Professional Staff Open Positions

Following approval from the Board of Directors granted on June 21, I am working with Scott Travis, Executive Director of Alumni Engagement at Hope College, and the Executive Committee to review our existing professional staffing needs, revise open job postings, and explore budgetary opportunities.

We remain committed to our mission of providing peer-led, lifelong learning in retirement. Your patience is appreciated as Professional Staff resources will be limited in the coming weeks as we conduct an official candidate search. Please stay tuned to HASP Constant Contact communications for more detailed information.

If you or someone you know may be interested in joining the HASP Professional Staff in a part-time capacity, please direct them to hope.edu/jobs for more information, or connect them with me via email at macneil@hope.edu.

As we embark on another period of transition for HASP, I ask that we remember the words of President John Adams, so appropriately shared by Scott Travis at our Annual Business Meeting last month: “Every problem is an opportunity in disguise.” I am so proud to serve you as HASP Director, and I promise to continue my daily excitement and enthusiasm for the future of our program remembering that we are led by a strong, dedicated, and skilled Board of Directors. I still look forward to meeting all of you in the coming weeks and months. I encourage you to contact me via email, phone, or in-person with any questions, or just to share your current “Reads and Screens.”

Thank You HASP!

Although this may be my last message as your director, it is certainly not the first time I’ve told you that my favorite author is and has always been Frederick Buechner. I have a wonderful collection of his books, which I consider one of my greatest earthly treasures. I look for vintage copies in used-book stores, voraciously read and re-read many of my favorite excerpts, and often have sticky notes all over my personal space—desk, bathroom mirror, kitchen fridge, nightstand, steering wheel, car visor, etc.—with some of my favorite quotes. I am a person who needs reminders to do this or that, go here or there, but perhaps most of all, to just slow down and breathe, be grateful, pray, pay attention, look, notice, and breathe some more.

Buechner’s writing helps me do that. I find his words both sacred and true for pretty much all the areas of my life I consider to be most important: faith, family, meaningful relationships, and meaningful work.

“Our stories are all stories of searching. We search for a good self to be and for good work to do.” —Frederick. Buechner

Members of HASP, thank you for giving me “good work to do”. I have learned so much from you.

“If so much as a single one of you were missing, there would be an empty place at the great feast of life that nobody else in all creation could fill.” —Frederick Buechner

I am and have been blessed beyond reason by the relationships HASP has given me. Some of the nearest and dearest people in my life are among you. Some have left us for their eternal home but their wisdom, kindness, and influence in my life is held very dear and not forgotten. Thank you for being a place at my “great feast of life”.

“Go where your best prayers take you.” —Frederick Buechner

My work at HASP has been an answer to one of my “best prayers” in ways I didn’t even fully realize until now. I came to HASP not long after the loss of my mom, which had turned my world and previous career aspirations upside down. Our daughters were just turning two, five, and eight when I started. I knew I still wanted to do some work outside the home, but needed it to be close, flexible, and allow my family to be my priority. The organization and job grew through the years in size, scope, and complexity, just as my daughters did—pretty simultaneously in fact!  In some ways we grew up at HASP together—in years, knowledge, experience, and maturity. I’m sure some of you remember those little girls running around the office in those early years with wide eyes at the array of HASP cookies, and the thrill of talking into a microphone or watching a movie on the big classroom screen when classes were over and mom was working late. “Best prayers” indeed—thank you for being part of the journey.

I pray you will continue to be blessed with energy, insight, and a passion for giving, learning, and growing in every season of life. Thank you again for the opportunity to serve such a wonderful organization.

Kim Mendels, HASP Director, 2007-2022

HASP Director Search Update

HASP Members:

The search process for the HASP Director position is continuing and we want to provide you with an update and an opportunity to share your feedback.

We have a quality pool of 30 candidates who applied for the position by the application deadline on April 6. After reviewing all materials, the search committee (expanded with more HASP members) met on April 7 and identified 10 qualified candidates that will have the option to move forward to the first round of interviews. These should take place between April 19-27. We anticipate that 3 candidates will then be selected for second-round interviews before a final candidate is recommended to the HASP Board of Directors in May.

Before we begin the interview process, we would like to collect and use your feedback regarding what you see as the most important qualifications and qualities for the HASP Director position. Please complete this form by April 15.

We know how important this decision is to our members and how sought after this position is for many qualified candidates. We are happy to answer questions about this process. However, the candidates being considered will be kept confidential.

Thank you for your input and support as we continue this important work.

HASP Director Search Committee

Barbara Stegink, President
bstegink39@gmail.com

Sharon Arendshorst, President-Elect
snarendshorst@gmail.com

Brad Bright, Vice President
bradfordlbright@gmail.com

John Kobs, Vice President-Elect
jhkobs3@yahoo.com

Carol Crawford, Member at Large
Ckacz53@gmail.com

Scott Travis, Supervisor & Hiring Manager
travis@hope.edu

Derek Emerson, Equity Advisor
emerson@hope.edu

Next New Member Orientation!

NEW MEMBER ORIENTATION – Please mark your calendars!
It’s time for an IN-PERSON New Member Orientation! We will host one on Tuesday, May 3, 11:00 a.m. – Noon in the HASP classroom, immediately following the monthly meeting. If you have joined HASP during the pandemic we encourage you to join us! This informal gathering is a great time to meet other new members and HASP board members, enjoy light refreshments and learn more details about all the opportunities available through HASP membership.
After the May monthly meeting in the Jack Miller we will head on over to the HASP office and classroom in the Anderson Werkman building, suite 150, immediately after. For those unsure of our location, there will be a member of the Membership Committee in the Jack Miller lobby after the monthly meeting to escort you. If
you are coming to orientation, but not the monthly program – we will see you at the HASP office! Please RSVP to the link we will send out later in April so we know how many to plan for!

Upcoming Monthly Programs

UPCOMING MONTHLY PROGRAMS:
May 3, 2022 – Lenny Banovez, Artistic Director HSRT – “50th Anniversary HSRT”
June 14, 2022 – NOTE DATE (Not the first Tuesday!) HASP Annual Business Meeting and Officer Elections (Must be a current HASP member to attend)
ATTEND VIA LIVE STREAM:
● youtube.com/HASPHope (click here or enter into browser)
ATTEND IN PERSON:
● JACK MILLER Center for Musical Arts, 221 Columbia Ave, Hope College
● Doors open at 9am and masks are optional at this time
● Shuttle available from Hope College Lot 63: https://maps.hope.edu
Shuttle/Parking:
Parking is available in any fac/staff lot and/or a shuttle service is provided from lot 63 off of E 11th Street on the southeast side of DeVos Fieldhouse, beginning at 8:45 a.m. – Highly Recommended!

Do you have an idea for a HASP course?

Contact any of the following to get involved in the curriculum process or to submit new course proposals:
Curriculum Chair: Sharon Arendshorst, snarendshorst@gmail.com, 616.335.3132
Fine Arts: Sarah Briggs, sarahbriggs969@gmail.com, 517.449.5818
Humanities: Amy Henrickson, amy.henrickson@gmail.com, 616.450.8820
Science, Medicine, & Technology: Susan Couch, couch.sm@gmail.com 616.510.0970
Social Sciences: Larry Lynn, oldrun09@gmail.com, 616.617.8944