Inspire, Winter 1999

lumniAssociation News Homecoming 1999 Alumni Award Winners Alumnus OfThe Year James Rickard'71 As founder and executive director ofthe Stewardship Services Foundation(SSF),Jim Rickard has a unique opportunity to assist the Christian community with income taxes, wills, trusts, and other financial issues. In the past 23 years, Jim has presented financial stewardship seminars,including will and trust seminars, to churches. He currently presents 160 seminars per year and,during the past 15 years, has seen $90 million designated for the Lord's work through SSF will and trust seminars. Formerly the assistant business manager at Cedarville College,Jim was working as business manager at Los Angeles Baptist College when he left to create SSF in 1978. Since its inception,SSF has helped prepare more than 20,000 tax returns for pastors and missionaries. Today, with offices in California and Indiana,SSF counsels 7,000-8,000 pastors and missionaries on personal finances and tax-related issues each year. Jim currently holds a number of responsibilities in addition to his work at SSF.He is board member and chairman of the finance committee for The Master's College and Seminary and is also a board member of the David Jeremiah '63 radio program Turning Point. In his seminar and business activities, Jim always remembers to share the good word about Cedarville."Jim has consistently been a very good ambassador for Cedarville College," noted Dr. Martin Clark, Cedarville vice president of development."We continually receive reports that Jim speaks very highly about the College,encourages prospective students to consider Cedarville, and encourages people to include the College in their stewardship plans." Jim and his wife, Joan,have been married for 36 years and have residences in Goshen,Indiana and Newhall,California. They have a daughter, Pamela Rickard Smith '80,a son,Jim Jr., and four grandchildren. Young Alumnus Of The Year James Mouser'91 "Cedarville College is a very special place, with incredibly special people," shared Jim Houser,a 1991 broadcasting graduate of Cedarville College."It changed my life, and the friends-hips and experiences I had while in this cornfield have made a lasting impact on who I am." Jim had some wonderful experiences in the "cornfield"—he was involved with Student Government(where he was named SGA rep ofthe year in 1989), nursing home ministry,campus activities programs,and,of course, broadcasting. Jim was part of the chapel audio service team for all four years ofcollege and gained experience at CDR Radio by writing news and handling weekend on-air duties for three years. When WSRN (the student radio network) went on the air in Jim'sjunior year,Jim took the opportunity to co-host The Morning Show and the All Request Study Break. Jim also used his talents when he traveled with the China Mission Team as sound man in 1991. Since Jim left Cedarville in 1991,the Lord has brought him some wonderful opportunities,in which broadcasting has been key. After college, Jim moved to Colorado as editor of the Focus on the Family daily broadcast. He became producer of Weekend!Focus on the Family in April 1994,and,on the side, co-created/wrote/co-produced/co-hosted a nationally-syndicated Christian hit music show called The Weekly Power Magazine. Jim transitioned to Sparrow Records,a recording label for Christian artists like Steven Curtis Chapman and Twila Paris, in January 1995 as manager of national promotion. He was later named director of national promotion and then,in April of this year, director of marketing. One of Jim's passions is his involvement with 1-888-Need Him—a 24-hour-a-day hotline advertised through radio for people who want to know about Jesus Christ. Through a unique turn of events, Jim found a way for Sparrow to partner with Need Him in distributing the hotline's 60-second radio spots nationally at no cost to the nonprofit ministry. The Sparrow Foundation has gone on to help fund Need Him (for more information, check out www.needhim.org ). Jim and his wife, Sarah, married since 1995,are expecting their first child on December 31, 1999.The Housers attend Fellowship Bible Church in Franklin,Tennessee, where they are both involved in numerous ministries. Honorary Alumni OfThe Year Richard and Carole Holmes Beavercreek residents Dick and Carole Holmes first made personal contact with Cedarville College when they were introduced to Dr.Paul Dixon and Dr. Martin Clark at a Xenia Chamber of Commerce dinner. The Holmeses accepted an invitation to serve on the proposed school ofengineering's advisory committee and soon became financial and spiritual supporters of the engineering program and of Cedarville College as a whole. In support of students and in honor of Dick's parents, the Holmeses established the Ed Holmes Scholarship for Engineering and the Bea Holmes Scholarship for Nursing in 1994.In 1997 they added the Holmes Family Scholarship Fund. The couple listens regularly to CDR Radio, praying for the College family and for special requests made in chapel. "They have the spiritual gift ofencouragement,and they use it frequently for the benefit of those faculty, staff, and students at Cedarville with whom they have contact. In all of this, they maintain as low a profile as possible, preferring that Christ and others gain as much credit as possible" shared Dr. Clark. Dick and Carole, along with long-time associates Joe and Ann Mays,were co-founders of Electronic Image Systems,Inc., a company which makes visual display devices for military and commercial aircraft trainers and simulators. Dick was president and Carole chairperson and treasurer before the business was sold in 1997.Today the Holmeses and Mays are active in the Holmes and Mays LLC consulting business. Both Carole and Dick maintain extensive involvement in community groups. Dick is on the board of directors or advisory boards of the Greene County Council on Aging,the Xenia Economic Growth Corporation,the IMAGE Society, and the Society for Information Display. Carole serves on the board of directors of the YMCA,Greene Memorial Hospital, and the Golden Age Senior Citizens. She is also on the investment advisory committee for Legacy Ministries International and is president-elect of the Xenia Rotary. Both Dick and Carole enjoy traveling on Cedarville's spiritual heritage tours. Married for 42 years, the Holmeses have three children. One of the couple's favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11—"1 know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord,'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.— Distinguished Service Award David Ormsbee'78 For more than 20 years, Dave Ormsbee has been a familiar face at Cedarville College. First as a student and now as an administrator, Dave's involvement in and dedication to the College have been special and distinct. While a student,Dave was especially active in traveling music teams, specifically the Swordbearers. Other activities included campus evangelism, an MIS trip to Israel, Chi Theta Pi, and intramural sports. A job in Michigan lured Dave from the College after graduation in 1978, but he returned in 1979 after the College asked him to become their first traveling admissions representative. Dave was appointed director of admissions after one year, and from 1989 to 1993 also served as assistant academic vice president. In July 1996 he was appointed to his current position of vice president of enrollment management, where he supervises admissions, registration, testing, advising, graduation, classroom management,and external relations. Through Dave's 20 years ofinvolvement in recruitment, Cedarville's enrollment has grown from 1,250 to 2,750 students. During his tenure, he has served on a wide variety of College task teams and committees. He has advised international students,counseled students unsure of their program of study, advised Pi Sigma Nu,and coordinated the College's ROTC program. He speaks regularly to students and parents about college preparation, time management,and academic achievement. In the spirit of Cedarville, Dave has consistently worked together with other alumni to reach young people. In 1986 he and John '83 and Kathy Ormsbee Foreman'83 led a group of public high school students on a spring break tour of Russia. That same year Davejoined Vini Jaquery '82 as a board member ofInternational Reach,an organization that places Brazilian orphans into Christian homes. In 1991 Dave linked with Myron Youngman'76 as a founding board member of the Kaifa Group,an organization that promotes North American and Asian exchange in commercial, educational, and cultural endeavors. Dave's wife, Joni, is also involved with the College as an assistant professor of mathematics.The Ormsbees reside in Fairborn and are active in their local church ministries. 3 WINTER 1999