Brad Leitch (nee Langendoen, CMU ’13) is an award-winning filmmaker and peacebuilder who approaches difficult topics with empathy, compassion, deep listening, and boundless energy. He is the executive producer and founder of Rebel Sky Media, a film and video production company in Winnipeg, MB. His directorial work has explored topics of peace and justice in Canada, Iraqi-Kurdistan, Israel, Palestine, and the United Kingdom. His work is currently featured in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, and in a permanent exhibit at the Pier 21 Museum of Immigration in Halifax, NS. Leitch and his wife, Adrienne, attend Hope Mennonite Church.
The CMU Distinguished Alumni Awards celebrate alumni who, through their lives, embody CMU’s values and mission of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society. The awards are presented to alumni from CMU and its predecessor colleges: Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) and Mennonite Brethren Bible College (MBBC)/Concord College.
Ron Toews (MBBC ’84) is the Director of Leadership Development for the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. His focus is serving pastors and churches by making tools available to leaders that are based upon their needs and ministry contexts. Toews holds a DMin from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL. From 1987 to 2002, he and his wife, Dianne, pastored two churches. Afterward, he became Assistant Professor of Leadership Studies at the MBBS-ACTS seminary in Langley, B.C. After a short stint as interim principal at ACTS, he transitioned to his current role. Toews and his wife live near Abbotsford, B.C. and attend The Life Centre. They have nine grandchildren.
The CMU Distinguished Alumni Awards celebrate alumni who, through their lives, embody CMU’s values and mission of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society. The awards are presented to alumni from CMU and its predecessor colleges: Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) and Mennonite Brethren Bible College (MBBC)/Concord College.
Adrienne Wiebe (MBBC 1976-78) has spent the last 30 years working in international development. Her career includes earning a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Alberta, as well as working in Ecuador, Guatemala, and Mexico. Wiebe has also worked with a variety of organizations in Edmonton that help refugees and Indigenous communities. She currently works for Oxfam Canada, doing evaluation and learning related to the organization’s global programs and campaigns on ending violence against women and girls around the world. Wiebe and her husband, Arturo Avila, attend Lendrum Mennonite Brethren Church in Edmonton. They have two adult children.
The CMU Distinguished Alumni Awards celebrate alumni who, through their lives, embody CMU’s values and mission of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society. The awards are presented to alumni from CMU and its predecessor colleges: Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) and Mennonite Brethren Bible College (MBBC)/Concord College.
Peter Guenther (CMBC ’69) worked for 39 years in corrections, serving as the head of numerous correctional institutions including director of the Saskatoon Correctional Centre, warden of the Saskatchewan Penitentiary, and executive director of the Regional Psychiatric Centre in Saskatoon. He is known as a compassionate, principled, and respected leader who worked to reduce harm, violence, and recidivism. Guenther’s volunteer work includes service on the board of Saskatoon Community Mediation and the advisory committee for Circles of Support and Accountability. He and his wife, Marilyn, live in Saskatoon and attend Nutana Park Mennonite Church. They have three adult sons.
The CMU Distinguished Alumni Awards celebrate alumni who, through their lives, embody CMU’s values and mission of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society. The awards are presented to alumni from CMU and its predecessor colleges: Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) and Mennonite Brethren Bible College (MBBC)/Concord College.
The Manitoba Screening of ‘Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies’ with Director Brad Leitch took place on September 23, 2016 and was followed by audience conversation with film participants.
Panelists:
Barb and Wilmer Froese of Laird, SK
Ray Funk of Prince Albert, SK
Chief George Kingfisher, hereditary chief of the Young Chippewayan First Nation
Brad Leitch
Indigenous rights and title to the land remain a taboo topic for many across Canada, but in the small town of Laird, SK, an old injustice is providing new opportunities for dialogue, friendship and a fierce determination to right the wrongs of the past. In 2006, 130 years after the signing of Treaty 6, Mennonites, Lutherans, and the Young Chippewayan First Nation gathered on the sacred hill of Stoney Knoll / OpwashemoeChakatinaw located in Laird where, with goodwill and shared goals, they signed a memorandum of understanding. ‘Reserve 107’ captures the spirit of these renewed relationships.
