Courtney’s message drew from his experience as the executive director of the Preemptive Love Coalition, a nonprofit that focuses on providing heart surgeries for Iraqi children.

The Preemptive Love Coalition started out as an intermediary that sent sick Iraqi children to Israeli hospitals for surgery; but more recently, the Coalition has focused on bringing in doctors and equipping local hospitals to perform surgeries in Iraq. The organization has provided life-saving surgery to 54 children to date.

The Preemptive Love Coalition has faced negative responses from some Muslim leaders, and have recently had a religious ruling placed against them.

Rather than react with fear, however, the organization continued to act and has since grown in support and acceptance. Courtney concluded his message with a call for listeners to serve in any way they could, following Jesus’ call to be peacemakers.

“[Jeremy Courtney] was marvelous,” said Clarence Wisse, a 90-year-old community member who has faithfully attended January Series lectures since the very first one 26 years ago. “[It was] one of the best ones I’ve heard.”

Jeremy Courtney was only the first of 15 guest lecturers who will come to Calvin this interim.

Each year, Calvin invites speakers for the January Series to deliver lectures on everything from education to microbiology to farming, providing an opportunity that President Michael Le Roy refers to as “15 days of a free liberal arts education.”

Most lecturers are prominent in their fields, and many lead organizations or have published books.

Both students and community members enjoy the lectures.

Sophomore Laura Sheppard said, “It’s a great way to branch out of the ‘Calvin bubble’ and hear about current events and global problems that I wouldn’t normally hear about, that might not even be in the papers. They’re always really challenging.”

The January Series provides an opportunity for students, graduates, and community members of all backgrounds to further their education.

“I’m no real scholar,” said one community member, who asked that her name not be used. “I only went to school through 10^th grade. But here you can always learn something.”

She looks at the guest speakers every year and plans her month around them.

“Sometimes I’d like to come to all of them,” she said, “I usually pick three of four that are most interesting to me. Some I’ll watch on video, but there’s something about being there in the audience.”

The January Series takes place in the Covenant Fine Arts Center every weekday during interim from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. But it can also be watched through a live broadcast in 38 sites throughout Michigan, across the United States from California to Massachusetts, and internationally in Canada and Lithuania.

The broadcasts are also archived online. Students on Calvin’s campus can pick up “passports” at the box office which can be stamped and turned in for opportunities to win prizes.

Wherever people are in their education or however they choose to engage this year’s lectures, Kristi Potter, director of the January Series, encourages people to experience as much as they can.

“You don’t get these kinds of experiences for free very often,” she said. “It’s really unique to our campus.”

“Students often find if they just come once they’ll fall in love with it and come back again and again,” she continued. “There’s really nothing like it.”

The full list of speakers can be found here.

But there is one group of students that are already preparing to go back to school: Calvin’s spring of 2013 study-abroad students. For these individuals, there are still many preparations remaining for the spring semester.

Many of the students studying abroad next semester leave at the beginning of January. This leaves them only two weeks to prepare for the trip, both mentally and logistically before their departure. As a result, most of the preparation had to be done during the semester.

“We all had to apply for a passport if we had not gotten one already, which took a couple of weeks,” said Sarah Hubbel, a junior who will be studying in Honduras.

“There were a couple insurance forms to fill out, and, for our program, we filled out a questionnaire about the type of family we would prefer living with and wrote a small biography.

“I’m most nervous about moving out of the [Knollcrest] apartments. I have to make sure everything is gone by the time exams are done.”

Other students had similar loads of paperwork, although every program is different.

Junior Andrew Wade had extra forms to fill out, since his program in Oxford is not technically a Calvin study-abroad program.

“Since I’m doing a non-Calvin program, my paperwork has been doubled because I have to send forms both to Calvin and to Oxford, and my deadlines have been super early,” Wade said.

“But I had still been submitting forms to both schools up until a few weeks ago.”
Even with the substantial work to do, students said it has not negatively impacted their lives at school.

“I wouldn’t say that these preparations have gotten in the way of my school work and commitments,” said junior Kathryn Knox, “but it has monopolized my free time a little bit.”

