Another mid-summer bird list.

Common Raven, Corvus corax, on a campus rooftop [photo Lynn Jones]



Contributing birders:

Lynn, Sue, Tom



Bird list for July 25- August 5:



Wild Turkey

Canada Goose - a little flock is back, feeding on campus

Double-crested Cormorant - fly-by

Herring Gull - the only gull around campus now

5. Killdeer

Great Blue Heron - fly-by

Osprey

Turkey Vulture

Rock Pigeon

10. Mourning Dove

Northern Flicker

Downy Woodpecker - not common, but find-able

Eastern Kingbird - first of the summer

Blue Jay

15. American Crow

Common Raven - two, possibly three on the roof of the C-buildings

Cedar Waxwing

European Starling

Barn Swallow

20. Tree Swallow - a good fly-by

Northern Rough-winged Swallow - another fly-by

House Wren

Black-capped Chickadee - not common, but always find-able

American Robin

25. Gray Catbird

Northern Mockingbird

Yellow Warbler - still a few around

Common Yellowthroat - a female

Northern Cardinal

30. Rose-breasted Grosbeak - a female

Song Sparrow

American Goldfinch

House Finch

Common Grackle

35. House Sparrow



Thirty five species is very respectable for mid-summer on our little patch of turf (the 135 acres which is West Campus).





Eastern Coyote, Canis latrans. One of this year's pups.

Photo by Brendan in Facilities.

Morning Reading

This morning’s New York Times had quite a few interesting articles. The artcle on Danny Meyer by Sean WIlsey was outstanding. Now I do like anything with food in it, but this piece dealt with entrepreneurship, leadership, customer service and quality…all things that companies no matter where they are on the growth scale should be thinking about. He also goes into some of the entrepreneurial demons that Mr. Meyer had to deal with as he grew his company.

The other food piece that I enjoyed dealt with Pret A Manger. The article, Would you Like A Smith With That, by Stephanie Clifford, discussed how the British company is trying to bring better customer service to the fast food industry.

I also liked the interview of Joe Torre that discussed respect in baseball…something that our world, sports or otherwise…is dearly in need of.

Summer Reading- Part 1

Through the course of the summer I had the chance to catch up on some reading. In particular, I liked two books…Enchantment by Guy Kawasaki and Double Double by Cameron Herold.
First to Mr. Kawasaki. Now I’ve been recommending Kawasaki’s Art of the Start for some time, as well as his company’s Garage Technology for resources for entrepreneurs…especially the pieces about writing an executive summary and making the pitch. Both are outstanding and I make sure to give the executive summary piece to students, entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs who are writing a business plan. Enchantment was a different kind of book than Art, but very interesting. The book addresses what I would call is a higher level of marketing…enchantment. Lots of great examples and stories are included, and no doubt, you’ll be seeing him speaking at a location near to you. If you do, go see him…he is well worth the time and money.

Double Double was a book about growing your business. While I’m never enchanted with books that either have lists (Top 10 Ways…) or wild promises in the title, I nonetheless found D-D interesting. Since finishing the book in June, I’ve recommended this book to a number of student entrepreneurs as a grass-roots approach to developing a focused approach to starting or growing a business. The book starts with an invitation to think about your vision for the company and then moves on to specifics areas of concern to the entrepreneur such as communications, PR, technology and (one of my favorites) how to grow when it's slow. In addition, I liked the chapter, “The Roller Coaster Ride of Entrepreneurship as it brought make many memories and reminded me of other things that I need to talk to both students and entrepreneurs about.

Humber Lakeshore: A New Embassy!

I journeyed to nearby Humber College at its Lakeshore Campus. Being familiar with Humber in its main GTA campus, I had never been to its other, newer expression. I was impressed to see a place bustling with expansion and growth. Indeed, its attendance is already well over 6,000 and it is positioning for future growth. I met with Josh Hageman, the pastor to young adults at Queensway Church. Josh already runs a successful young adults ministry which he plans to use to  help begin a fresh initiative at Humber Lakeshore.  He has been in talks with Brandon Malo, Joe Wahba and Trevor Gingerich about starting an Embassy at Lakeshore. In taking on the name, it means that he understands and brings a particular approach to campus ministry. There is concern that the name is represented well ( branding integrity). From every indication, Josh will do just that.