At the closing ceremony of Vancouver’s DOXA Documentary Film Festival the jury stated “’Reserve 107′ spoke exceptionally well to our generation. We have grown up learning about indigenous affairs and the value of righting the foundation of our friendship. Through 32 minutes we are shown two groups of people speaking at solutions and actually acting on them together, capturing the raw passion for structural change in a respectful and educated manner is one of the many reasons as to why this film has earned honourable mention for the Nigel Moore Award.”
Explore the meaning, relevance, and power Treaties signed over 100 years ago still have today. Consider more deeply, in a time of ‘truth and reconciliation’, how opportunities for renewed understanding, humility and respect might lead us to new covenants and mutual healing.
CMU Press is pleased to announce the release of a Festschrift honouring Dr. Gerald Gerbrandt, who served as Canadian Mennonite University’s first sole President.
Titled A University of the Church for the World: Essays in Honour of Gerald Gerbrandt, theFestschrift—a German word for a collection of writing that is meant to honour a scholar—is a series of essays that reflect on what it means to be a Mennonite university.
“The essays are high quality. The writers were clearly engaged in a labour of love that called forth their best efforts in honouring this leader and friend,” said CMU Press editor Dr. Paul Doerksen. “All of the essays have something to do with what it might mean to be a Christian university. On that level, it’s an important contribution.”
The book, which takes its name from a phrase Gerbrandt coined to describe CMU, was co-edited by Dr. Paul Dyck, Professor of English, and Dr. Harry Huebner, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Theology.
Dyck and Huebner presented the book to Gerbrandt during CMU’s 2016-17 opening program on Saturday, September 24.
President Emeritus Gerald Gerbrandt comments on A University of the Church for the World: Essays in Honour of Gerald Gerbrandt, the Festschrift—a gift from CMU faculty presented to Gerbrandt at CMU’s 2016 Opening Program
Huebner noted that as president, Gerbrandt shaped CMU’s vision and mission, gave leadership in molding its faculty, and created a climate of open, free exchange of ideas and respect for difference.
“The essays in this book are all written out of a deep appreciation for this culture of open discussion, of open debate, guided by a commitment to the Christian faith,” Huebner said. “In a small way, it is an example of what a university of the church for the world might look like.”
Dyck added that the aim of the book was to bring together the various disciplines and activities at CMU and give readers an in-depth look at the life of the university.
It features 17 essays, including contributions from CMU faculty who teach international development, biblical and theological studies, music, English literature, biology, and math.
The book also includes essays on academic freedom, co-curricular activities at CMU, and CMU’s practicum program.
Additionally, the book features essays by University of Manitoba President David Barnard, Bluffton University President James Harder, church leaders David Wiebe and Robert J. Suderman, and more.
“We recommend the book to you as an example of the intellectual life of this university, both in the insights of its chapters and in the joyful interaction of them between these covers,” Dyck said at opening program.
Gerbrandt expressed his deep thanks for the book, particularly to the authors who took time to contribute essays.
“I really do look forward to reading each one of your reflections and seeing what I can learn from them,” Gerbrandt said, adding later: “I do trust that… the various contributions in it serve to help CMU and perhaps other universities to become more effective to serve the world and the church.”
Born in Chihuahua, Mexico and raised in Altona, MB, Gerbrandt earned his Bachelor of Christian Education from Canadian Mennonite Brethren Bible College (CMBC), one of CMU’s predecessor institutions. He went on to earn a Master of Divinity degree from Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Indiana as well as a PhD in Old Testament from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia.
After working for many years as a professor at CMBC, he was appointed the college’s Academic Dean, a position he held from 1982 to 1997. From 1997 to 2003, he served as President of CMBC, and from 2003 until his retirement in 2012, he served as President of CMU.
