President’s Message – July 2022

I begin my term as HASP President with a great deal of gratitude and confidence in HASP. I’m grateful for our rich 34-year history and the leadership that has brought us to this point in time. I’m confident as we work together during this period of many transitions that we will grow stronger and will discern a vision for our future. Thank you for entrusting me with the privilege of serving as HASP President, and serving with you, this coming year.

Recently, I’ve been pondering what it means to be a peer-led organization. While Curriculum Committee Chair, my focus was on HASP members teaching other HASP members. That is a key and a very valuable component of being peer-led. Over the past year, 51 HASP members taught classes (about 1/3 of the presenters). I continue to encourage more HASP members to teach courses. It is a great learning opportunity for the presenter as well as for the students. Our lifelong learning members are eager and gracious participants in the classroom and treat all our teachers with respect. Teach once and you’re likely to return to teach again.

Teaching is not the only way we are peer-led. As our HASP community has grown, our organizational structure has grown. We have members serving on the Board of Directors, standing committees, subcommittees, and short-term task forces to facilitate our many avenues of learning and to lead our organization. During this past year, 71 HASP members served on these boards. In addition, many volunteered at the front desk and greeted visitors, cared for our library, provided technical support, and pitched in in many other ways. Part of our peer-led commitment is serving in the Hope and Holland communities. Last year, 60 HASP members volunteered in Hope College classrooms.

Tallying the numbers above, over 200 HASP members have been directly involved during this past year in leading HASP. We are truly a peer-led community of lifelong learners. These numbers do not include the other side of the equation, the many members who attended classes, participated in monthly programs, and enjoyed special events.

As you renew your membership for the coming year, you are asked to identify specific areas of interest in which you might be willing to serve HASP. Please give this some thought. This information will help us get you involved in areas of your interest. Many leadership roles expire each year, and we want to connect interests to responsibilities as we continue to be peer-led into our coming future.

During this new HASP year, let us continue to engage in the full breadth our HASP learning opportunities, to explore and discuss important topics with curiosity and respect, to serve our Holland and Hope communities with grace, to participate fully in peer-led leadership, and through these avenues develop new friendships as we continue to nurture existing relationships.

Monthly Programs

July Program

Tuesday, July 5, 2022 | 9:30–10:45 a.m. (doors open at 9 a.m.)
Jack H. Miller Center for Musical Arts, 221 Columbia Ave, Holland, MI, 49423 (in-person)
HASP@Hope YouTube Page (virtual)

“Election Administration in the Post-2020 Era: Building Trust and Securing Our Infrastructure for the Future” presented by Justin Roebuck, Ottawa County Clerk and Register of Deeds

By nearly every standard, the 2020 Presidential Election was one of the most transparent and secure in our history. Yet the facts that support this statement have been largely ignored due to a post-2020 narrative that has convinced millions of Americans of a “rigged system.” The pressure and added scrutiny caused by widespread distrust has also exposed an elections infrastructure that is in serious need of reinforcement. What does this mean for the future of our democratic process? For democracy to thrive in coming generations, we need investment now to develop public trust and ensure a better infrastructure. Though the claims of a rigged election have been proven inaccurate, there are still many ways that election officials can and must create a more transparent and secure system. However, we cannot do it alone. We need resources from federal, state, and local governments; and we need community leaders to understand the facts and speak the truth. Strengthening our elections will take serious investment from all of us. Are we prepared to do what it takes?

As County Clerk and Register of Deeds, Justin Roebuck serves as the chief election officer for Ottawa County’s 220,000 voters. Justin’s passion is to build trust with honesty and transparency in the election process. His goal is to change the way election officials interact with voters by modeling proactive, consistent, and fact-based communication. In 2021, he was honored by his colleagues as Michigan’s “County Clerk of the Year.” Justin currently serves on the Standards Board of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), and as a member of the Bi-Partisan Policy Center’s Elections Task Force. He is the Chair of the Michigan Council of Election Officials, and Co-Chair of the Legislative Committee of the Michigan Association of County Clerks. He was appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to the Michigan Judicial Council, and has been appointed by Governors Snyder and Whitmer to the Michigan Electronic Recording Commission, where he is currently serving as Chair.

Upcoming Monthly Programs

  • Tuesday, August 2, 2022 — “Exploring Ottawa County Parks” presented by Jason D. Shamblin, Ottawa County Parks and Recreation Commission Director
  • Tuesday, September 6, 2022 — “Reimagining America’s Schools” presented by Ron Bogle, President & CEO, National Design Alliance

Membership Update

Membership renewal opened Wednesday, June 15, 2022. Hopefully, you are aware that you can renew your 2022–2023 HASP membership online. The deadline for renewal is July 25, 2022. HASP dues are $125.00 per member for the next fiscal year (July 1, 2022–June 30, 2023), and we hope that you will continue your membership! If, for some reason, you are unable to do so, we ask that you still fill out the online form, so our records are accurate. The renewal process is fairly simple.

