Dear Fellow Bethel classmates of 1989:

What a wonderful time we had as we took a ‘road trip’ back to Bethel for our 20th year reunion. Of course, none of us looked or felt any older, right?! About 65 classmates and spouses gathered together to reminisce about our Bethel days.

We started off the evening by eating in the new Monson Dining Center, which is quite impressive! We chose from stone-fired pizza, pasta, stir fry, carved meat, and a large salad bar. The dining experience was quite a bit different from our college days where we were offered ‘Saga’ food with just a few choices. We ate upstairs in an atrium overlooking Lake Valentine as the sun was setting. Everyone had such a great time catching up over the meal.

After supper, we heard from Jay Barnes, the current president of Bethel University and David Clark, the new provost. Both leaders offered some impressive statistics about the university’s student population. It was exciting to hear that enrollment has not decreased despite the difficult economic times. Mary Pawlenty, alumna of the year, also gave an encouraging speech about how Bethel prepared her well for the roles God has given her over the years as lawyer, judge, and now Minnesota’s First Lady.

As we gathered in the choir room, we watched a slide show of photos from our college days. Our MCs, Bryan Moak and Paul Deakins, kept us laughing as they quizzed us on 1985-1989 trivia and gave out prizes from the Bethel bookstore.

We were inspired by Patti Duinick’s message about her husband, the late Kelly Duinick. Kelly and Patti started Rhema Bible Training Center, a biblical training school in the Samoan islands. The school trains church leaders from many different islands and people groups, and its graduates impact individuals all over the South Pacific. Patti said that Kelly lived his life everyday in light of eternity as he faced Lou Gehrig’s disease. He passed away in 2008. Patti had to choose between quitting the ministry or continuing on in the mission. She chose to continue on, and the ministry keeps growing in scope and methods of spreading the gospel. With the recent news about the earthquake in the Samoan Islands, we hope and pray Rhema BTC was spared and that the school can minister to the survivors.

To those of you who made the trek (some from as far as Georgia and some from as close as Arden Hills), we thank you for joining us! For those of you who were unable to attend, we missed you and hope you can join us for a future homecoming weekend and our 25th reunion in just five short years! Be sure to check out our online photo gallery of the gathering at http://www.bethel.edu/alumni/reunions/09/classof89reunion. If you were unable to attend, you can still order a memory book for $5.00 by emailing the Alumni Office at alumni@bethel.edu.

Homecoming reminds us how Bethel trained us to be Christ followers in whichever way we traveled. When we were students, many alumni and friends gave sacrificially to Bethel so that we could have an education and experiences which affected us for life. We now have the opportunity to make that same difference in the lives of current and future students. Let’s continue to support Bethel University both in prayer and financially as we are able.

Sincerely,

The Reunion Committee: Mary (Stilley) Bigham, Dawn (Gustafson) Wallin, Bryan Moak, and Paul Deakins