“I think what’s been most distracting is my excitement,” Hubbel said. “I feel like a part of my heart is already there, and although I’m nervous about being away from my family and friends, I would leave today if I could.”

Hubbel’s sentiments reflect those of most of the students who will be traveling next semester. Any inconvenience it may create in the present is balanced by the benefits that students will reap from the experience.

“Thinking about the fact that I have the opportunity to study at the same university where C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Martyn Lloyd-Jones and countless others have studied and taught is humbling and inspiring,” Wade said.

“I feel a strong calling to do academic theology,” Wade continued, “and the Oxford program’s emphasis on independent research will definitely give me a sense of what I could be doing for the rest of my life.”

For Knox, the program represents a chance to drastically improve her Spanish through the immersion provided in Honduras.

“I have never been able to completely overcome the language barrier that I feel when I speak Spanish,” Knox said. “I am hoping that spending nearly five months in a culture that only speaks Spanish will knock that barrier down.”

Of course, students know that not every encounter they have will be positive. Even for the most excited of students, there is always something to be nervous about.

“I am a little nervous about fitting in with my family and I’m excited to experience a new culture, but I’m anticipating a bit of culture shock,” said Hubbel, who will be living in a rural area of Honduras.

Other students expressed worry over things like financial stability, which takes on a much bigger meaning when living so far from family and friends.

“The most nerve-wracking part of this whole endeavor is the cost of living in the UK, which is apparently quite a bit higher than here in the US,” Wade said.

Despite those worries, students said hopeful anticipation outweighs any negativity.

While they welcome a break from school, their focus is already on next semester.

But what happens when those groups return to Calvin?

As these off-campus students adjust to life back in Grand Rapids, they often try to maintain the friendships that began in far-off places.

“We spent all of our time together when we were in New England, so we couldn’t just stop seeing each other,” said junior Liz Van Ryn. “Even though we all had our own groups of friends, we had to make room for some new ones in our busy schedules. But the majority of us were more than happy to do so.”

Van Ryn is one of 27 students that participated in last January’s New England Saints interim. This past weekend, the group gathered at Camp Waltman Lake to spend some time reminiscing, catching up and looking toward the future.

“Getting to spend a significant amount of time with those people again was amazing,” Van Ryn said. “It’s great that we can talk about all the fun times we had in the past, but we are also friends in the present, and we have so much that will keep us bonded even after Calvin.”

Buoyed by a sense of community that began in New England, the group continued to meet throughout second semester and have had a number of informal reunions leading up to this weekend retreat.

“We keep meeting because you continue to learn so much about people after that initial time together,” said professor Bill Vande Kopple, who led the New England Saints trip along with professor Nancy Hull and professor Gary Schmidt. ”There is a sense of continued care that has developed, which is so valuable for both students and professors.”

In addition to helping create relationships among students, studying off campus also gives students and professors a unique chance to interact outside of the classroom.

“I have never felt this close to a group of students before,” said Vande Kopple. “The challenges we faced brought us closer together, and continue to connect us as we all are pursuing different paths.”

While interim groups spend three weeks together before returning to Calvin, the semester programs help students form relationships over a longer period of time away from campus.

“I went not knowing anyone,” said Dana Krol, a junior who went on the Britain semester last spring. “I knew I would make friends along the way, but I never in a million years thought they would become some of my best friends. Such a strong bond formed between everyone over there.”

Students stress that because this kind of educational and cultural experience often has a lasting impact on the lives of the people involved, most of them need others they can talk to that understand their time away from Calvin.

“We were able to share in the difficulties and awesome experiences that come with a semester abroad and we’ll always have those memories to look back on,” said Krol. “They have become my support group. These people are friends that listen, love and accept me as I am.”

Even though no one wants to hear the news, the shooting in Sandy Hook dominated front pages around the world Saturday morning and has rolled nonstop on TV stations for the last 48 hours.

Meanwhile, reporters dig for information, for motive, for answers.

But they often do it by jamming a microphone in the face of a parent who just lost a child, focusing a camera on a grieving student or interviewing a child who no longer has his best friend.

