Grove City College excels in sportsmanship. Even though I do not play sports myself, when I was a high-schooler looking at different colleges, the sportsmanship I saw and heard about at Grove City amazed me. I knew I wanted to spend my college years at a place with respect, faith-mindedness, determination, and talent. To my delight, when I went to my first Grove City College sports game, I saw all of those qualities shine out in the players on the field. It was wonderful to know that the College’s values came out even in a sports game. Looking back on it now though, it makes a lot of sense. How people behave on the field is a huge indicator of how they behave off of it.
I wanted to show you the wonder of a Grove City College sports match in a real, tangible way. So, when I was at an Ultimate Frisbee game the other night, I started filming. My friend on the team was nice enough to let me stand right next to the front lines the entire game so I could get some good shots. Like always, it was a wonderful experience. As I was watching, I considered, “What is it that I really love about being at a GCC sporting event?” I narrowed the phenomenon down to my top five favorite things I see at matches.
Talent
Excitement
(Awesome) People
Sportsmanship (or, Respect)
Faith-mindedness
So, in this video, I have focused on showing you those five things.
I hope you enjoy this episode of Reel Life. Most of all though, I hope from watching it, you get a better idea of how uniquely special sports at Grove City College are.
Our football team recently won its first game in over three seasons. To say that my fellow students and I are excited is to say the least. What is truly remarkable about Saturday night’s game is not the long awaited celebration of a win, but rather the passion and excitement that continued before, throughout, and after the game.
The Experience
A student section had formed (naturally) and as the players took the field, before the game even began, the section began to jump up and down waving the Grove City College rally towels. Chanting proudly, “I believe that we will win!” The anticipation was palpable, but throughout an intense and close game the crowd was passionate and supportive. Two or three students took an unofficial leadership position and called out cheers and pumped up the section. Several times, when the game was paused for a timeout or end of quarter, College president Paul McNulty would lead the student section in cheering, too.
When the cheering died down in an intense moment, but the team needed that extra push, players or coaches on our sideline would turn around and wave up their arms, calling us to cheer, and the crowd would roar in response. The night before the game, an email was sent to the student body saying, “a loud crowd and great atmosphere is an extra player that the opponents cannot account for.” And this certainly proved to be true.
Two minutes before the end of the game Grove City was up, 24-14, and our student body began to go forward, waiting on the track outside of the field ready to celebrate with our team. With 10 seconds left, quarterback Randall LaBrie took a knee and the crowd went wild. As the clock hit 00:00, we ran onto the field in a celebration unlike any other that I have experienced. We sang the alma mater, and then fireworks erupted from the creek behind the field. It was a perfect celebration of a long-awaited win.
Cultural Significance
This night was indicative of Grove City College culture in two ways:
First, the sportsmanship of our team. The next day I found an aerial view of the post-game cheering on the field and saw that our team put a pause on their celebration in order to promptly shake the hands of our opponents. They did not put this on hold, nor did they forget about this show of respect in the midst of great excitement. In this moment, each of our players showed the nature of their characters.
Second, the celebration of students was unified joy. There was no destruction of personal or school property, there were no hospital trips due to binge drinking or over-excitement of any kind. My friends and I went to a local restaurant for milkshakes to celebrate, as did several other groups of our peers who we saw there. We did not have to sacrifice safety or smart decisions in order to celebrate and have fun.
This win was one for the books, and an excellent example of the Grove City College culture and community overall.
Every year, a group of seven gentlemen dress-up in three-piece suits and don’t shower. These men also have a formally-written constitution, arrange a photo shoot, and advocate for missions work in Africa. While this may seem like a strange list of attributes, they all describe the gentlemen that call themselves the Suitists.
Every year, this group wears their suits (without taking them off) to raise money for Project Okello and the ministries that Okello is supporting at that time. Throughout the week, the Suitists hold Bible studies and often grab meals together, to promote the unsanitized solidarity that keeps their Suits on and smiles beaming.
The hope of the challenge is that by foregoing bathing and a daily change of clothes, as well as donning a classy outfit (albeit for an entire week), that their efforts will garner questions about why they’re doing what they’re doing. This in turn receives an explanation of the cause being supported and the mentality behind wearing Suits for an entire week. Ideally, the explanation results in the donation of a few dollars from the inquisitive individual.
Not living in an ideal world, this is not always the case. In all honesty, that can sometimes be discouraging, especially when you’ve slept and lived in the same suit for the last three days, share about the importance of what you’re doing, and then get flat out rejected. It’s a disheartening experience.
