We gather today to recognize those members of the College who died in the year 2003 and early 2004. We celebrate their lives, their accomplishments, and their ambitions. We offer our respect and appreciation for what they have done for our society; for their support for our communities and institutions; and, in many cases, for the resources and strength that they have shared with Manchester College.
Among those whom we honor today are many who were born in the early years of the last century, the twentieth. There are nearly 60 who were over 90 at their deaths. One was born in the nineteenth century, only ten years after Manchester College was founded in 1889. At least four who have passed away were graduates of Mount Morris College which closed in 1932 and merged with Manchester. The youngest of these alumni was 89, and now few of those who had a first-hand knowledge of Mount Morris remain.
Most of those who left us in 2003 and early 2004 had rich and full lives even as the world changed around them. There are others, however, who died far too early in lives of promise.
Sadly this year, we acknowledge the unexpected death of a current student, just weeks before her graduation. The loss of someone so young and so suddenly is especially tragic. Death also touched many of us through the loss of family or friends. Some are listed here because they are our alumni or alumnae. Some are not. All are missed. We are reminded often in such grief that those who suggest that the College is separate somehow from the “real world” are very mistaken.
There are other members of the immediate Manchester College family to recognize, including a retired faculty member who served the College with distinction in communication studies for 35 years and was a valued member of our community for another 20. We lost a woman who was our reference librarian for a decade; and a dean and education professor who labored here at Manchester for thirty important years. Another was our football coach for nearly two decades, well-respected and remembered by his players. The list also includes several who served Manchester in key support positions, without whom we would be a lesser institution. There is a printer, a secretary, a custodian, and others.
Among those whom we honor today are some with names that are very familiar to the College community. A few would qualify as members of our “first families,” if we identified such things; and some who would be “one of a kind” and just as important. Among those we recognize are many who are Brethren, and others who closely shared such values. There are also Methodists, Catholics, Presbyterians, and many others; and those who were liberal and some who were very conservative. There are those, Brethren and not, who have asked hard questions about choices that we make here at the College, and then gave us their loving attention.
There are many persons whom I have come to know well in my now ten years here, including some who have become good friends. There are many whom I wish that I had been able to know better. There are persons whom I admire for their dignity in life; and some for their courage as death neared. There are persons nationally and internationally acclaimed; and those who had the respect of their families and friends, and for whom that was quite enough.
Among those we remember today are farmers, executives, business leaders, homemakers, librarians, and insurance agents. There are persons who worked with words, and those who worked with their hands. There are several who, after helping with the reconstruction of Europe , then traveled worldwide, one for the Agency for International Development; and one for agricultural missions. There are physicians, and research chemists, including one with many patents. There are engineers, and social workers. There are several who were pioneers in the field of electronics, including a design engineer who worked on micro-miniaturization. There are pastors, and as importantly, pastors' wives. There are several who held key roles in the leadership of the Church of the Brethren.
There is a grocer, a study hall monitor, and a man who owned an orchard. There are accountants and shop owners, and a woman who, with her husband, donated the sod for the College's athletic fields. There is an internationally-recognized chemist who was renowned for his research and scientific leadership. There is a Jungian, and, probably, a Freudian. There are at least five who taught long and well at various other colleges and universities.
There are winners of College awards; and there are persons who were outstanding performers on our athletic teams. There are several who were student secretaries or faculty assistants—and it was a meaningful part of their education here. There are members of the College Choir; several who wrote for college publications; and some who served in student government. There are persons who graduated with honors; and there are some who were remarkably more successful than their academic performance at Manchester ever would have predicted.
As is always true here, there are many elementary and secondary teachers, including several who began their careers in Indiana 's rural schoolhouses. This year, there are a large number who served their schools in administration: school counselors, business managers, principals, and superintendents. There are coaches and athletic directors. Several made their living or their lives, or both, in music—performing, teaching, and enjoying. There are several who worked in the visual arts.
There are persons who traveled widely in their service; others who traveled in retirement; and some who never needed to go far from their homes in Indiana . There is a man who built an international agri-business with an outstanding reputation for quality. There are several who made their reputations for quality right here in Wabash County.
There are several who were strong supporters of initiatives in peace and justice, and actively opposed war and military service. At least four were members of the Civilian Public Service during World War II. There are also some who served with distinction overseas in the armed forces in the same war.
There is one who graduated in the depths of the Depression who did not receive his Manchester diploma for 69 years until I presented it to him at his home in Florida three years ago. He could not pay the $5.00 diploma fee. Others also lived lives shaped by economic challenge, and recovery.
There are three who served together recently on the Board of Trustees. There are six who won Alumni Awards for their wonderful societal contributions.
There are major benefactors to the College, including the husband in one couple who gave the first major gift for the new Science Center. There are others who have also supported Manchester with large benefactions; and those of more limited means who have given to us sacrificially in order to help our students. There are those whose gifts were offered in their children who attended Manchester , or by the touch of their leadership and their encouragement, and through other such intangible support. There are three women—one an alumna and two who were good friends of the College—who were true leaders in the North Manchester community and connected us together.
With their recent deaths, those we remember today are linked together in the College's academic procession. They now step aside, to watch and applaud the others as they pass by. Together, they remind us that Manchester College is a living institution, and, fully, a real community. I value this opportunity to honor their memory, and to acknowledge the lessons they offer to those of us who can still actively serve the College.
Truly, every college is an academic procession. Each fall, newcomers join it at the rear. They include new students, new faculty, and new staff. They are preceded, in order, by all of those who have gone before—reaching forward in the procession across a college's history. At Manchester , our academic procession extends now for 115 years, led by those who had the wisdom and ambition to place the College in North Manchester in 1889.
Each group in our procession has been assisted by the generosity in support and generosity of spirit from those ahead of them. In turn, each has a responsibility to those who follow. No faculty or staff member has made his or her way here alone, as others have welcomed and guided those who are new. No student at Manchester has ever paid the full cost of his or her education; most have received significant financial aid; and some have been supported in their studies entirely through the College by our benefactors.
This has been the most remarkable, most marvelous kind of philanthropy—gifts offered freely by others, through annual contributions or as gifts to the endowment, and provided without expectation for specific return or even acquaintance with the recipient. Much of Manchester College 's strength today comes from the generosity and caring for others by those alumni and other friends who provided the support, financial and otherwise, for those who followed them in our procession.
On this occasion, by acknowledging the gifts of those whom we honor at the time of their passing, we remember how so many have helped to build this College. The gifts that are tangible are the easiest to measure. Those that are less tangible can elude us, unless we recall those gifts of the human spirit, the value found in the right idea at the right time, and the generosity of those who helped us simply by caring and offering their close attention.
The way in which those whom we remember served our society and world also reminds us of our responsibilities and opportunities. They remind us of our strength when joined with others. May we use these lessons well. May God bless both those who have stepped from our procession, now to witness what we will do next; and those who can still march forward with others from the College.
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