People on Facebook, Twitter and blogs have sounded off against these journalists, calling them insensitive and heartless, while calling the work they do intrusive and unnecessary.

I’d like to argue just the opposite.

Let me preface this by saying that my heart breaks for the people in Connecticut.

I cannot imagine the pain of a parent losing a child, a first-grader losing a classmate or a teacher losing a coworker. Situations like these make us mourn our broken world, and as Christians, anticipate when God’s kingdom comes in completion.

But digging into this story is absolutely necessary.

Before I address the shootings in Sandy Hook, I’d like to bring you back to a small example from my own experience in late November.

Calvin’s women’s volleyball team was a favorite to win the national championship game, and the atmosphere in the arena was electric. Almost everyone in the building was rooting for a Calvin national title, including my staff with Chimes.

After Calvin took the first two sets with ease, I called my photographer up from the court and we started prepping for a victory Facebook status and photo.

But after Calvin dropped the next two sets, the atmosphere had drastically changed.

I quickly drafted a second Facebook post and found a photo to use in case we didn’t come out on top.

I immediately told my photographer to go back to the court. Whether the photo was a player leaping with a joyful scream or a student in tears on the floor, I needed that photo.

After Calvin dropped the fifth set and St. Thomas became the national champion, my staff was heartbroken, and understandably, reluctant to approach any of the players after the game.

Why should we even cover the game? No one wants to read about Calvin losing. No one wants to hear from a player who worked months for this night, only to fall one set short of the national championship.

And as I stood on the confetti-covered court, watching the last of the somber Calvin fans leave the gym, I turned to my staff and said, “Because there’s a story to tell here.”

That night was one of the most exciting sporting events I’d ever been to. The game attracted a record-breaking crowd and an enormous student presence. These women worked for months and had an incredible season. It was our job to tell people about it.

How could we not cover that game?

When I told my photographer to get a photo of a player crying on the floor, it’s not because I’m heartless. It’s not because I’m intrusive. It’s not because I wanted Calvin to lose or I like seeing people cry.

It’s because that’s the best way I know how to help people share in the pain of these players, to help others understand how much this season meant to these women, and to try to explain both the disappoint and pride felt by so many Calvin fans.

While this example tugged on the heartstrings of our staff, I find it difficult to imagine what it must have been like in Connecticut this weekend.

If I thought approaching a defeated classmate was hard, try approaching a grieving parent or teacher.

And yet these emotions are real. The pain is real. The deaths are real. The danger is real.

And it’s up to journalists to help us share in that pain, feel their heartbreak, and understand the danger.

Of course, this comes with incredible responsibility. It is essential to respect these victims and leave them to grieve alone if they request that. The code of ethics from the Society of Professional Journalists emphasizes treating subjects as human beings deserving of respect.

But as I watch the coverage, I see parents willing to struggle to find words for the immense loss they feel. I see children trying to share their pain with a world that feels the brokenness of sin daily.

I see them reaching out for support from politicians, charities, and Christians across the country. I see them sparking a critical and much-needed conversation on gun control in America. I see them willing to do anything to make sure this never happens again.

How could we not tell this story?

Simply reporting the facts does not do this tragedy justice. It’s the heartbreak of a parent, the panicked face of a first-grader and the tears of a first-responder that allow us to truly understand this story.

And, while I know they do not do their jobs perfectly, I have the utmost respect for the people who have the difficult job of holding the microphone.

Reporters approach family after family, trying to find one that is willing to help America understand their pain. Photographers throw themselves into the panic so that we can understand the tragedy from the safety of a computer screen.

And just like first-responders who will go to counseling after this weekend, many journalists and photographers will too.

Not because they’re heartless, or because they’re intrusive. It’s not because they like to see children get shot.

It’s because we all need to understand the heartbreak and loss, see the courage and cowardice and hear the call to dialogue.

It’s because there is a story to tell, and we need the courage to tell it.

If you’re interested in the details of covering school shootings or interviewing children, try these links.

At the request of the office of the Dean of Students for Judicial Affairs, Campus safety was instructed to conduct a room search in Schultze Hall for prescription drugs that were allegedly being illegally sold. The results of the search were forwarded to judicial affairs for further action.

