CUW Helps “Feed My Starving Children”
A few weeks ago Andrew and his Cornell teammates helped with a “Feed My Starving Children” event in Ithaca at Trinity Lutheran Church (where my seminary classmate and basketball teammate, Rob Foote, is pastor). This weekend was Concordia’s turn to help provide nutritional meals for hungry people around the world. The event was an amazing success. We hosted 1,363 volunteers who filled 1,516 boxes. That translates to 327,456 meals already on the way to children who need the food. Now those are some nice stats! See the Fox News story here.
Sheboygan Lutheran High School Taproot Dinner Reflections
Recently I had the opportunity to speak at Sheboygan Lutheran High School’s “Taproot” Banquet — a dinner for donors and friends. It was a tough act to follow four very articulate students — the kind of students we are accustomed to seeing on our campus once they graduate from Sheboygan Lutheran. Read the rest of this entry »
The 130th Academic Year of Concordia University Wisconsin
The busy weekend of moving in and orienting new students is behind us. Now classes are underway! Local ABC affiliate, WISN, did a story about our new pharmacy program. View it here.
Robert Holst, President of Concordia-St. Paul, Comments on “Faith in the Freshman”
Now in my fourteenth year as the president of Concordia University Wisconsin, I have enough retrospect to be able to reflect on a few things with particular appreciation. Among the many blessings I have enjoyed has been the opportunity to interact with my colleagues who are presidents across the Concordia University System. One of them, Bob Holst, from Concordia-St. Paul, has announced his plan to retire at the end of this school year. I will miss him a lot. Read the rest of this entry »
Luther Lands and Wondering Where Luther would Land
Every ten years the quaint village of Oberammergau, Germany, becomes the destination for Christian pilgrims from around the globe. The performance of the Passion Play is the attraction and today Tammy and I travel with a group of Concordia’s friends to attend. Read the rest of this entry »
LCMS Convention and National Youth Gathering
Houston and New Orleans are both hot and humid places in the summertime. These southern cities have been the host sites over the last several days for two national gatherings of The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod — the Convention and the Youth Gathering. A visitor to both, like me, is left with the impression that the two events don’t have much in common besides sultry venues. Given a choice, I’ll take the Youth Gathering every time. Read the rest of this entry »
59th Annual CIT
What a weekend at CUW! The 59th annual CIT was played in front of a huge, enthusiastic crowd. Special kudos to the CUW Falcon men following their tournament championship. A narrow 69-68 victory on Friday over Chicago was followed by an impressive 91-73 victory over Seward. Congratulations, also, to the Seward women who defeated our Falcons in the women’s championship game.
Morning Blend Interview
I recently appeared on the local television show The Morning Blend. The video is below.
Health Care Hero and Power Book Recognitions
Our diabetes discussion is part of a much larger conversation about health care in our community. Read the rest of this entry »
5 Questions with Dr. Patrick Ferry – Ozaukee News Graphic
I recently sat down with reporters from the Ozaukee News Graphic to discuss topics including the book and the University. The full article is embedded below.
Fall Presidential Forum at Concordia
Our blog is a wonderful opportunity to talk about a range of issues and themes that emerge in Faith in the Freshman. In anticipation of that we have created categories for dialog and discussion. One of these is titled “Concordia Conversations.” Christian higher education is a big part of my book, and Concordia is a place where the story continues to unfold day after day. Last night we had a good “Concordia Conversation” on campus!
Once a semester our Student Government Association sponsors a forum for me and other administrators on campus to interact with students. Usually on a Monday night, SGA leaders were careful to avoid scheduling the forum on an evening when the Packers might be on TV. They were obviously less concerned about avoiding a conflict with my beloved Denver Broncos who were en route to their sixth straight victory with a win over division rival San Diego. That’s okay—I’d rather spend an evening with Concordia students any time! Read the rest of this entry »
Pie the President – Concordia Homecoming 2009
Some fun at Concordia’s homecoming festivities, Pie the President.
Patrick Ferry with a little pie on his face at the recent homecoming events.
Retired Pastors and Wives Conference in Stevens Point, Wisconsin
This is the first conference at which I have spoken where the “Faith in the Freshman” theme is augmented by the book for sale. I will admit that I have lots more experience telling stories than I do selling books afterward. Some very nice promtional material has been developed, and that helps. To the extent that people judge a book by its cover, we are also in great shape thanks to James Saleska’s excellent work in layout and design. Finally, it is the story itself that I hope draws interest and has an impact. Read the rest of this entry »
CU Later Diabetes!
“CU Later Diabetes”! The Concordia t-shirts (beautifully colored in CUW Lake Blue and Sunrise Gold) showed our team’s determination to defeat this disease. Our captain, Peter Ferry, recruited our largest ever contingent of Concordia zoo-walkers for the annual JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) fundraiser. The Concordia team raised over $2300 to support research aimed at finding a cure for type 1 diabetes. Peter’s younger brothers, Andrew and Stephen, both are afflicted with type 1 diabetes. Some of Andrew Ferry’s story is chronicled in “Faith in the Freshman: A Story of Hopes and Hopes.” Click the read link to see more pictures. Read the rest of this entry »
Contact Pat Ferry
A Freshman’s Parent and “Faith in the Freshman”
As part of Freshman Orientation this Fall, I had the chance to interact with parents of new students utilizing the book as a springboard for conversation. I was eager to help them with that leap of faith of letting go! Some of them have begun to read the memoir, and one of them recently wrote to me on Facebook. Her letter is below:
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