. I know what you're thinking, "bad move Mommy and Daddy. Death? Really? She's 4!". It wasn't intentional. Toddlers are expert interrogators, and somehow we ended up at death. We eventually salvaged the conversation, and she became more comfortable with the notion of going to Heaven to meet God.

Eventually, she began asking to say her own prayer at night after Mommy and Daddy say one. It started with typical toddler things like, "Dear God, Thank you for my toys", and is gradually evolving into more important things like health, safety, and happiness. She recently said a prayer that couldn't have had better timing for our family and speaks to me personally as a Dad. "Dear God, Thank you for this wonderful day. Thank you for everything you do. And thank you that you will pick us up and let us live with you in some days."

As we look back on 2020, there are a lot of emotions we have had to sort out and likely are still dealing with. Fear, anxiety, depression, guilt, sadness are some that I personally felt. You hear a lot of people (me included) say things like, "I can't wait to say goodbye to 2020!", like we can find relief by turning over the calendar. I'd be lying if I said that had any impact on me. What did help was hearing my daughter's prayer. I think about it every day, and it helps me put things into perspective.

Regardless of everything that happened around us or to us in 2020, we were successful in introducing God to our first-born. I didn't take notice as it was happening, but this was the most important thing we could have accomplished in 2020. It's also a reminder to me to get to know the God I used to know when I was a kid. The God that my daughter now knows as Abba Father. She is forming a relationship with God from the perspective of gratitude, thankfulness, and awe.

Admittedly, my relationship with God lately has been closer to one of asking for help, asking for healing, asking, asking, asking... This is okay. God cares about all of our needs, big and small, and hears all of our prayers. But today, God has spoken hope and peace into my life through my 4-year-old daughter. He's reminded me that the God I knew at her age is still there.

God wants to give you the same hope for your future. He may speak through your child, a coworker, friend, or some other way you would never see coming. My prayer for you is that you're able to find what it is God is trying to give you, whether you're asking for it or not.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Jan. 18

We are just a few days away from our first virtual MLK Day celebration, and we are EXCITED! Visit us online to check out the Virtual Programming Schedule. We are looking forward to connecting virtually with our alum family as we celebrate this special event! Let’s connect!

Whether you joined a team or registered as an individual, there is still time to finish up your steps as part of the A Million Steps for Martin march!

Don’t forget to send us your takeaways and questions as you watch the BLM series featured on our Virtual Forum web page! Then join us on January 18 at 7 p.m. for the Awaken the Dream Virtual Talkback Forum. This session is where you will have an opportunity to enter into dialogue with each of the presenters from the series about everything you learned during their presentations.

We will conclude the celebration on Tuesday, January 19, with our annual MLK Day Chapel featuring Rev. Dr. Kevin W. Earley, our 2020 MOSAIC Multicultural Alumni Award recipient. Chapel worship will be led by AU alumni Malachi Carter BA '14, Deven Bridges BA '17, Dominic Martin BA '18, and Rob Weatherly BA '16.

We are looking forward to your participation as we continue to elevate the message of hope for our world, offered to us through the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We are always better together!

AU Athletics- back in action

The schedules for Fall 2020 (postponed) and Spring 2021 Athletics are now viewable online! Check out the AU Athletics web calendar for a full view of the spring schedule. You can live-stream each athletic event on the AU Athletics website here.

Shout out to our alumni athletes: We are partnering with each athletic team to host a one-hour zoom Season Preview with each coach. In this meeting, you'll have the opportunity to hear from each coach to get a snapshot of what lies ahead for AU Athletics this spring! If you were an AU athlete, be on the lookout for an invitation to your sport's Season Preview.

President Pistole awarded Bicentennial Medal from McKinney

Anderson University President John Pistole was recently awarded the Bicentennial Medal from IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law for his distinguished and distinctive service. The award honors those who have broadened the reach of Indiana University around the state, nation, and world.

“It is a great honor to receive this IU award with such a distinguished group of fellow alum from IU McKinney School of Law,” said Pistole. He follows by saying this honor is “very humbling.”

Read more here.

New Dean Announced- School of Theology and Christian Ministry

In the fall of 2021, Anderson University’s School of Theology and Christian Ministry will be welcoming a new dean, Assistant Professor of Theology and Ethics Dr. Nathan Willowby BA '05. Willowby has taught at AU for four years and foresees the coming years as an important time for AU to dive deeper into the role it plays in Christian higher education.

“We have important roles to play in AU’s mission of educating students for lives of faith and service to Church and society through the ministry preparation programs we offer, and the role of the School of Theology and Christian Ministry courses in the liberal arts core curriculum,” said Willowby. “I hope to balance these two purposes and intentionally seek ways that our seminary programs can serve the Church through training the next generation of pastoral leaders.”

Congrats Dr. Willowby on your new appointment!

With a commitment to following Christ and practicing law, 2014 alumnus Robert Rowlett is currently a Deputy Attorney General for the State of Indiana. Rowlett discusses some of the unique cases he's taken on and how the AU faculty and campus community has helped prepare him for serving in legal affairs. He credits a welcoming AU community and wisdom and intentionality from our outstanding faculty to his rich experience as a Raven, both as a student and now alumnus.

Tune in to our conversation with Robert here.

We love to hear about what our AU alumni are doing professionally and personally once you leave the nest, and we want to celebrate life's special moments with you.

Did you move or get a new job (or both)? We want to know so we can stay in touch with you. Did you just get married? We want to congratulate you! Did you just have a baby? We want to share in your joy as you welcome your little Raven-we'll even send you a gift.

Don't forget to let us know when these life events happen, because you're still a part of our Raven family!

Let us know about these important life changes here.