By Katie Hirv ’22   |   Photos by Julie Pagel Drewes ’90

In a spirited expression of their faith, Wartburg’s faculty and staff have begun sharing their faith stories in an interview format during Monday morning chapel services on campus.The faith stories are set up in a question and answer style in the front of the Wartburg Chapel, with the Rev. Dr. Brian Beckstrom, dean of spiritual life, or pastoral intern Rebecca Baird ’18 on one side and the interviewee sitting six feet away on the other.  

“It allows students to see faculty and staff as more than just someone who they see either in the classroom or working around campus and get to know them a little bit more and their story. I think it also allows people to see the ways in which faith influences our lives. We don’t always acknowledge that or think about talking about that, and so I think the more we can model that for students, the better for their own growth and development,” said Beckstrom.

With each faith story, faculty and staff choose a verse from Scripture that has significant meaning to them. Dr. Daniel Kittle, dean of students, was the first to share his faith story this term, sharing 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 and how his leadership at Wartburg looks in the midst of a pandemic.

“At the top of my to-do list, I have that Bible verse as well as other pieces that kind of root me in purpose and meaning and faith that remind me as I enter my work and how I want to do that,” said Kittle in his interview. “I also try to use that (verse) as a way to focus my work as something that’s meaningful and purposeful. The piece that really resonates with me is vocation and calling, and that also elicits that for me, as well.”

Dr. Christine DeVries, associate professor of chemistry, also shared her faith story, discussing her experiences with failure, both relating it to students who are struggling and within her personal life.

“One of the pieces I do is walk alongside students who are facing failure, often for the first time. That’s hard. No one likes failure. But having a growth mindset means we need to look at those failures as failures of that event, and not failures of your humanity,” DeVries said. “It turns out, chemistry is really cool, but my passion isn’t chemistry. My passion is working with 19- to 22-year-olds and walking alongside them when they go through that issue of failure and then find comfort in the next direction they go.”

Molly Wertz, a counselor at Wartburg, shared about her work with mental health and how it connects with her faith.

“I believe in treating others the way I want to be treated and being alongside someone for their journey, just as God walks with us. I believe in being with students, whoever’s in my office and to help them find their own answers. I don’t have all the answers, because I truly believe we have all those within us,” said Wertz.

Beckstrom said the Monday chapel service has a tradition of inviting faculty and staff to share a message. While planning out services each week, he looks for those who would be interested in sharing their story within the Wartburg community.“I’m glad to be part of a community where faculty and staff are willing to share about their faith and their lives. I think that’s one of the things that makes Wartburg a community. We get to know each other. That includes faculty and staff as well as students,” Beckstrom added.Chapel services are streamed every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning during the academic year at 10:15 a.m. through Knight Vision, the college’s student-run streaming service. Services can be viewed live or on demand on Knight Vision.