December 6, 2012

Campus safety was contacted by a student who said their iPad had been stolen from their unlocked residence hall room sometime between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Dec. 2. The theft was not reported to Campus Safety until Dec. 7. There were no known suspects or witnesses to the theft.

Campus safety took a report of a possible larceny of a bicycle from an unknown bike rack on campus. A student was unsure where they left their bicycle, but when they could not find it they reported it as stolen. After the initial report was made, the student did locate their bicycle where they originally left it.

December 7, 2012

At the request of the Dean of Students for Judicial Affairs, Campus Safety employees conducted a search of a residence hall room in Schultze Hall for illegally obtained prescription drugs. The results of the search were forwarded to judicial affairs for further action.

December 8, 2012

Campus safety officers were called to investigate the launching of fireworks on commons lawn, which is in violation of the student conduct code. Residence life staff is working with campus safety staff to help identify the students involved in the launching of the fireworks.

Campus safety officers responded to the Spoelhof Fieldhouse Complex on a report of unknown persons on the roof of the building. Officers attempted to check the roof but were unable to find the subjects who had been on the roof.

A campus safety officer was called to Boer Hall to take possession of some ammunition that had been turned over to a resident assistant by a student who had brought the ammunition to campus. The ammunition was placed into custody at the campus safety office. The office of the dean of students for judicial affairs was notified of the incident.

December 9, 2012

Campus safety was asked to assist residence life staff with a room search in Schultze Hall for a violation of the student conduct code for possession of alcohol. The results of the search were forwarded to the dean of students for judicial affairs.

The group describes itself as “a place to post those silly snippets of conversations you catch as you are walking on the paths, eating in commons or walking through the nature preserve.”

The group is open, which means that anyone in the group can add new members.

Abigail Spalding, ’11, founded the group in 2008 with some of her friends from her dorm floor on third Eldersveld.

“We never had any expectations on how large the group would become,” said Spalding.

She started the group based on other popular trends at the time, including “FML,” “texts from last night,” and other overheard groups in cities and schools.

“It was something stupid and funny for people to post on,” she said. “Everyone has overheard something hilarious or out of context. It’s fun seeing current students, alumni, professors, staff and Calvin administrators join the group.”

The group has three rules: posts can’t reveal who said the quote, a member can’t be part of the conversation in which the quote was said and posts must explain the context of the quote.

However, sometimes administrating the page has its challenges, said Spalding.

“The spirit of the page was meant to be funny and carefree,” she said. “Sadly, some students have decided to post frankly, immature, nasty comments on other peoples’ posts. It’s sad to see Christian adults show such a lack of maturity and discretion.”

Calvin Memes, another popular group in the Calvin community, boasts 2,156 members. Match Made in Calvin, a group featured earlier this fall, has 249 members.

But now when she and a friend go out to eat, she gets a free drink and feeds a child in need — just by using her cellphone.

Thanks to a company called FoodCircles, people can use a cell phone app to feed hungry children locally and internationally while earning free drinks and appetizers at 20 local restaurants.

“All you have to do is go out to eat,” said Berends. “It’s one of those ways you can incorporate service into something you’d be doing anyway. It’s not like you’re volunteering your time or anything like that.”

Berends says the process is straightforward.

First, users find a restaurant using the app on their phone and selects the deal they want. Then, when they go to the restaurant, they show the voucher on their phone to get their free dessert or appetizer. When they redeem the voucher, FoodCircles also donates one meal to a child in need.

Users can choose whether to donate a meal to Kids Food Basket in Grand Rapids, Mich. or to World Vision to feed children internationally. More than 1,000 children have been fed since the company created the app in May.

Restaurants pay an advertising fee to FoodCircles, which is used to pay for the donated meal. In return, FoodCircles is expected to draw in a set amount of profit for the restaurant.

Grant Bouwer, a Calvin senior who is interning with FoodCircles, said that the business is especially worthwhile for college students.

“As college students, we’re eating out all the time and constantly looking for deals and free food,” he said. “FoodCircles not only provides those deals for students with literally the touch of a button, but also provides something else Calvin students are hungry for: social justice.”

