Inside Gustavus December 10, 2009 | Volume 42, Number 14

News & Announcements

Publication Reminder... With the end of fall semester and the holiday break, Inside Gustavus will not be published for two weeks following the Dec. 17 issue. After the Dec. 17 posting, the next Inside Gustavus will be posted on Jan. 7, 2010. Those wishing to announce any events or activities occurring between Dec. 18 and Jan. 7 would need to submit them by the end of the day on Tuesday, Dec. 15, in order to have them listed in the issue posted on Dec. 17.

Donations for the St. Peter Area Food Shelf... St Peter Area Food Shelf donations will again be accepted at this year's Support Staff Holiday Luncheon on Dec. 22. Bring any items you wish to donate with you to the luncheon—non-perishable food items, personal care items, and monetary donations are all appreciated.

TMs Continue Christmas Tree Project... The Tau Mu Tau sorority is hosting its second annual Christmas Tree Project. The sorority works with the Minnesota Valley Action Council (MVAC) to "adopt" St. Peter families and provide them with a Christmas that they otherwise might not be able to afford. Families are provided with a Christmas dinner and a few gifts, such as new clothes, winter gear, and fun, family-oriented toys. "We are hoping to not only give a sense of normalness during this turbulent time, but we are also hoping to give the gift of hope and faith," TMT project co-organizer Sarah Hoerr says. "We hope that by reaching out to those in need, we can restore the sense of joy and happiness during the Christmas season. But we cannot do this alone." The sorority is hoping to raise campus awareness about this project in hopes that students, faculty, and staff would be willing to donate funds to the project. 100% of the donations will go to the families in need. Since they are not sure of the families' specific wants and needs, sorority members are asking only for monetary donations at this time. For more information or to make a pledge, contact Sarah (shoerr).

Book Mark Sale... The annual Book Mark Christmas Sale continues through Friday, Dec. 18, during store hours (M-F 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Sat., Dec. 12, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. for Student Appreciation Day)—20 percent off most items!

Note Cards Available... The Office of Marketing and Communication now has a new supply of note cards imprinted with the College's official logo. They're designed with a top fold, and the inside is blank so that they may be used for thank-you notes, recruiting, invitations for departmental functions, handwritten correspondence to students or colleagues, etc. Each comes with an A2 envelope. Cost is $17.50 for 100 cards and envelopes, or $42.50 for 250 (singles are 20 cents each).

'A Mitten on Every Hand'... Join the Book Mark staff in making winter a little warmer for local needy kids. Between now and December 22, look for the "Mitten Drop" bushel basket at the front of the store and drop off any size new mittens or gloves (hand-knit varieties very welcome). Book Mark personnel will bundle up and deliver all donations to the Minnesota Valley Action Council (MVAC) just before Christmas. Be assured that your kindness will benefit local families needing a little extra warmth this season.

Don't Get Towed... The City of St. Peter reminds the campus community about its snow emergency ordinance: Snow emergencies will be declared before 5 p.m. and disseminated to local media. When it snows, check local media outlets for information or call the City Information Line at 934-0675. When a snow emergency is declared, there is NO PARKING on any of the posted SNOW EMERGENCY ROUTES for the entire 48-hour period (even if the street has been plowed curb-to-curb). Beginning at 11:59 p.m. on the day a snow emergency is declared, for two days (48 hours) there is NO PARKING on residential streets from midnight until 7 a.m. (again, even if the street has been plowed), and beginning at 2 a.m., for two days there is NO PARKING on downtown streets from 2 to 6 a.m. Vehicles parked in violation of the snow emergency ordinance will be ticketed (fined $15-50) AND towed at the owners' expense. For more information about this ordinance and which streets are considered snow emergency routes, click here to visit the City of St. Peter's website.

A Reminder about Picking Up Guest House Keys... Departments sending student workers to pick up Guest House keys need to be clear about where to pick up those keys. Occasionally, students have been going to the Guest House and even to the Lundgren House, unclear about where to go. Keys are checked out from the Church Relations Office, which is in the Retreat Center—this is the white house on the north side of campus closest to Sorensen Hall ("Complex"). The Church Relations Office, clearly marked, is to the right of the front door. The office is not "open" during Chapel.

CVR Reading/Discussion Groups Return... The CVR's J-Term Reading/Discussion Groups for faculty and staff are back! Join your colleagues for one or both of these weekly conversations to reflect together on your teaching, mentoring, life-work integration, and more. This year’s options include: (1) Mary Rose O’Reilley, The Garden at Night: Burnout and Breakdown in the Teaching Life, Friday afternoons, Jan. 8, 15, & 22, at 3 p.m. (location TBA; refreshments will be provided); and (2) David Whyte, The Heart Aroused: Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate America, every Thursday afternoon (Jan. 7, 14, 21, & 28) at 12:30 p.m. (location TBA; lunch included). Books will be provided, so please contact Amy in the CVR (phone x7169 or e-mail apehrson) by Monday, Dec. 21, to let us know that you’ll be joining us.