Please visit https://hopecollegedae.regfox.com/2022-2023-hasp-membership, and select “Membership Renewal” or “Cancel Membership.” If you would like assistance, please contact the HASP office at hasp@hope.edu or 616.395.7919.

Looking to get involved? Please contact Doug Walvoord (dougwalvoord@gmail.com, 616.405.2366) if you are interested in welcoming new members by serving as a mentor.

Please join me in welcoming our newest HASP members!

Mary Berends
Profession: LPN
Education: College degree, Licensed Practical Nurse
Hobbies: Traveling, reading, school volunteer
Mentor: Sandy Buller

Sylvia Boyd
Profession: Accounting Professor, Hope College
Education: Northern Illinois University, Grand Valley State University
Hobbies: Biking, hiking, reading, travel, spending time with family
Mentor: Lynne Hendrix

Dennis Icabone
Profession: Dentist
Education: Creighton University, University of Minnesota
Hobbies: Environmental concerns, lobby volunteer, rowing
Mentor: John and Carol Crawford

Kathy Lacey
Profession: Teacher / Professor
Education: Ball State University
Hobbies: Learning, social development, reading, music and creative arts
Mentor: Ellie Vance

Laurie Larsen
Profession: Chemist, Consumers Energy Regional Manager, Community Affairs Manager
Education: BS in Biology and Chemistry, Masters in Business and Organizational Designs
Hobbies: Hiking, gardening, travel
Mentor: Ed Schierbeek

Jane MacPherson
Profession: Physician
Education: Michigan State University, Lyman Briggs College
Hobbies: Travel, golf, science
Mentor: Jerrie Gibbs

Timothy Pennings
Profession: Professor, Department Chair
Education: University of North Dakota, Iowa State University
Hobbies: Choral singing, guitar, pickleball, kayaking, biking, weight lifting, reading
Mentor: Paul Heusinkveld

Mary VanderKooy
Profession: Librarian
Education: Calvin College, Kent State University
Hobbies: Reading, quilting
Mentor: Robin Williams-Voigt

Mary Vanke
Profession: Nurse, Director of Nursing, Care Management
Education: Mercy School of Nursing
Hobbies: Sketching, biking, snow shoeing, ice skating, hiking, student of healing touch
Mentor: Kathy Torrey

Gloria Veltman
Profession: Emergency Services, Law Enforcement, Book Seller
Education: Lake Michigan College, Davenport College
Hobbies: Reading, poetry writing, gardening, knitting, crocheting, photography
Mentor: Sue Couch

Susan Wolf
Profession: Social Work
Education: Ball State University, University of Illinois, Chicago
Hobbies: Baking, cooking, entertaining, snow shoeing, biking, reading
Mentor: Sharon Curtin

Curriculum Update

This portion of the newsletter is the first official duty I am performing as your new Curriculum Committee chairperson. As such, I would like to take this brief paragraph to thank the HASP Board of Directors for approving my appointment to this important position. I am truly honored. I would also like to thank Sharon Arendshorst, who has taken great pains to bring me up to speed and who has, over the last several years, streamlined and formalized the curriculum process, making it much easier for me, or anyone, to take on this role. Finally, many thanks to Carol Crawford who encouraged me to work on curriculum in the first place, and Larry Lynn, Chair of the Social Sciences Curriculum Subcommittee, whose leadership has reinforced the process for me and kept it moving along efficiently.

HASP summer classes for 2022 are underway! I do hope that you have had a chance to examine our summer catalog as it offers a plethora of interesting courses covering topics as diverse as beekeeping, automatic transmissions, and the Ox-Bow School of Art. As in the past, courses are being offered in a variety of modalities; 26 of 31 courses have in-person components while 20 of them can be attended remotely. For those of you who have not enrolled, there is still time to register for July and August courses.

Although summer may seem like a time to relax, behind the scenes our subcommittees are busily working on Fall 2022 courses. There will likely be a lineup of over 100 sessions. Stay tuned!

One issue our president and my predecessor, Sharon Arendshorst, has stressed in the past is course attendance. I will continue to stress this myself and will be saying more about it in the future. For now, please show up for classes in which you have enrolled. This is not only good for you and your mind, but it makes those classes more lively and interesting, honors the efforts of the coordinator and presenter, and, in very subtle ways, ensures the vitality of the entire HASP organization. All constituents, students, coordinators, and presenters are positively impacted by your attendance. And if you can’t attend, please notify the HASP office (hasp@hope.edu) to allow wait-listed members the opportunity to attend.