Jonathan Kumar started FoodCircles with the goal of making it easy to help children who are struggling to get enough food each day.

“Our mission is repurposing dining to take the dining of the privileged to feed the underprivileged,” said Kumar. “Doing something that you’re going to be doing anyway can make an impact and is a great way to become a good social activist.”

Since the company is relatively young, Kumar sees changes and expansion on the horizon for the FoodCircles.

Kumar explained that the free appetizer or drink is an introductory program. Soon, the drinks and appetizers will cost $1 to cover the cost of the donated meal.

The company also hopes to expand to other cities in Michigan, including Lansing and Detroit, and hopes to move further into the Midwest, including Chicago.

They are also giving the opportunity to decorate the paper bags that hold the locally donated meals.

“It’s hard to accept a handout, a nameless meal that some organization gave to you,” said Kumar. “But when these bags have messages or notes or Bible verses, it makes it a lot easier for the kids to accept.”

But in order for their plans to succeed, the company — and Ruthy Berends — encourage people to download the app and give it a try.

“It doesn’t really require anything from you,” she said. “There would be no reason for everyone not to use it.”

The international student association committee (ISAC), hosted its annual Christmas gala at St. Cecilia Music Center this past Friday, Nov. 30.  ISAC is a part of the international student development office, a department specifically designed to help international students feel at home while at Calvin.

The Christmas gala has been offered to the international students since ISAC began in 1996. The purpose of the gala is to help international students feel more comfortable while they are far from home during the holidays, said Lotachukwu Onwumelu, president of ISAC.

“It is part of the Calvin tradition and the international student’s tradition,” he said. “It’s a unique way to celebrate Christmas since we are all far from home.”

The Christmas celebration began with a prayer by Bob Crow, dean of student development. After prayer dinner was served. Students were served a provided with a diverse meal of chicken sauté, Mongolian beef, steamed vegetables and fried rice.

Students thought that the food represented the community of students.

“I enjoyed eating the food from various cultures because it reflected us, who we are and what we may eat on Christmas,” said senior nursing major Wairimu Kungu.

This was done deliberately Onwumelu said.

“Dishes were more international,” he said. “We picked food that was flavorful and diverse, reflecting where students were from.”

The food was also served in family style order. No one received a prepared individual plate; students dished their food out of community bowls. The meal was organized this way so that the dinner could put the students in a family atmosphere.

“I like that the meal was served family style because it made the meal very personal,” said Kungu. “It was definitely community centered.”

After the dinner, participants enjoyed their dessert while listening to open mic performances. Seven acts performed. One of the audience’s favorite performances was the acoustic version of Korean pop song, Gangnam Style, performed by Sam Yoon, Jabez Bang, Young II Won, Chan Min Ahn, Brian Hwang, and Joy Lee. It was the group’s second year performing at the gala.

They were asked to begin the open mic session to get the crowd excited about the performances.

Lead vocalist Sam Yoon’s enjoyed the crowd’s excitement for the music.

“Everyone at the banquet enjoyed the song together,” he said. “Singing Gangnam Style together with the crowd was so much fun!”

A dance party followed the open mic session. A variety of music was played and students danced till the party ended. During the various events students had the opportunity to take photos in a photo booth.

Although the booth was a small activity, for some students it was the most memorable part of the night.

“I enjoyed the pictures most of all,” said senior Maame Achau. “This is my last ISAC banquet, so I took pictures with other seniors who I may not see for a while. It was nice to capture the moment.”

The ISAC student committee hoped that this celebration would help the international students enjoy the holidays in spite of being away from home. The committee wants the students to feel their community is a family and a diverse home away from home.

“It is easy to get in the Christmas spirit when you are at home celebrating with families,” Onwumelu said. “So we all came together as a community to celebrate, show our love and appreciation for one another because we are a family.”

The Palestine Liberation Order had previously held observer status in the assembly, which was granted them in 1974. According to the U.N., the decision “upgraded Palestine’s representation at the U.N. to a unique and unprecedented level, somewhere in between the other observers, on the one hand, and Member States on the other.”