Did I mention 'growth'..?

We walked through the campus and looked at potential meeting places where he can begin meetings with public profile and presence. There are options...! Having helped out with the Lifeline campus group onsite, it was clear to Josh that there was the need for a larger, more attractive alternative to the bible study model already present on campus. Again, the issue is not to compete with what is going on but to augment and complement it. There are all kinds of opportunities for expansion and growth. He has certainly paid his 'dues' by being involved on campus in the past.

Views of the potential meeting place in the SU Bldg.

In meeting with a Christian faculty member who is a part of Queensway, she reiterated the need for something that would grip students and which she would feel comfortable in referring people towards. When she refers people, she doesn’t do it in her professional capacity but in a ‘non-work’ , personal capacity. She underscored the felt need for a more dynamic presence on campus. As she was describing the sort of person the campus needed, she was actually describing the guy in front of her..

Aforementioned J. Hageman

Anyway, it looks as if the Embassy Lakeshore will launch in the third week of September. There is a lot of work to do beforehand, but it looks  as though they have the right place and the right positioning on campus to make it a reality. Exciting times….

Laurentian University: Sudbury

If you are reading this from the top, this is the last entry of a productive roadtrip from Calgary. So, as you scroll down the various blogs until you get to the Calgary entry.. you will be reading about the roadtrip in reverse.  This blog is about Sudbury which was my last stop before driving home.....

A Laurentian U history lesson

I had the privilege of meeting with Markus and Alina Rukkila. As it turns out, Markus is a graduate of Regent College ( my alma mater) and a former intern with UTown Church, the daughter of Point Grey Community Church which I planted back in BC. We know a wad of the same people and he is familiar with the campus ministry in BC and the model of church that I embraced back when.  Markus is also a Finnish Canadian who is starting an English speaking congregation in conjunction with Siion Church, the Finnish PAOC church in Sudbury. He also has a passion to start a campus ministry at Laurentian University, only a few kilometers away.

Markus with Thornloe in the background..

Markus is now the Dean of Students at Thorneloe University. Thorneloe is an Anglican institution and a  founding member of the Laurentian University Federation in Sudbury. Markus is a former student of its new provost, Dr. Robert Derrenbacker. He will be living on campus and responsible for the 60 students who are part of its residency.  I cannot even begin to describe the upside of this development.  It is becoming increasingly clear to both Markus and Alina that they are intended to be here, and that God in His mysterious and creative way has preceded them all of the way.

Laurentian U from the Rukkilas' apartment in Thorneloe

Markus and I did an extended walk through the campus.

It is yet another campus that is undergoing extensive construction and renovation. It is clear that government and industry is pouring huge bucks into the infrastructure of developing leadership for the future. How about the Church??? 

Anyway, we discussed the various possibilities for campus ministry. I recommended to Markus that he spend time in the prayer and research stage. They go together. If he can enlist people to come onsite and pray, all the better.  There is no substitute for prayer. Prayer is not simply about cause and effect/tangible outcomes but it can change the temperature or spiritual environment of a place. I think of it as a windshift in a football game where the wind is now going with you rather than against you…

Research involves.. what is already going on, here? What needs are there? What opportunities? What is the spirituality of the campus ( there is an interior spirituality to every place)?, relational and church networking, facilities, means of advertising/communication etc, etc, etc....

What I love in walking through LU is the sense of the possibilities that can happen when God has a yielded vessel to work with. Markus is clearly not a 'formulaic' guy. Anybody who can juggle Finnish and Canadian culture as adroitly as he does has the skillset and aptitude to do well in a variety of contexts. He is aware of His need for God and he and Alina are willing to step out in obedience to His call. When that happens, things get exciting.

