Special Gifts and Collections

With the help of all the "friends" we've been able to purchase a large collection of country and city guides which help students and faculty as they prepare for educational experiences beyond Bethel. In addition, we added other multicultural materials, new and classic fiction, audiobooks and more.

Personal Collections

Nancy Lundquist

As Nancy and Carl Lundquist traveled around the world, they collected a substantial library of art books. In the spring of 1999, Nancy donated over 100 of these beautiful books to the Bethel University Library.

Steinbach Family

The wonderful books in this collection are a gift of the Vivien and Ralph Steinbach family. Vivien, a former Circulation Supervisor at the University Library, wanted to provide a memorial for her daughter, Nancy, a talented photographer who died at the age of 24. In doing so, she has benefited a generation of students.

Memorial Collections

Connie J. Larson Memorial Collection

Connie Larson ('73) was not only a voracious reader of all genres of literature from science fiction to political commentary to Christian devotional material, but also an avid listener to Minnesota Public Radio. When the radio program Speaking of Faith (now On Being) started in 1999 she quickly became a fan.

Although Connie suffered from several life-threatening medical conditions, they never deterred her from listening, reading and then engaging others in meaningful conversations. And she never stopped offering ideas to improve the BU Library and its collections. In 2005, Connie began selecting books from On Being to add to the collection until she became too ill to continue. The Friends have carried on this project with gifts sent in memory of Connie.

Terry Coffee Memorial Collection

Using gifts given to the Friends of the Library in memory of Terry Coffee, this collection of materials was purchased for the library on the topics of Urban Youth Studies and Reconciliation. Terry S. Coffee had a long career in service to others as area Director for Young Life, Director of Multicultural Development for Bethel University and as Executive Director of World Vision - Twin Cities. Terry went to be with the Lord in 2009 after a three year struggle with cancer.