But by the middle of the week, a few of us recognized this, and decided to discuss how we were feeling and why that was. What we came to realize was that it was not because of our failure but because of our focus on ourselves. It was not about the Suits or the Suitists, but rather what God was doing through us.
After we had this revelation, it was far easier to move forward with our week. It was by no means easy, as not showering does come with many downsides, but it was still far more fulfilling and tolerable. We quickly came to realize that it was by no means the thing we were doing that was the most important aspect, even though it was important. It was far more important to remember the God who we were serving by serving others.
And so the Suitist Challenge will continue. What started as a mess was made to be beautiful through God’s faithfulness. Be it a gentlemen’s fundraiser or a local ministry, Grove City College students are committed to serving the least of these, foregoing their own comfort for the benefit of those around them.
Not sure if you’re cut out for the corporate world after graduation? Me either, and that’s okay! Grove City College prepares students to enter into a variety of fields following graduation. Some students will go to grad school to pursue medicine, while others land jobs teaching. Some students will land jobs at large marketing firms, while some accept positions at corporate banks. But others will take a less traditional route. Some will start their own business or turn their hobby into a career. In recent years the College has been working to develop its fine arts program in an effort to educate and train students interested in skills pertaining to painting, drawing, screen printing, graphic design, pottery and more. As someone who loves art, design, and the ability to create, I started asking myself how GCC could play a role in helping students to see how they could use their creative abilities following graduation.
In September of 2016 I began working closely with the chair of the Communication and Visual Arts Department, Dr. Jennifer Mobley, to plan a one-day event that would inspire, educate, and connect students hoping to pursue a career in creative communications. We called the event the 2017 Create Conference. Soon after the planning process began, Alexis Marnejon (‘17) hopped on board to join our efforts in planning this event.
TJ Mousetis – walk in love.
One amazing part of going to school on a small campus like Grove City is that students have the opportunity to work closely with their professors. While planning the Create Conference Alexis and I met weekly with Dr. Mobley to update her on the planning process, brainstorm and seek her advice.
The Create Conference was held on March 18, 2017. We brought seven speakers to campus to host seminars, main stage talks, and workshops. Our speakers each own small business focused on some field within creative communications. These fields included clothing design, graphic design, photography, music production, cinematography, and painting. Topics covered throughout the day included social media use, how-to’s, dreaming big, and being a Christian business owner. Our speakers were the following individuals: Tim & Brooke Mousetis (walk in love.), Andrew Williams (Neighborhood Film Co.), Cynthia Stanchak (mixed media artist), Taylor Courtney (Bring on the Bash), HB Mertz (wilderness photographer), and Megan Smalley (Scarlet and Gold).
HB Mertz – wilderness photographer
The event started at 10 a.m. and seminars concluded at 6 p.m. Following the day-time events, we hosted an evening concert in the Student Union where student performers played and audience members enjoyed coffee, brownies, and cookies.
The Create Conference was a success. The speakers were fun and brought a lot of knowledge, wisdom and creativity to share with students. Throughout the day we had about 75 students attending events. The feedback was positive. An event like this has never been done on campus so students found the opportunity to engage and learn about the creative field exciting.
Taylor Courtney – Bring on the Bash
Putting on an event like this was hard work but Alexis and I learned countless lessons. It took us about six months to plan the event, so you can bet we breathed a sigh of relief when we saw our hard work come to fruition on March 18. Although we worked closely with Dr. Mobley, Alexis and I handled a majority of the planning. We took care of emailing speakers to invite them to campus and to negotiate accommodations and day of details. In addition we took care of reaching out to various on-campus organizations to help us fund the event. We also connected with various departments and services on campus to help organize details for the day of the event. One of my favorite parts of planning the conference was meeting with a senior graphic design student to develop a promotional theme for the conference.
When you’re at Grove City, dream big. There are numerous resources available on campus to help you accomplish your goals. Whether you want to carry out some form of research, plan an event, or complete a big project, connect with your advisor and professors to see how you can turn your plans and dreams into a reality.
My dream was to bring more attention to the creative communications. Use the college as a resource to do big things. The faculty will support you and push you to work hard and to execute your plans with excellence.
Up until about eight years ago, Grove City College along with the InterVarsity Missions Fellowship chapter on campus hosted a large missions conference once a year. It was so large of an event that the IM Room was filled with missionaries ready to talk to students, much like the Career Fair. As InterVarsity got smaller as a group, so did this missions conference. Eight years ago, it had stopped altogether.
