Letters to the Editor

VALUING INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES

How nice to see so much of the winter magazine devoted to international students and highlighting the school’s exceptional devotion to easing the transitions faced by these young people.

Congratulations to Karen Edwards on a good article ("Complicating the Journey"). She brought up some points many people never think about when determining new procedures. This unfortunate time has led to many changes worldwide.

My experience of living outside the United States while our country was at war gave me the opportunity to realize the importance of diplomacy and to have my faith strengthened by being treated so honestly for myself, regardless of politics. I believe this notion has begun at a small college in the heart of Ohio. Let’s hope it spreads outward like a water drop in a pool.

Pat Fisher

Morristown, New Jersey

Like Ms. Rice ’33 (Letters, Spring 2004), I thoroughly devour Wooster each time an issue arrives in my mailbox. Unlike Ms. Rice, I love to see and hear about the current goings-on at the College – it keeps me young.

I am disheartened, though, by the caustic tone of Jim Abbott’s letter. While Mr. Abbott ’91 is allowed his point of view (our heritage from British parliamentary procedure), I am disturbed by his sour approach. No one at Wooster, amongst all my fine professors and Dr. Lowry, taught us to close our minds and become polarized.

Instead, we were encouraged to stretch our intellectual capacities. Mr. Abbott’s myopic analysis strikes me as awry in his belief that increased "border protection" can save us from another terrorist attack. Terrorists know that they can not sneak in disguised as Wooster students. The terrorists can simply become more enterprising – perhaps by hiring American thugs or criminals to carry out their dirty work, or by lobbing a bio-chemical bomb at the U.S. from, say, Cuba.

Insularity is simply not the answer to our foreign policy problems. Poet John Donne says, "No man is an island, entire of itself…. never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee."

In his book, The Choice: Global Domination or Global Leadership? (Basic Books, 2004), Zbigniew Brzezinski suggests a theory, unsettling to Christian ethics, that the only way to deal with terrorists whose minds have been permanently warped by their own rhetoric is to "eliminate" them.

But Brzezinski offers hope for how to deal with the upcoming generation of young, disaffected Muslims. We can create a workable strategy, but not by exiling dissenters, as Mr. Abbott wants to do, to Canada. Perhaps we can recall that "America – love it or leave it" was a theme shouted at dissidents during the Vietnam War, which we now know was wrong.

I am concerned about what makes Mr. Abbott so unhappy, so closed to the idea that we are all one. He is too young to be cynical and frightened. Further, he is a graduate of a prestigious liberal arts institution. Wooster gave us far better than alienation. Every time I think of Dr. Lowry’s insights or Dr. Lean’s reading of A Christmas Carol ("God bless us everyone"), I am grateful for the flowering I experienced in the castle of knowledge.

Janice Kazmaier Kelly ’61

Kent, Ohio

As a former student whose college experience was greatly enhanced by enjoying classes, activities, and friendships with several classmates in the Wooster international community, I hope that the current challenges troubling international students will pass quickly. Reading "Complicating the Journey," I fear that international students and Americans alike are losing priceless opportunities to promote greater cultural understanding due to government restrictions and requirements.

Before attending Wooster, places like Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Somalia had two meanings for me... I knew they were all far away, and that each was the correct answer for some question I had on a seventh-grade geography map test. However, my Wooster experience made these places and many others real to me through the friends with whom I shared four years. How fortunate that my world view was not nurtured in college simply by people from the far corners of Ohio!

Steve Wheeler ‘96

Westlake, Ohio

HOST FAMILIES MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Thank you for "Like Family," the piece on host families (Winter 2004). We finally have a celebration of the people who can and do truly make a difference in the lives of so many international students like myself! I was so lucky to have Nancy, Chuck, Becca, Brian, and Jane Turner as my host family through Wooster. I’m happy to report that we are still in close touch today!

Lisa Vaz ’02

Bombay, India

LOSS OF TEACHER, FRIEND

It was very sad to learn of Dr. Reinheimer’s death (Obituaries, Spring 2004). JDR was a terrific Independent Study adviser as we labored to unravel some of the complexities of the Gringnard Reaction. More importantly, he was an exceptional mentor and friend. Long treks to his office in the upper reaches of Severance Hall were rewarded with memorable conversations ranging from the merits or demerits of swing balances to UCLA basketball.

In the spring of 1951, in concert with two of my roommates, I decided that it was my duty to join the armed forces in the Korean conflict. JDR learned of this plan and marched over to the units – located between Kenarden and Douglas Halls – to advise us of our misconceptions. He reviewed his experience in the U.S. Navy in World War II and emphasized the importance of education in effectively serving one’s country. (JDR was the only faculty member, by the way, to venture to the units during our nine-month sojourn there.)

As my instructor in quantitative analysis, JDR transformed a deadly boring subject into an interesting experience replete with pearls of wisdom encased in his well-known "nutshell."

JDR was my prime source of letters of recommendation for medical school. My return visits to the College were highlighted by lunch with him. There I would learn much that failed to make it into Wooster – the strengths and weaknesses of the chemistry department, College administrators, the basketball and track teams, the medical community in Wooster, etc. I treasured those visits with JDR. Even in retirement, he was my conduit to the campus. Future visits will be considerably less rewarding.

Robert E. Anderson ’53

Carbondale, Colorado

KAUKE CHALLENGES

The article about Kauke Hall ("If These Walls Could Talk," Spring 2004) and its mention of pranks reminded me of my truly fondest memories of Wooster. My "band," Missing Dog Head, performed there late at night to crowds of inebriated fellow students. We kept Campus Security on its toes, but Kauke’s central location and its abundant electrical outlets practically screamed that we use it this way.

Mark Matienzo ’01

Ann Arbor, Michigan

FINE LEARNING PROGRAM

The redesign (Spring 2004) brings new life into what had gotten routine. I was impressed by "Empowering Learners," an outstanding discussion of still misunderstood issues. How fine that Wooster has such a program. How well the story is told! I will be using it as I work with candidates for ministry in the Presbyterian Church (USA) who have not had such caring support, as well as with the Committees on Preparation for Ministry, to inform them about the issues.

Bill Chapman ’55

Hillsdale, New Jersey

DID YOU MOVE HOUSE?

I was born (literally) in what is now Lilly House. I was pleased to see the picture of the renovation (Oak Grove, Winter 2004). My parents, Donald E. and Martha Hamilton Dickason, ’21s, lived in the house from about 1929 to 1942. Many Dickason family members attended Wooster. But I thought the address was 1453 Beall. Did the numbers change?

Donald G. Dickason

Princeton, New Jersey

Our error. Your former home stands at 1452 Beall. Joyce Howard, Lilly Project assistant, notes that your grandparents owned the house across the street, 1473 Beall. The College restored both homes. Howard invites you – and all alumni – to tour the houses if you’re in town. – Ed.