Gerbrandt and his wife, Esther, are active members at Bethel Mennonite Church, Winnipeg. They have three adult children, Nathan (Ang), Brad (Natalie), and Virginia (Andrew), and four grandchildren.
About CMU
A Christian university in the Anabaptist tradition, CMU’s Shaftesbury campus offers undergraduate degrees in arts, business, humanities, music, sciences, and social sciences, as well as graduate degrees in theology, ministry, peacebuilding and collaborative development, and an MBA. CMU has over 800 full-time equivalent students, including those enrolled in degree programs at the Shaftesbury and Menno Simons College campuses and in its Outtatown certificate program.
For additional information, please contact:
Kevin Kilbrei, Director of Communications & Marketing
kkilbrei@cmu.ca; 204.487.3300 Ext. 621
Canadian Mennonite University
500 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, MB R3P 2N2
For Eric Wiebe, attending Canadian Mennonite University’s annual Fall Festival event this past weekend was like coming home.
Wiebe, a retired high school physics teacher who lives in Kamloops, BC, graduated from Canadian Mennonite Bible College, one of CMU’s predecessor institutions, in 1966. He wanted to be at Fall Festival because members from his graduating class were gathering for their 50-year reunion.
“I haven’t seen many of them in the interim, so it was interesting to see what they’ve done with their lives,” Wiebe said, adding that attending Fall Festival was a reminder of “how significant CMU is.”
Wiebe was one of more than 1,000 people who gathered at Fall Festival Sept. 23-24.
Celebrated at the end of each September, Fall Festival features opportunities for students, alumni, friends, donors, and community members to connect, learn, play, and celebrate the CMU community.
In addition to class reunions, the weekend included community meals, a farmers market, a folk music festival, a bicycle race, a CMU basketball game, and a Face2Face community discussion featuring Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies, a 30-minute documentary by alumnus Brad Leitch that explores Indigenous-settler relations in the small town of Laird, SK.
Fall Festival concluded with CMU’s annual opening program, a time of worship to celebrate the start of a new school year.
CMU President Dr. Cheryl Pauls delivered a message based on CMU’s chapel theme for 2016-17, If We Walk in the Light (1 John 1:5-7).
“We seek to witness to the truth that God is light,” Pauls said. “My prayer is that the light of Christ will emanate through all who are touched by this learning community in some way—students, staff, faculty, board, council, alumni, friends, guests of all sorts, and many others.”
Distinguished Alumni Award recipients (l-r): Adrienne Wiebe, Peter Guenther, Ron Toews, and Brad Leith
The opening program included the presentation of the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Awards, which annually recognizes alumni who, through their lives, embody CMU’s values and mission of service, leadership, and reconciliation in church and society.
Pauls presented the awards to Peter Guenther, who served as the head of numerous correctional institutions during a 39-year career; Adrienne Wiebe, an international development worker; Ron Toews, a pastor and professor committed to leadership development in the Mennonite Brethren Church; and Brad Leitch, a filmmaker and peacebuilder.
At its best, CMU’s impact is evidenced in the life stories of alumni, said Vice President External Terry Schellenberg.
“While we would never claim full credit for who our alumni become or the good they contribute, we know that CMU does open imagination and passion and skill, and that this university lays foundations for faithfulness,” Schellenberg said.
Later in the program, Dr. Harry Huebner, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Theology, and Dr. Paul Dyck, Professor of English, presented a Festschrift honouring Dr. Gerald Gerbrandt, who served as CMU’s first sole President from 2003 to 2012.
Titled A University of the Church for the World: Essays in Honour of Gerald Gerbrandt, theFestschrift—a German word for a collection of writing that is meant to honour a scholar—is a series of essays that reflect on the work being done at CMU.
President Emeritus Gerald Gerbrandt comments on A University of the Church for the World: Essays in Honour of Gerald Gerbrandt, the Festschrift—a gift from CMU faculty to honour Gerbrandt’s impact on CMU during his administration.
