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Board Appoints New Director of Development Perspective Newsletter of the Association for the Advancement of Christian Sch$rship Volume 16, No. 3 — May/June, 1982 0’’ONTO, Board appoints new Director of Development Fifteen long months of searching have finally brought the AACS a new Director of Development! We are all happy and proud to introduce to you Aileen Van Ginkel (formerly Van Beilen), who will begin her work with us on July 1. Perspective editor Rosanne Lopers Sweetman interviewed her on her ambitions and perceptions about the job as well as a bit about her personal history. RLS: Aileen (pronounced ay-lean), one of the best ways for our readers to get to know you is to find out what kinds of things you’ve done and are doing now. How do you see yourself having been prepared for this job through some of the experiences of the past years? AVG: One thing is that during my last year as a student at Calvin College, 1977—78, I was a stu dent fellow on the Calvin Center for Christian Scholarship (CCCS). That was the first year the CCCS was in operation. The topic we—-- five professors and two students—-- concentrated on was Christian stewardship and natural resourc es. The first semester I re searched Canadian views of nature as portrayed in Canadian litera ture. Although I had taken a Aileen Van Ginkel, new AACS’ lot of literature courses, I was Di.-rector of DeveLopment actually a history major; but I enjoyed the research and present ing it later to communities in the Calvin College constituency. RLS: I understand you were also engaged in hunger awareness study at that time. AVG: Yes, I wrote a booklet called Hunger Awareness Dinners which was published by Herald Press (Scottdale, Pennsylvania, 1979). It was meant at first to be distributed only to deacons in the denomination in their preparations for “World Hunger Sunday,” but it grew. World hunger was one theme the Center dealt with and which we all learned more about during that year. This booklet——with graphic illustrations, recipes and outlines—-was to help make issues real to the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) and the Christian community in general. RLS: The book Earthkeeping: Christian Stewardship of Natural Resources was the written result of the Center’s work that year, wasn’t it? AVG: Yes, and the following year I spent a lot of time editing the manu script for that book. I worked as a research assistant for Dr. Peter De Vos, Dean of the Faculty, and did some writing, editing and other tasks related to book publication. The book that came out of the 1978 Conference of Institutions for Christian Higher Education, Justice in the International Economic Order, was another one I helped to get ready for printing. RLS: You worked in that capacity until September of 1979, right? What did you do after that? AVG: I became Admissions Counselor for Calvin in Canada. I moved across the hail and was then working with Peter Harkema instead of Peter De Vos, and with Peter Vande Guchte who was the director of that depart ment. RLS: Where was your base of operations? AVG: A little cubbyhole of an office in Toronto, and out of that job I C’ gained a lot of experience which will help me in this one. I travelled from coast to coast, promoting a certain cause, namely, Chris tian higher education, and talked with people .in congregational meetings, young people’s societies, high schools, and parents’meetings. This really helped me to get to know the CRC, to see the similarities across the country and’to see how each community was different, how each had its own character. I guess it gave me a greater appreciation for my church and a greater awareness of Christian education. RLS: What kinds of things do you look forward to in your capacity as Director of Development for AACS? AVG: Meeting people, on an informal as well as a formal basis. And trying to get the Christian community to understand the need for Christian education at all levels. I also look forward to meeting people from outside the Perspective newsletter is published bi Reformed community. I think the Reformed per monthly by the Association for the spective can be of value to Christian groups Advancement of Christian Scholarship, 229 College Street, Toronto, Ontario, that are trying seriously to make their beliefs Canada MST I R4. more relevant to society rather than keeping Authorized Second Class Postage paid, them within their own church walls and tradi to the USA and Territories, mailed from tional patterns. the AACS Foundation, 3201 Burton Street SE., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49506. All other copies mailed under RLS: How do you think this kind of thing can authorized Second Class privileges from be done? Toronto, Ontario. Send all address C changes and other inquiries directly to AACS, 229 College Street, Toronto, AVG: One idea is to hold one—day workshops on Ontario M5T 1R4. a specific topic, such as family, 9 stewardship, things close to the con cerns of people themselves. They would be informal events, led by local people as much as possible and by those involved in the AACS/ICS, and the emphasis would be on service. Hopefully this will put out a link between theoretical thought on a sophisticated level and a practi cal way of living. This might appeal to long—time AACS supporters and to new contacts both inside and outside of the Reformed community. RLS: Do you have any apprehensions about the work you will be doing? AVG: Well, I’m worried about how to approach people and ask them for money when we’re in an economic reces sion, but I feel confident enough about the worth of the cause to ask nonethe less. “Our task is to make those ideas RLS: Your work will involve a good deal which have proven to be fruitful of writing. How does that suit ones continually relevant.” you? AVG: Since I like writing, I’m looking forward to that. Working on the CCCS project and now writing as a reporter for Calvinist Contact has given me lots of experience. And I like to write letters. Hopefully I ‘flan continue to write for Calvinist Contact because the kinds of articles ‘ I like to write cover events people in the community are involved in, like the CRTC hearings on Christian broadcasting, Bob Goudzwaard’s talks on nuclear arms, and the things organizations linked to the AACS are involved in, like native rights or El Salvador. This lets other people know what Christians who know that the Lord claims all of life are doing. RLS: For the past two years you have been enrolled at the University of Toronto in graduate studies in Canadian history. You grew up in a Dutch immigrant community, attended Christian schools set up by this community and now you are doing a Master’s thesis on it. Why did you choose this topic? AVG: There are many reasons, but one is that I wanted to help carry on the ideas and practical involvements of the Dutch Reformed community, for example, in setting up Christian schools, the Christian Labour Associa tion, the AACS, etc. I’m a part of the second generation of this community but I want to do what. I can with others to maintain that and to make it more relevant to a changing society. Through my thesis work I can come to understand how the Christian Reformed community attempted to live in the midst of Canadian society and adapt to it in the 1950s. I think this can help us to understand the way we have organized CRC life in Canada, why it is the way it is, and how it might have to be changed due to the fact that we live in a Canadian society of the ‘80s, where there are different issues, a different mentality, a different economic situation. Just as -Canada has changed, so have we. We’re nore prosperous, established; we’ve iuilt a name for ourselves outside of our community. The reasons we first ( established Christian schools, for example, have changed. However, the ideas behind them should be maintained, that is, that education is not a 3 state matter but a matter for the community to work out. Also that Christian education is more than Bible reading plus the regular secular school curriculum but that each topic is taught from a Christian per spective. I’m constantly reminded in my thesis work of the things we as a community ( believed in in coming to Canada and how our ideas have changed along with us. Our task is to make those ideas which have proven to be fruitful ones continually relevant. RLS: Can you briefly describe what your thesis is exactly? AVG: Tentatively the title is “The Christian Reformed Church and the integration of Dutch immigrants to Canada, 1947—1960.” It is on the leadership in the CRC in the ‘50s, mostly the clerical leadership. The focus is on the different ideas and models regarding adaptation to Canadian culture, those promoted by the home missionaries from the Ameri can churches who originally set up most of the Canadian congregations, and those of the Dutch ministers who came from 1952 on to take congrega tions newly formed in Canada. RLS: How do you get most of your information? Do you read Dutch? AVG: Well, let’s say I have a fluent capacity for reading and understand ing Dutch but I’m weak on speaking it. A lot of my information comes from interviewing ministers who were around in the ‘50s and from reading 3 Church and Nation, De Wachter, and some back issues of Calvinist Contact issues of The Banner.
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