| The People |
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Renewal’s 2009 Student Leadership Team: Seth Benge, Montreat College: Seth Benge is a senior at Montreat College in Montreat, North Carolina. He is an Environmental Studies major with a concentration in Field Studies and a minor in Biology. He will graduate in 2009 and plans to pursue a graduate education in the environmental field. He enjoys cream soda, playing in the mud, and hot air balloons. He desires to see Christians care for creation. Brittany Bennett, Eastern University: Brittany Bennett is a current student at Eastern University majoring in Environmental Studies. She came to Eastern with the intention of following a career path in Elementary Education. Through a series of personal relationships, involvement in her campus's environmental organization (Earthkeepers), and inspiring professors, she came to see environmental concerns as true issues of conscious and faith. She is currently a leader in Earthkeepers and an intern on her campus' Natural Areas Committee. She enjoys spending her time away from studies crafting, cooking, and exploring her new home state of Virginia. Aaryn Joyner, Montreat College: Aaryn Joyner majors in Outdoor Education at Montreat College and is set to graduate in December 2009 with an Environmental Studies minor. She loves studying the outdoors and playing in the mountains of western Carolina. Through her passion for nature, she has come to recognize the duty and privilege of actively pursuing a lifestyle of learning and caring for the world around her. She hopes to encourage others to do the same. A few of her favorite things are her awesome dog Prometheus, music-particularly bluegrass, random adventures and travels, and snow-boarding. Kira Langendoen, Redeemer University College: Kira Langendoen is a born and raised Canadian from St. Catharines, Ontario. Currently finishing up her last semester at Redeemer University College, she enjoys hiking and birding in her spare time. Last year she was privileged to lead the Green Team in projects such as on-campus composting, a creation chapel and cleanups. This fall she took a semester off to participate in an environmental internship at the Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies which affirmed her passion for teaching in the outdoors, especially to an enthusiastic young audience. Finding joy in nature and a closer connection to God outdoors, Kira is excited to work with fellow Christians in creation care. Mark Mares, Hope College: Mark Mares is a sophomore at Hope College in Holland, MI majoring in Political Science and International Studies, with minors in Religion and Environmental Studies. He is currently the president of Hope's Environmental Issues Group, and a member of the Hope College Campus Sustainability Task Force. Mark hopes to continue working with environmental stewardship after graduation as well as other social justice issues. In his spare time Mark enjoys playing and listening to music, reading, writing, and Michigan football. Aaron Nelson, Gordon College: Aaron Nelson is a Gordon College student set to graduate in the class of 2011. Hailing from the noble town of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, he is a fairly new member of the creation care movement- combining a lifelong love of God’s creation with his newfound knowledge of its present state. He has a passion to not only join the team of men and women trying to preserve creation, but also to lead others to the passion and knowledge that he has gained himself. When not in the classroom and studying, Aaron loves getting out doors, playing sports and enjoying the company of his friends. Kathryn Norregaard, Moody Bible College: Kathryn Norregaard is known as “the loud girl who never stops talking”. Thus, she is a Communications major at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. She loves playing the guitar, walking barefoot, biking, reading, photography, and climbing trees. She is passionate about promoting social justice and informing others about the environmental root (pun intended) to many of these issues. Jeffrey O’Field, Asbury College: Jeffrey O’Field will be a 2011 graduate of Asbury College in Wilmore, KY. He is currently studying Christian Ministries and all of the liberal arts. He is a member of the AROCHA Asbury chapter and enjoys recycling at 1:00 in the morning. He has lived in northern WV and now calls Louisville, KY his home. Jeffrey’s interests include traveling, writing, listening to folk and hip-hop music, food, tea, coffee, and the outdoors. Megan Risley, Seattle Pacific University: Megan Risley just finished her first year at Seattle Pacific University after transferring from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She grew up in Littleton, CO with two younger siblings, has been a certified scuba diver for ten years, and participated in marching band as an alto saxophone player for 6 years. She is involved with her amazing church, writes poetry, swims and cares for her adorable, big, black cat, "Norris." She heard the call to care for God's creation in a Doctrine of Creation class Fall quarter and is excited to do her part in the beautiful work of restoration. Nate Sather, Bethel University: Nate Sather is a student