Onto the Soo...

TBay to SSM is an extraordinarily beautiful drive...

On to Sault Ste Marie. On route I connected with Paul Quesnele, who was previously the director of ONE campus ministry at Algoma University. It was formerly Summit Ministry, but the campus group led by Jeremy Murdoch and which met on campus in the cafeteria/pub ( see pic) had grown into an intergenerational church.

The aforementioned cafeteria/pub

This church chose to re-boot the campus ministry under a new name and with a fresh mandate. For the first year plus of its existence it was led by Paul, even during a nearly fatal mishap on the ski slopes in 2009. Paul was kind enough to share his friends , his parents and his knowledge with me. Thanks to all of you for your amazing hospitality...

Jeremy and Paul

For the past year, due to his work commitments to the University,  Paul has stepped back and some key students have come forward to fill in the gap. A former student, Danielle   , will be helping out onsite at Sault College.

Danielle  

Both Algoma and Sault are surprisingly vibrant institutions. Algoma was once a residential school, and it has owned up to, and actually embraced, this part of its history. As most readers would know, this was a dark paragraph in our national narrative. Originally begun with good intentions: The desire to bring education and knowledge ( and perhaps religion) to the native population, it degenerated into a form of cultural abuse/genocide. Children were ripped out of their homes at the age of six and forced to renounce their language and culture. Some were never to see their family again.

Now Algoma makes a significant point to celebrate its aboriginal culture and to provide support and direction to first nations students who come to study at Algoma.

Sault College is undergoing a relatively massive construction phase. As a result, it will have much more non academic space for clusters and meetings and whatever programming ONE may need.

Jeremy will be onsite in a more official capacity at both institutions. We are praying that he will have the energy and focus to pull it all off. There is so much good stuff going on and there is only so much of him to go around… Further, we are praying that the students will rise up to meet the opportunity and the challenge.  They have a ton of experience and expertise to share with us all....

Thunder Bay: Lakehead University.

In arriving in TBay, I found my way to the home of the pastor of Evangel Church , a PAOC church which is literally next door to Lakehead University. Gary and Sandy Wilson and I go back to BC days, and it was great to get caught up again. The idea of campus ministry was not unfamiliar to Gary and he was motivated to take me along with his assistant , Jed Armstrong, for a tour of the LU facilities.  It was certainly motivational, especially since Gary has had the awareness since he came to TBay over a decade ago that Evangel was strategically placed to reach the campus. Indeed, he has considered a name change that would reflect this reality.

Jed and Gary

The para-curriculum of the campus...

So, let’s talk about this. There are a number of students who go to Evangel, two of whom are the daughters of the pastor.   However, the University itself is almost a world unto itself, and even though the church is a five minute walk from campus, it almost seems as if it were in another world. This is not uncommon. So, the idea is: how about going to where the students actually are – which is on the campus – rather than luring them off the campus.

To embellish the metaphor, this makes good fishing sense. A number of years ago, a prominent TV sportsfishing personality invited my two older boys to accompany him to the Bay of Quinte to do a youth fishing episode. This fellow gave them a top notch time and by talking with him I learned a bit about fishing, myself. The fact is: he knew how to find the fish. He didn’t troll in the middle of the lake and hope that the fish would come to him. He went to where they liked to hang out- to where they actually were. He knew when they would be receptive. And then he knew how to offer them something that they actually wanted to grab. And finally, he knew how to bring them in and land them. That’s why he could run a successful show. He was rarely shut out.

So, back to the narrative. What if Gary and Jed were to work on campus a few days a week, rather than cloistering in the church office.  What if their students were to form a student club and they could provide complementary programming to the single student ministry on campus? What if Gary were to apply for chaplaincy status, in that he has the credentials. He represents a national denomination. He gives spiritual care to a local congregation and he has a Master’s Degree from Regent College. Anyway, all of that and more… there are some intriguing possibilities at Lakehead which we will need to explore soon.