2022–2023 Curriculum Subcommittee Leadership

HASP Small Interest Groups (SIGs)

Small Interest Groups (SIGs) are member-initiated and group-directed. In a large organization such as HASP, they provide opportunities for our members to meet each other to learn, explore, and experience activities of a common interest. Contact the SIG leaders below for more information or to join.

Service Update

Thank you all for your service — through HASP and through the quiet ways you offer support and care to others. Looking for a new opportunity to get involved? Join our HASP Office volunteer team!

Front Desk Volunteers work 2-hour shifts as office greeters and are asked to support the Professional Staff with administrative work, program preparation, and phone reception. Options are now available through the end of the summer term. Contact Ian MacNeil (macneil@hope.edu) to sign up.

Course Technicians help support our virtual and hybrid course offerings. They are responsible for hosting Zoom meetings, monitoring the presenter camera and screen, and recording sessions for later uploading to our YouTube channel. Course technicians receive free admission to the sessions they support. We guarantee, the system is much easier than you may think! Contact Ian MacNeil (macneil@hope.edu) to start the training process and support the HASP Virtual Classroom.

Communications Update

The Communications Committee is making plans for the upcoming year and is setting a direction to ensure that members receive information and updates in a timely and accurate way. After a two-year hiatus with no one leading this committee, there exists an opportunity to start fresh and rethink the best ways to communicate with our members. Look for more information on these plans in future monthly newsletters. The 2022 HASP Review was just released, and we hope you find it enjoyable reading and seeing what some of our members have written, drawn, photographed, and painted. You are invited to make your own contribution in next year’s edition. With over 700 members, wouldn’t it be nice to get just one story or piece of artwork from each member? That would make the Review voluminous! Please share your contributions with the HASP Office for inclusion in next year’s publication.

Remember to practice your ABCs: Be Accurate, Bold, and Concise when communicating!

Special Events

Upcoming Special Events

  • Drink Up! Fenn Valley Vineyard – Fennville, Michigan
    Thursday, August 11
    2–8:45 p.m. | $40.00

    Wine tasting with a hint of live music! Begin the afternoon with a wine tasting that includes a branded glass to keep, wine samples, and a $ 10 coupon toward the purchase of your favorite bottle. Then, relax and enjoy a boxed meal and/or purchase snacks while taking in live, outdoor music courtesy of Mike Struwin and St. Joe Jack. Be sure to bring a comfortable lawn chair or blanket. An optional outdoor wagon tour of the vineyard may be available for an additional fee.
  • Take Me Out to the Tigers Ball Game! Comerica Park – Detroit, Michigan
    Thursday, September 1
    7:30 a.m.–9:30 p.m. | $85.00

    Buy some peanuts and Cracker Jacks as the Tigers take on the Seattle Mariners in a matinee matchup at Comerica Park! The day trip includes transportation via a Hope College climate-controlled bus with restroom, and service of coffee and sweet rolls on the way. Seats requested are lower box pending ticket confirmation. Lunch and dinner are not included in the special event price, but we will stop for dinner at the Twelve Oaks Mall Food Court in Novi, Michigan, after the game.

Director’s Message

It is hard to believe July 1 already marks my one-month anniversary with HASP. The days and weeks have flown by, but that just means we are having fun!

Here are some highlights from the last month:

  • Golfing alongside Sharon Arendshorst, Brad Bright, and Scott Travis in the Bob DeYoung Hope Classic Golf Outing
  • Formally introducing myself at the Annual Business Meeting
  • Launching the Summer 2022 term featuring a variety of courses available in-person, virtually, in a hybrid format, and offsite
  • Attending the June 2022 Board of Directors meeting to celebrate our retiring Board members and welcome our newly elected leadership
  • Hosting the inaugural HASPY Hour event
  • Meeting and working with our dedicated team of front desk volunteers
  • Witnessing the true wonder of a Fred Johnson class

I cannot describe this past month as anything other than a blessing. I wake up every morning excited and enthusiastic for another day at the HASP Office because I am starting to witness the true joy each of you bring to this program. I look forward to more fun together as we become partners in learning.

Reads and Screens

My hobbies include reading and watching movies, so I plan to use the monthly newsletter to share what content I am currently consuming in the hope that the next time you see me, you can share your own recent “Reads and Screens.”

  • Current Read: How High We Go In the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu (2022)
  • Current Screen: Parallel Mothers directed by Pedro Almodóvar (2021) Available at your local library.

Other Items

Goodbye and Thank You to Trisha Cabana

After joining us in March 2022 as Office and Project Manager, Trisha Cabana officially departed HASP on June 29. In her time at HASP, Trisha provided exceptional administrative support and continuity through a challenging period of staff transition, membership renewal, and Summer 2022 course enrollment. She was an upbeat presence in the HASP Office, and we are grateful for her diligent work assisting our Special Events and Membership Committees. Trisha loved working with all of you and departed with our deepest gratitude and best wishes for her next adventure!