Yet this upgraded status is more of a symbolic than a tangible victory. Palestine will not be able to attain formal recognition of sovereignty, borders, and other such considerations without direct negotiations with Israel.

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, talking to told Guy Raz, host of weekends on All Things Considered, says the symbolism is nonetheless powerful: “It doesn’t get us what we want now, in the sense of what we want being a fully independent and sovereign state of Palestine where our people can live in freedom and dignity, but it’s significant, certainly, given that it was something that happened [in] precisely that forum that some 65 years ago gave Israel its birth certificate.”

The nine countries to vote against Palestinian statehood included the United States and Israel. Along with Israel, the U.S. has been a leading opponent against Palestine’s efforts for U.N. recognition of its statehood. In May 2011, President Barack Obama affirmed support for a two-state solution based on the 1967 borders, but iterated that this statehood should come from direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Obama reiterated the U.S. stance in his address to the U.N. General Assembly in September 2011: “One year ago, I stood at this podium and I called for an independent Palestine. I believed then, and I believe now, that the Palestinian people deserve a state of their own. But what I also said is that a genuine peace can only be realized between the Israelis and the Palestinians themselves.”

Victoria Nuland, the state department spokeswoman, adds, “we do not think that this step is going to bring the Palestinian people any closer to a state.”

Palestinian Prime Minister Fayyad argued back. “What we did was to go the United Nations, the custodian of international law and legitimacy,” he says. “So I think the response needs to be one that is shaped by the need to take advantage of what happened — to build on it — as opposed to continue to be scornful about it.”

Fayyad later added that “we have not abandoned, nor will we abandon the path of negotiated settlement to peace, but what we really need is a strong enough negotiations framework credible enough to deal with the credibility deficit that has been generated by failure.”
Fayyad is here referring to the peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel that have been stalled since September 2010, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to extend a moratorium on the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Tensions between Israel and Palestine may become even more strained as a result of the vote. Israel could delay the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority for several months — as it has done before, and could increase restrictions on the movement of Palestinians within the West Bank, further impeding economic (and social) activity.

Palestine is also heavily dependent of foreign aid, $4 billion of which the U.S. has given provided since the mid-1990′s in order to combat terrorism, promote stability and prosperity, and meet humanitarian needs. Any cut to this aid would intensify the fiscal crises in Palestinian territories.

Compounding these tensions is the fact that Palestine itself is divided between the Palestinian Authority, which controls the majority of Palestine, and Hamas, who are in control of Gaza. The latter is also responsible for firing rockets into Israel. Negotiations are also needed between these two factions.

Palestinians still welcomed the victory as a step forward even in light of these tensions and celebrated the news in Gaza and the West Bank.

Campus safety took a report of the larceny of an unlocked bicycle from the bike racks outside of Schultze-Eldersveld residence hall. The bike was described as a magenta Schwinn women’s bicycle. After the initial report was filed, the bicycle was returned to the bike rack. It was unknown who had used the bicycle without the owner’s permission.

November 27, 2012

Campus safety was contacted by staff at the Burton Ridge apartment complex, who had found several bicycles with Calvin permits on them abandoned on their property. The bicycles were retrieved by campus safety employes and placed into found property. The owners of the bicycles were contacted to pick them up.

November 28, 2012

Campus safety took a report of the larceny of money from a locker in the women’s locker room in Knollcrest Dining Hall. A Creative Dining employee had money stolen from their coat, which they had placed in their unlocked locker. It was unknown who took the money and there were no known witnesses to the theft.

Campus safety took a larceny report for an unlocked bicycle that had been stolen from the bike rack outside of Kalsbeek-Huizenga-van Reken residence hall. The bike was registered with teh campus safety department. The bike was described as a black CR-MO TUBING men’s mountain bike. There were no known suspects or witnesses to the theft.

November 30, 2012

Campus safety took a report of the larceny of a bicycle from an unknown bike rack on campus. The victim stated that the bicycle, a blue Schwinn LeTour, was stolen approximately two weeks prior to them making a report. The victim was unsure of where the bike was when it was stolen. The bicycle is registered with campus safety. There is no suspect information and no known witnesses to the theft.