Interview Help Sought for Scholarship Days 2010... On Saturday, Feb. 27, and Saturday, March 6, 2010, the Office of Admission will hold its annual Scholarship Day competition. They are looking for faculty to help conduct interviews for the College's most prestigious academic scholarship, the President's Scholarship. If you are interested in helping out for one or both Saturdays, or part of either or both days, please contact Joy Reese at jreese2 or x7603.

In the Event of a School Closing or Delay... When College facilities will be closed or classes delayed or canceled during a work day due to inclement weather conditions, announcements will be made as soon as possible via campus communications as well as through the following media (updated list):

• Twin Cities Metropolitan Area: 
  —WCCO radio 830 AM, WCCO-TV Ch. 4, and wcco.com
• Mankato-North Mankato Metropolitan Area:
  —KEYC-TV Ch. 12 and keyc.tv
  —Radio Mankato's stations/web sites:
  a. KDOG 96.7 FM, www.hot967.fm
  b. KTOE 1420 AM, www.ktoe.com
  c. KXLP 94.1 FM, www.94kxlp.com
  d. KXAC 100.5 FM, www.katoinfo.com/linder_radio/kxac
  e. KATO 93 FM, www.minnesota93.com
  f. KRRW 101.5 FM, www.katoinfo.com/linder_radio/krrw
  —Three Eagles Communications stations/sites:
  a. KEEZ 99.1 FM, myz99.com
  b. KQYK 95.7 FM, 957theblaze.com
  c. KYSM 103.5 FM, country103.com
  d. KRBI 105.5 FM, buzzard105.com
• New Ulm Area:
  —KNUJ 860 AM/107.3 FM, knuj.net)

If the College makes the decision to close, individuals will be paid for regularly scheduled hours for that day. If the College remains open but individuals choose to leave early due to inclement weather, the time off should be taken as unpaid leave, vacation, or PTO time with supervisor approval. Factors that influence the College's decision to delay or cancel classes include the following: expected precipitation, road conditions, visibility, and wind-chill factor. Be aware that the College's decision to delay/cancel may differ from area K-12 schools; Gustavus is influenced by the needs of the more than 2,000 students who live in campus housing, as contrasted with different factors and conditions at K-12 schools (e.g., busing, young children, etc.).

Campus Happenings

Chapel Schedule... All are invited to the worship services at 10 a.m. weekdays and 10:30 a.m. Sundays in Christ Chapel. The upcoming schedule is as follows.

• Friday, Dec. 11 - Chris Johnson (CVR)
• Sunday, Dec. 13 - TBA
• Monday, Dec. 14 - Paul Lutter, religion faculty at Augsburg College
• Tuesday, Dec. 15 - Hymnfest
• Wednesday, Dec. 16 - Morning Praise
• Thursday, Dec. 17 - Paul Manz Festival
• Friday, Dec. 18 - Taizé
• Sunday, Dec. 20 - TBA
• Monday, Dec. 21 - Litany for Travelers

Physical Theatre... This weekend the Department of Theatre and Dance presents "Falling Awake," a physical theatre project directed by Henry MacCarthy, in the department's Black Box; 49 tickets are available for each performance. The originally scheduled performances (Dec. 10, 11, & 12 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 13 at 2 p.m.) are sold out, but a sixth performance has been added, on Saturday, Dec. 12, at 2 p.m. Call 933-7590 or visit gustavustickets.com to inquire about remaining tickets.

Michael Johnson Returns... Singer and guitarist Michael Johnson, who has delighted Gustavus audiences annually for 40 years now, returns to Björling Recital Hall, Friday, Dec. 11, for an 8 p.m. concert. Johnson first performed at Gustavus in April 1968 with the late John Denver as part of the trio of Denver, Boise, and Johnson. He then spent a year acting off-Broadway before returning to Minnesota and to singing. Since that time, he has recorded 11 albums. Tickets ($20 for adults and $17 for students, senior citizens, and Gustavus faculty and staff) are available at gustavustickets.com or by calling the Gustavus Ticket Center at 507-933-7590. Any tickets remaining will go on sale one hour prior to the concert in Björling Recital Hall box office. 

Annual Scandinavian Breakfast... The 2009 American Scandinavian Yule Tide Breakfast will be held at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 15, in Jackson Center Banquet Rooms. The price for the breakfast is $8.50. Reservations should be sent to Edi Thorstensson (809 S. 7th Street, St. Peter, MN 56082) or by campus mail to Scandinavian Breakfast, c/o Roland Thorstensson.

Off-Campus Events of Interest

Kate’s Kourage Benefit... A benefit will take place on Saturday, Dec. 12, at the Red Men Club (412 S. 3rd St., St. Peter) to assist the Siebels family with medical and travel expenses arising from daughter Kate's non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment. Scheduled activities include a bake sale, silent auction, bingo, and a raffle. Food items will be available. Supplemental funding for the food and auction is being provided by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Donations via check should be made out to Thrivent Financial and sent to Dana Lamb (2015 Bunker Lane, St. Peter, 56082; please write "Siebels Benefit" in the memo area).

