Inspire, Summer 1991

The Master's Touch Quartet performed their last official concert on Saturday, March 9, 1991 at Grace Baptist Church in Cedarville, Ohio. Bob Beikert'85, Jeff Beste '86, Mike Law'88, and Jim Unger'86 began singing together during the summer of 1985 on an MIS trip to Australia. In the six years they were together, the quartet performed over 200 concerts and produced a tape of their favorites. On April 5, the College broke ground for the new science/ engineering/nursing building which is scheduled for completion in September 1992. The three-story, 68,000 square foot structure will adjoin the present 27,000 square foot Science Center. AillARng AlumniScholarships T oday the Alumni Association offers scholarships through 11 departments to outstanding freshmen, sophomores,or juniors in the amount of$500 each. Jesse Woes°Ilnk Angela Mouser Julie Fillinger Peter Casaletto Mark Miller Aaron Welch WaynrLeichty Robert Rodebaugh Stacey 011gee Susan Nicholson (not pictured: Jody Culp) I n the June 28,1894 issue ofThe Xenia Gazette, the opening of Cedarville College offered a free scholarship to the highest honor student in each of the high schools of Greene County. Tuition was $20 for the year. Our Alumni A Military Affected Mission Field By War Follow-up S ince our Spring issue ofthe Inspire, the Alumni Office has received information about many of our alumni who were involved in the Persian Gulf conflict. We have continued compiling a list of those men and women and share them with you in this update. Jeff Bowser'82 Captain Jim Conley '84 Major Ted Nichols '75; U.S. Army Chaplain Commander Val Roloff, USN '65 Kanani Update T he Kanani family experienced great trials during the Persian Gulf crisis. While Roxanne (Butler '69)remained in the States caring for four children and carrying on the ministry of Campus Bible Fellowship,Sami was trapped in Iraq caring for his ailing mother. Sami's mother underwent two difficult kidney surger- ies and passed away on March 3. He was able to leave Baghdad by bus on Friday, March 9, and arrived in Amman,Jordan,24 hours later. The bus he rode was stopped nine times during the trip, and Sami had to present his identifica- tion showing his U.S. citizenship. On March 17, the Kanani family was reunited after seven months of separation. C edarville College saw low attendance and many cutbacks during World War 11 (1941-1945). But in the 1948 Cedrus,the first yearbook printed follow- ing the war, happier times were evident. An entire page was devoted to a successful Homecoming that year. The student body crowned Cedarville's only woman veteran, Mrs. Livia(Oncha '50)Check, Homecoming Queen. M ajor Ted Nichols'75 shared his Operation Desert Storm experience with the student body during chapel on April 15,1991. The following are excerpts ofan interview with CDR Radio Announcer Jon Skillman '65. JS: Ted, you are an alumnus of Cedarville College. Tell us a little of your background and the length of your service. TN: I graduated in 1975 with a degree in History and stayed in Cedarville for one year due to a vested interest in a young lady on campus. Karen(Grigsby '77N)and I married in 1976 and we moved to Michigan were I attended seminary at Grand Rapids Baptist. After graduating in 1980,I joined the service in 1981,and we relocated to Fort Bliss in Texas. JS: Your ministry as chaplain for your unit took a twist while you were stationed in Iraq. Describe a little of that for us. TN: I've heard it described that war is 90% bore- dom and 10% sheer terror. With over 1,000 men in the unit it was during the preparation time that I was able to spend a lot of individual time with the men. They questioned their purpose in life, and it led to a prime time to share the gospel with many. Over 50 men in our unit were saved. As the ground war grew close,the major concerns of the men turned to fear and longevity of their person. There were a lot of open doors. JS: The change in environment for these men must have helped. TN: Yes,being away from their normal everyday routine left time for soul searching and building interpersonal relationships. Some realized that God had a plan for their lives. JS: God has put you in a military mission field. Would you have chosen this? TN: It certainly is a difficult lifestyle. I wouldn't choose to leave my family for six months or go through the deprivation which we experienced, but I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. God provided this opportunity and I was glad to be part of it. It seems that what Saddam Hussein meant for evil God meant for good: to bring many soldiers to Himself and to revive the U.S. people in areas of prayer and trust. I trust God to do great things and continue spiritual growth among the troops. profile continued nity situation,came to help. During a community meeting in the Shack,Rutzebeck found that the people had various skills: farming,sewing,shoemak- ing,baking,and gardening.They were willing to teach others their trades. Then he wrote a list of needs which were primarily food, clothing, and medical assistance. At Rutzebeck's suggestion the community of Scotts Run began to bake bread. They built a dutch oven of discarded bricks, and used donated pans from a local bakery, government surplus food,and store-bought items that the government did not supply. Each day and twice on Saturday,the community baked bread, and that was how the reciprocal economy began—with a bread business. The community then began a collection system in the cities, similar to Goodwill and the Salvation Army. They found an old building at one of the abandoned mines and made it into a clothing and furniture salvage center. People gave their time and talents to clean, mend,and even make clothes from scratch. They also acquired some land which was donated by a man who had bought it for $30 in back taxes. After clearing the land of blackthorn and sweetening the soil with lime (acquired from the Works Progress Ad- ministration), the community planted and harvested vegetables. They canned almost everything. The first year, by operating 25 pressure cookers(each holding seven quarts at a time)24 hours a day for six weeks,the people preserved a total of60,000 cans offood. Selling some of the produce to local grocers provided money to run the reciprocal economy. The Scotts Run Reciprocal Economy involved approximately 500 families. In return for their labors, they were paid in SRRE scrip valued at 12 1/2 cents for a half hour's work. A local auditor kept track of how much scrip was handed out, and the exchange post offered refurbished items to those using the"money." At first, the biggest challenge was getting people of the community to take part. When they began to realize that the Reciprocal Economy was started so that they could reap the benefits, there was no real opposition. On occasion the mine owners would comment,"You better just stick to religion and keep your nose out of our business," but that did not threaten Franklin Trubee. Another important phase of the work was the medical program. Since nofunds were available from the county, an elderly doctor,W.W.Stonestreet,attended to those along Scotts Run as long as transportation was provided. He also taught some ofthe women midwifery and conducted well-baby clinics. For Franklin Trubee,the most satisfying experi- ences in Scotts Run were watching people realize that they could help each other and observing the spiritual growth which occurred. The ties which bound Franklin Trubee to Scotts Run were never completely severed,for he remained in touch through the Reverend Rocken- stein, the second Presbyterian missionary appointed to Monongalia County. The Trubees visited the area on the 50th anniversary of the Shack just a few years ago. Since his retirement from the ministry in 1980, Trubee has continued his missionary involvement in Canton,Ohio, where he has organized an all- volunteer program to distribute food to the needy. He says the program is strongly influenced by his experience with the Scotts Run Reciprocal Econ- omy in Monongalia County during the Great Depression. 9Summer'91