Alumni Weekend2011Alumni Weekend RecapThe theme of this year's Alumni Weekend was "Many Hearts. One Desire." - this comes out of Romans 15:5,6. Throughout the weekend we focused on this theme, and especially in the Saturday morning Praise 'n Prayer time and Sunday morning worship service. Friday night started with board games, visiting, coffee, and the hand-made cardmaking workshop taking place over in the dining hall/student lounge. Over in the gymnasium, for the second year in a row a student team won the opening night indoor soccer tourney. 8 teams took part in the action which was all wrapped up just in time for everyone to take part in the traditional "Ice Cream floats" get-together in the dining hall which ends the evening. Alumni were invited to meet in the dining hall to begin the day in prayer on Saturday. After breakfast everyone met in the chapel for Praise n' Prayer and the U R Us meeting. This year we heard two students, Rebecca Dracass and Calvin Nikkel, share what God has been doing in their lives at NBC. Two Alumni, Denise Rice and Reneil Larson also shared about where life has them now and how God is there as they go through whatever ups or downs come along. It was stated that there can be no real way to be fully prepared for what happens in life, but that it is in God we find endurance and hope when the going gets challenging. Matthew Roger led us in music. During the U R Us business meeting we elected Reneil Larson and David Guenther as the new Exec members and it was noted that Jason Elford will be taking over as Alumni Liaison from Jenny Dyck. A big thank you to Jenny Dyck for her 4 years of service on the Exec and to Tim Giesbrecht for his 2 years of service. We also voted on Alumni projects for the year. The top two projects were 1)50 vinyl covered mattresses 2)New windows/doors for campus house #9 (closest house to the gymnasium). If we raise enough we may try and do re-tiling in the Ed Centre which was choice #3. If you'd like more info on any of these projects please call us at NBC. Childcare was provided for the entire morning which was a blessing to many, allowing them to participate fully in the Praise 'n Prayer time and the U R Us meeting. Saturday afternoon some braved the cold for the family hike to the point where a toasty fire and hot chocolate awaited, while others played a bit of volleyball before people made their way to the afternoon coffee house and silent auction which have become yearly afternoon fixtures at Alumni Weekend. This year's silent auction raised over $3500. The Saturday Obah night supper was back for a 3rd year, and this year's theme was "Storybook characters come to life". Robin Hood, Christopher Robin, and Dorothy (from Wizard of Oz) were among many of our evening guests who dressed up. Alumnus Brad Steppan read the children a story before they were dismissed for more children's activities, while the Alumni finished the evening with a rousing 'corporate' game of Disney's "Scene It" along with a new look "presidential challenge" which saw President Wes Fehr, Alum Pres Ryan Jansen, and Student Council Press Andrew Jenson each try and outdo the other in making the nicest dessert they knew how to. Alumni could vote for the dessert of their choice, and at the end of the evening winner Wes Fehr was able to pie loser Andrew Jenson. Saturday night featured the annual Alumni/student hockey game with the Alumni coming out on top this year 10-4. Following that was a well attended student talent show, which showcased a wide array of ability, both serious and less serious. The weekend was capped off with a Sunday morning worship service. A 2011 Alumni of the Year plaque was presented to Peter and Linda Enns. Wes Fehr gave a NBC update, while Jason Elford introduced himself in his new staff position in Alumni Relations. Charles Audette (staff/faculty 1995-2008) spoke to us using various bible passages (incl. Rom 15:5,6) as he made note of our theme "Many Hearts. One Desire" and that our own flesh is what often fights against us the strongest ("If our God is for us, then who can stand against us?"). Thank you for so many of you who came out. The strong momentum of recent Alumni Weekends is continuing. For this year's Alumni Project we raised about $9,000 during the weekend. An additional $4,500 has come in since then. What an INCREDIBLE blessing to NBC. I am blessed beyond measure even as I write this. Thank you. Thank you. Look for updates and pictures in the Alumni Projects pages NBC begins to take on these projects over the next couple months.