Christmas at the Cox House... A Victorian Christmas will be celebrated at the historic Eugene St. Julien Cox House in St. Peter Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 12 and 13. The house will be open from 1 to 4 p.m. each day. Guests may tour the house, see special doll houses on display, and enjoy music by local musicians in the parlor. The schedule of musicians: Saturday, 1-2:30 p.m. - Folkey Dokey; Saturday, 2:30-4 p.m. - Jim & Donna Bakken, reed organ, piano, and flute; Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m., - Julie Fedeler & Judy Maharry, flute and piano; and Sunday, 2:30-4 p.m. - Bev Gustafson & the Gustavus Early Music Group. Spiced cider and homemade cookies will be served in the kitchen. All are welcome.

Mankato Children's Chorus in Christ Chapel... "Sing For Joy," the annual winter concert of the Mankato Children's Chorus, is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 20, at 3 p.m. in Christ Chapel. Tickets for the performance will be available at the door and are priced at $10 for adults and $7 for senior citizens and children 18 and younger. Artistic Director Leah Ries and Director Rebekeh Tecken welcome Barbara Murphy Frank as the new director of the Concert Choir following the resignation of longtime director Julie Aune. Together Tecken and Frank will conduct more than 150 singers in five choirs during the performance. The MCC will be joined by a 35-member parent and alumni choir and New Joy, the Belgrade Avenue United Methodist Church handbell choir. In all, more than 200 musicians will participate in Sunday's concert, which is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Prairie Lakes Regional Arts Council, Waseca, from funds appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature.

Obituaries

• Chester O. Johnson, professor emeritus of geology at the College, died Tuesday evening, Dec. 8. He was 95. A founder of the College’s geology department, Johnson taught at Gustavus from 1940 until 1978. Following his retirement from teaching, Johnson continued to work at the College as an archivist in the Folke Bernadotte Memorial Library. In 1978, he became the Minnesota Synod Archivist of the Lutheran Church in America. In 1988, when the ELCA was created, he assumed the position of Lutheran Church Collection Archivist until his retirement in 2001. Funeral arrangements are pending.
  
• Clifford "Skip" Ohle, brother of President Jack Ohle, died on Wednesday, Dec. 2, in New York. Skip had served as a vice president at Brooklyn Hospital for over 20 years; he was most recently senior vice president of Westchester Medical Center in New York and was very involved in not-for-profit causes.
  

To inform the campus community of the death of a current student, employee, or trustee; an emeritus professor or trustee; or an immediate family member of a current employee, contact the Office of the President (x7538 or pleagjel@gustavus.edu). Death announcements and funeral notices for students, current and emeritus faculty and employees, and trustees will be sent to the community via written notice from the president, posted on community-l, the official campus-wide e-mail list, and published in the Inside Gustavus or Summer Scoop. Notices for immediate family members of current employees will be published in the Inside Gustavus or the Summer Scoop unless they occur during a publication break, in which case they will be posted on employee-l.

Facility Hours

Lund Center Hours through the Holidays... Sunday, Dec. 20 - noon-9 p.m.; Monday-Wednesday, Dec. 21-23 - 8 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thursday-Monday, Dec. 24-28 - CLOSED; Tuesday-Thursday, Dec. 29-31 - 9 a.m.-2 p.m.; Friday & Saturday, Jan. 1 & 2 - CLOSED; Sunday, Jan. 3 - noon-10 p.m. Check at the Red Desk for pool and weight room hours.

Plugs

House for Rent (or Sale)... Three-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom house in St. Peter. Approximately one mile from Gustavus. No pets, no smoking. Large kitchen/dining room and living room with hardwood floors and new carpeting. Lots of space downstairs with much storage. Single, tuck-under garage, and pleasant front porch. Furniture to be negotiated. This house will not be rented to college students. Available Jan. 1, 2010, until July 1, 2010. Extension possible with lease. $800/month plus utilities. References and security deposit required. For more information or to look at the house, please call Judy at 507-931-4399.

 



---

Inside Gustavus is a newsletter for Gustavus Adolphus College employees produced by the Office of Marketing and Communication. It is published weekly during the academic year (except during the week of Thanksgiving, the Christmas break, Touring Week, and the Spring and Easter breaks). Anyone may submit items by filling out an online submission form. While online submissions are preferred, items may also be submitted typewritten on a letter-sized sheet of paper. Send "snail mail" items to: Inside Gustavus, Office of Marketing and Communication. Items must reach the office no later than 4:30 p.m. on the Tuesday before publication. The week of Nobel Conference the deadline is 4:30 p.m. Monday. For more information, contact Steve Waldhauser (waldo@gustavus.edu or x6413).

Home | News & Info | Inside Gustavus Archives | Submit an Item Online