Until now.
Dr. Keehlwetter, Benjamin Marasco, Graham Allen, and Andrew I. started up this conference again, calling it Missions Week.
Graham Allen, a current junior majoring in Mechanical Engineering, says, “At a Christian in college, it’s important that we take the time to step aside and say, ‘Where do I fit in that specifically? Where is the Lord calling me to serve in missions as an engineer or an accountant?'”
Allen continues, “We need to look at missions and realize that missionaries aren’t just people in far away places that we give money to. So this gives us the opportunity to ask the question, ‘How can I use my major for the kingdom’s greater purpose?'”
Missions Week 2o17 consisted of three days focused on the question: Why Missions?
A number of speakers came to campus during these days including John Iseminger, former director for Wycliffe Southern Africa and Dr. Hunter Farrell, director of World Mission Initiative.
One special speaker for Missions Week, however, is Grove City College’s very own Professor Timothy Mech.
“A lot of students know him as an entrepreneurship professor,” says Allen. “But, he is also someone who has such a heart for the Lord and such an incredible vision… This is his farewell address, and he has a lot of wisdom to share.”
Mech is retiring from Grove City College this year in order to assume full leadership of Harvest Bridge.
“See how large God is. He is doing things in every facet of life, and if students say that they left the conference with a bigger view of God, we reached our goal.”
Hopefully, Missions Week 2018 will be returning to campus next year.
Learning to see and appreciate beauty more has been one of the greatest joys of my time at Grove City. I had Civilization and the Arts with Dr. Drake my sophomore year, and it was an amazing class. We studied many great works of art and music and I learned the discipline of simply looking, of listening, of actively receiving art.
Charis-Kairos (The Tears of Christ) by Makoto Fujimura
I remember when Dr. Drake talked about the work of Makoto Fujimura. And I recently heard him speak on campus as part of the 2017 Christian Writers Conference. It was amazing.
Mr. Fujimura opened by declaring that we need to see culture as a garden to steward and as a world of abundance instead of one with limited resources. He suggested that the only cultures which struggle to see abundance are Western ones which have learned to measure success in limited resource models in the wake of the Industrial Revolution. Christians with a “culture war” mentality have not been helping.
There is not enough time in a short post to share half of what Mr. Fujimura shared with us – I wish I could find a video recording of his address. A few things were particularly striking to me, though.
The art on the right was commissioned by Crossway and is based on the shortest verse in the Bible: “Jesus wept” (John 11:35). Mr. Fujiumra spent a significant part of his time sharing the background of that verse with us, and what he believes we should learn from it.
In John 11, we find the story of Jesus’ delayed coming, Lazarus’ death, the dismay of Mary and Martha, and the resurrection of Lazarus. The wisdom of Jesus is revealed in the way he interacted with Mary and with Martha; although they both said the same thing to him, he gave words to the analytical Martha but tears to Mary.
So we learn that the gospel is about tears.
In John 12, Mary is found anointing the feet of Jesus, wasting a pound of expensive ointment. Judas is outraged — the money should have been given to the poor. Judas didn’t understand until it was too late, but the gospel is not pragmatic.
We ought to waste our very best on Jesus.
Finally, Mr. Fujimura suggested that we ought to live more like Lazarus, who did absolutely nothing. He just died. But if Christians lived like Lazarus, with absolute confidence in God and deep joy in our relationship with Christ, how would that change our culture?
The gospel gives us confidence to “chill out” with Jesus.
If the American church understands this, perhaps we will have a culture of abundance.
The Independent Women’s group, “Miss Independents,” strikes a pose for the camera during one of their practices.
Grove City College is an institution that values its history and traditions that have made it into such a noteworthy school. Certain events continue to prove to be campus-wide favorites that bring the students together to celebrate the amazing and talented people on campus. One of these favorite events is All-College Sing. This event takes place late in the spring semester during the annual Family Weekend, when families of current students are invited to join in on the campus life and activities to celebrate the end of the school year.
Theta active Claire Lucas expressed her enthusiasm well when she said, “All-College Sing is one of my favorite campus events of the year. It is an opportunity to try something new, it is basically the musical career I never had, as well as come together to support other students on campus.”