2010 Alumni Weekend Recap
This year’s theme was “To God be the Glory”. All throughout the weekend, held November 19-21, we were blessed and challenged with the thought of giving God the glory, especially during Praise n' Prayer time and the Sunday morning service. Friday night began with a change - an NBC team came away victorious in the indoor soccer tourney, a first since 2004. Over at the dining hall, many Alumni enjoyed another rendition of the yearly card making workshop, while others enjoyed games and visiting before mostly everyone finished their evenings by partaking in the favorite annual Alumni Weekend staple - ice cream floats!!! In response to your weekend evaluation forms from 2009, additional amounts of childcare were added throughout the weekend. This allowed many parents to enjoy a few events they may not have otherwise enjoyed in the same way. After breakfast we gathered in the chapel for a time of singing and sharing. We heard 3 powerful testimonies of God working in people's lives - 2 from students and 1 from an Alumnus. We gave God glory for these testimonies and responded to Him in song. Finishing the gathering with the song "You are my All in All", we sang the last chorus a cappella which was a beautiful ending. Following Praise n' Prayer, we held our yearly U R Us business meeting. We elected a new Alumni President this year, Ryan Jansen (along with two new Exec members), to the current Alumni Exec (you can check out the Alumni Exec page to see your new Exec). We also voted on two new Alumni Projects and were reminded of ways we as Alumni could get involved with the Alumni Association and make an impact at NBC. To close the meeting down this year, NBC finance director Kendall Dyck announced the winner of the last annual Presidential Challenge between NBC President Wes Fehr and NBC Alumni President Jason Elford. In a close battle Jason managed to squeeze by Wes to even up the 4 year series at 2 a piece. As a result, Wes was to receive a pie in the face from Jason. But in a surprise outburst of interest from those in attendance, an additional $60 was raised as a couple people in attendance wished to donate extra for the chance to pie Wes themselves. Jason agreed to let someone else pie Wes, and student Jenny Spofford came up to deliver the blow! (pics below!) Between the presidential challenge, silent auction, and offerings during the weekend, $11,165 came in towards this year's Alumni Projects. (check out the 'Projects' menu for more info) Saturday afternoon saw a number of activities including the silent auction and the ever-popular coffee house, and also included a family hike to the point, where there was a nice fire, hot chocolate, and smores awaiting any who would brave the cold. Volleyball was quite popular this year, but the real apex of the day was the second annual Obah night held in the gymnasium. This year we dressed up for a Hillbilly Christmas, and enjoyed a special hillbilly band, spam carving along with other 'hillbilly activities', and some great possum stew, biscuits, and puddin' for desert. A great time was held by all! The yearly Alumni/NBC hockey challenge followed supper, and like most recent years, the NBC team came away with the victory, defending what has become a recent dominance in this game. For those who wished to stay out a little later, there was a late-nite movie shown this year, Amazing Grace. (www.amazinggracemovie.com) Sunday morning we announced the Alumnus of the year for 2009, Ken and Lina Yadlowsky, and the Alumnus of the year for 2010, Ray and Esther Larson. We gave glory to God for how He has blessed the school through the servant attitudes of so many Alumni over the years. Guest speaker Tim Field (Alum '96) brought us a message with references in Isaiah and other parts of the Old Testament, as we were reminded of God's greatness and how we need to rely on Him. Over 200 people took a part in the weekend, including some whom haven't been back to NBC for years, joining many of us who are out nearly every fall. What a great weekend together and a great time of giving glory to God!
2009 Alumni Weekend Recap“Remember His goodness. Live as His blessing!” With this theme as a backdrop, alumni descended upon the NBC campus this past November 20-22. The weekend began as usual with the traditional Indoor soccer tourney, which saw an Alumni team emerge victorious this year. Apart from soccer and visiting in the gymnasium, many alumni enjoyed the card-making workshop in the student lounge along with board games, coffee, and visiting time. Of course, ice cream floats finished the evening. For those early risers, Saturday morning began with prayer gathering to start the day. The rest of the Saturday’s schedule was switched around a bit compared to recent years. Praise n’ Prayer time followed immediately after breakfast followed by the U R Us meeting. This allowed people with small kids to be a part of Praise n’ Prayer time which has traditionally been late Saturday evening. Childcare was provided throughout the morning. During the U R Us meeting, Amanda Anderson and Daniel Hertz were thanked for their service on the Alumni Exec, each having served 4 years. Jason Salmond and Tim Giesbrecht were elected as new Exec members. The Alumni Association also voted on which new projects they wanted to take on with the Alumni fund. Almost $10,000 was raised towards these. Additionally, over $3800 was raised by the three presidents towards this year’s walkathon. Jason won the presidential challenge this year, and was able to present NBC president Fehr with a pie to the face! With the use of powerpoint for the U R Us meeting this year, it was arguably the quickest meeting on record. |