at Bethel University in St. Paul Minnesota. He is majoring in Environmental Science, and plans to graduate in Spring of 2010. After growing up in the land of 10,000 lakes and spending time at Au Sable Institute in Michigan, Nate developed a passion for water and the way that people use it. He is interested in engaging both Christians and non-Christians in holistic inspection of environmental issues, and ways to solve environmental issues that are both sustainable and practical. In his free time, Nate enjoys backpacking, fly-fishing, and skiing. Julia Shotwell, Azusa Pacific University: Julia Shotwell is a senior at Azusa Pacific University where she is majoring in biology and minoring in Spanish. Her future plans include pursuing a graduate degree in environmental science and working as a missionary in South America educating people in third-world countries about creation care. More specifically, she hopes to return to Guatemala and Argentina to work with the people there. Julia lives in San Ramon, California and enjoys playing sports such as water polo and lacrosse, hiking, snowboarding, traveling, and spending time outdoors in God's beautiful creation. Joelle Van Gaalen, Dordt College: Joelle Van Gaalen is a junior at Dordt College in Sioux Center, IA. A Biology major, she became passionate about stewardship of the environment through her classes and through reading the book Serve God, Save the Planet. An internship at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Reserve also influenced her as she learned from and lived with other active environmentalist intern friends. Joelle is involved in leadership of the Creation Care Club at Dordt and loves to read, travel, and learn about other cultures. Her friends would tell you that Joelle loves plants and prairies and loves teaching her friends about the prairie ecosystem. Jason Vates, Spring Arbor University: Jason Vates is an English major at Spring Arbor University. He is the founder of SAU's environmental club, Earth Shepherd, which recently partnered with the school to implement campus recycling. Captivated by little ants and looming mountains, Jason has sought God's beauty in the wilderness from a young age. Currently living in Spring Arbor, Michigan, Jason can often be found painting, rollerblading, hiking, or sipping tea over a good book. Daniel Virden is a freshman at Point Loma Nazarene University. He is a Political Science and Environmental Science Double Major, and plans to go to Law School after he graduates from PLNU. While Daniel goes to school in California, he is actually from Columbus, Ohio, where he attends a Nazarene church. Daniel is currently Secretary for Students for Environmental Action and Awareness at PLNU, and he is excited to work with Renewal to connect SEA with other Christians with a passion for Creation Care. Daniel loves walking and especially exploring every new place he visits, as well as playing Marimba and learning new things in every way he can. Anthony Waldrop, Westmont College: Anthony Waldrop is a sophomore at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California. He grew up in Bakersfield, California where he developed a love for creation through frequent trips to the Sierra Nevadas and the Pacific coastline. He is a leader for an A Rocha chapter at Westmont, which is involved in promoting stewardship on campus and in the Santa Barbara community. His hobbies consist of hiking, soccer, tennis, and reading. Renewal’s Coordinators: Anna Jane Joyner: Anna Jane Joyner is a 2007 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After falling in love with God's creation while studying abroad in New Zealand, she returned to UNC to research Christian perspectives on the environment. Since graduating, she has dedicated her life and work to engaging the Christian community in environmental stewardship. Her recent endeavors include co-authoring the Sierra Club report 'Faith in Action' and teaching environmental studies at a Christian high school. Anna Jane lives in North Carolina and enjoys hiking, travelling, frequenting independent bookstores, listening to bluegrass and writing poetry. Ben Lowe: Ben Lowe's views on creation care were shaped early in his life. Growing up as a missionary kid in Singapore/Malaysia, he often dealt with water shortages and bad air quality due to mismanagement and abuse of natural resources. Carrying these experiences with him, he eventually found his way to Wheaton College where he majored in environmental studies and helped organize Wheaton's national Climate Change Summit in 2007. His summers were filled working as an environmental educator with the Massachusettes Audubon Society and as a student researcher for fisheries projects in Corpus Christi, TX and on Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania. Ben is the author of Green Revolution: Coming Together to Care for Creation (IVP 2009) and a contributor to Christians, the Care of Creation, and Global Climate Change (Pickwick Publications, 2008). He is based out of the bike-friendly city of Chicago where he formerly served as the Outreach Director for A Rocha USA, an international Christian conservation organization, before coming on staff with Renewal in 2009.
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