One of these celebrated and beloved events is All-College Sing, where Greek, Housing and Independent groups from all over campus come together to compete in a musical showdown. Beginning in 1972, there are 45 years of alumni who have participated, making it a lasting tradition that draws large crowds. Each group competing picks a song and works all semester practicing choreography, vocals and group personality. All arrangements, instrumentals, choreography, costumes and conducting are student directed. The bar is set high for these performances, as this is usually one of the most well-attended events of the weekend. The competition level between groups is also high, making for an exciting atmosphere and big performances. It’s a great time to participate in Grove City College activity, whether on stage or in the audience cheering on your friends and peers.
Junior and Housing Group AEX member Tom Miller mirrored these sentiments and shared his personal positive experiences with this exciting event. “All-College Sing has been a unifying experience during my time in my housing group. The hours spent practicing with my brothers and performing for our community have yielded a tight unity between us that makes me proud to be a part of something great and humbled to have this opportunity.”
An even rarer occurrence is the participation of an Independent group taking the stage to compete against the more established groups on campus. This year, junior Ellen Upton has taken the initiative to bring together a great group of unassociated, talented women to perform for the title. “All-College Sing, especially for the independent women, is a great opportunity to get to know new people, come together to reach a goal, and to have a lot of fun putting on a show. I would never have met some of these girls if it wasn’t for this group and I love that they are all as excited about it as I am. I think for both the independent women and all of the Greek groups it’s an awesome experience and builds a sense of community and accomplishment that otherwise might not exist.”
As a prospective student, I remember wondering to myself, “I wonder if I will be bored on campus?” After all, Grove City college is a small school in Pennsylvania.
Well, let me assure you that, though GCC is small in size, it is concentrated with exciting events and activities for many different students. Here is a list of 25 excellent events that were (or will be) run on campus this school year alone:
23rd Annual Winterfeast – A medieval five-course dinner with entertainment.
2017 Create Conference – Speakers from places like Scarlet and Gold came on campus for a series of lectures and networking events.
AEX Live – Incredible live music performances, soft pretzels, and root beer floats.
The Amazing Race – Solve puzzles and complete the race first to win a 32 inch TV.
Anything Goes Performance – A crazy crew of nightclub singers and hopeless romantics in Cole Porter’s “Anything Goes.”
All-Campus Cookout – Great food, music, and games on the Ketler patio with the Pan Sophic Fraternity.
AO Glow – A black-light neon paint party!
Bridgefest 2016 – A concert featuring live original music from the best Grove City College musicians.
Chicken Patty Day – Buy a chicken patty. Proceeds benefit Christian Best Camps of Kenya.
Dancing with the Profs – Vote on which professor and choreographer duo dance the best!
The Extravaganza – One of the coolest, craziest dances on campus with cheesecake and shrimp.
Faculty Follies – “The best opportunity to laugh at your professors!”
What is Admitted Students Day? ASD, for short, is an event by the Grove City College Admissions Office specifically for admitted students. This year the event took place on April 1. The purpose of the day is two-fold. First, students who have already deposited their down payment can have the opportunity to meet their fellow classmates, professors, and ask any final questions before the summer. Second, students who have been invited to come in the fall but have not made their final decision can explore campus more. It truly is a fun day for students and parents to visit campus one more time before the magical May 1 day where all college decisions are final. So what happened? I was the event photographer for the day so I have plenty of pictures to show you step-by-step what went down on ASD.
9:30-10:45
A bunch of guests came and spoke to the crowd.
To start off, Director of Admissions Sarah Gibbs warmly welcomed all in attendance.
After her, President McNulty gave a persuasive argument about why students should be excited about coming back in the fall.
Dr. Thrasher of the Career Services Office took the stand and spoke about the influence the CSO has on student life post-graduation.
The CSO even used text-polling to answer FAQ based on what question the audience voted on.
11:00-2:00
Students and parents were then free to visit the major of study they were interested in. Professors and current students were there as well to answer questions and discuss required courses.
To show the resources available for research and art, departments opened their labs, machine shops, and studios for families to peek into.
2:00-2:45
Students then listened to mock lectures close to the topics they would learn about as a Grove City College learner.
While the students were in lecture, parents had the opportunity to ask questions to parents of current students.
Still separate from their parents, students moved onto the Arena again for a Student Life and Learning presentation – including games about campus life.
3:00-5:00
After the closing presentation by President McNulty, families had numerous options on how to finish out the day. One of these options was taking a tour of campus.
Overall, ASD is designed for students to get to know the campus resources and one another better. In the end, the Admissions Office hopes students are walking away wanting to be Grovers.