The book takes its name from a phrase Gerbrandt coined to describe CMU. Huebner noted that as president, Gerbrandt shaped CMU’s vision and mission, gave leadership in molding its faculty, and created a climate of open, free exchange of ideas and respect for difference.
“The essays in this book are all written out of a deep appreciation for this culture of open discussion, of open debate, guided by a commitment to the Christian faith,” Huebner said. “In a small way, it is an example of what a university of the church for the world might look like.”
Gerbrandt expressed his thanks for the book, particularly to the authors who took time to write essays for it.
“I really do look forward to reading each one of your reflections and seeing what I can learn from them,” Gerbrandt said, adding later: “I do trust that… the various contributions in it serve to help CMU and perhaps other universities to become more effective to serve the world and the church.”
Ultimately, opening program—and Fall Festival as a whole—was about gratitude; gratitude not only for the contribution of alumni and a former President, but gratitude for the community that supports CMU.
“CMU’s present and its future is nowhere if it’s not held within a network of friends and alumni, parents and grandparents, (and) congregations who undergird the possibilities of this university,” Schellenberg said.
About CMU
A Christian university in the Anabaptist tradition, CMU’s Shaftesbury campus offers undergraduate degrees in arts, business, humanities, music, sciences, and social sciences, as well as graduate degrees in theology, ministry, peacebuilding and collaborative development, and an MBA. CMU has over 800 full-time equivalent students, including those enrolled in degree programs at the Shaftesbury and Menno Simons College campuses and in its Outtatown certificate program.
For additional information, please contact:
Kevin Kilbrei, Director of Communications & Marketing
kkilbrei@cmu.ca; 204.487.3300 Ext. 621
Canadian Mennonite University
500 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, MB R3P 2N2
Dr. Sue Sorensen, Associate Professor of English, has taught at CMU since 2005.
What do you love about your work here?
I used to be a bit of a recluse – I thought most of my friends were in books. I never used to be a people-person, but CMU has sort of turned me into one. The best people I have ever met are on this campus, and that includes students, faculty, and staff. There is a real culture of kindness and gratitude at CMU.
What are you reading for enjoyment?
This past summer, I reread some fiction by A.S. Byatt, who is the British writer I did my PhD thesis on. I also discovered Lydia Davis. She’s an American writer who writes radically short stories – some of them are only a sentence or two long. And for deep pleasure, I’m re-reading A Dance to the Music of Time, a sequence of 12 novels written by a British author named Anthony Powell.
Where or how do students give you hope?
Students at CMU are well read, extremely well prepared, and intellectually ambitious. Beyond that, the kindness they demonstrate gives me hope. I watch the way they help each other with personal problems, the way they help each other with peer tutoring, and a lot of sort of informal peer counselling that goes on here. When students are in trouble, they circle the wagons and help each other out. Over the years, I myself have been the recipient of this kindness and support that students have offered. It’s again that element of incredible kindness, generosity, and compassion that I’ve seen here at CMU.
What do you most long for in your work?
One of my wishes is that students recognize themselves as my fellow scholars. There’s not a hierarchy in my mind where I’m the person that gets to spout some sort of expertise and people are going to soak in my alleged wisdom. Scholarship is an investigative journey that we work on together, as peers.
Do you have any interesting projects underway in the broader community or church?
One thing I’m most excited about in the coming months is that some of my poetry has been set to music and will be sung by Renaissance Voices, a Winnipeg choir led by CMU’s own Janet Brenneman. I’ve written a series of poems about the Virgin Mary and the Annunciation for their Christmas program, and CMU alumnus Jesse Krause set one to music. It’s one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve ever had in my life: to know that my words have now been set to music and that I’m going to get to hear fine singers sing them.
What saying or motto inspires you?
Michael Ondaatje once said, “I’m just writing to try to see clearly.” That’s quite true and quite wondrous in its simplicity and its depth. A lot of people think that literary writing is about self-aggrandizement. Really, the best writers are not at all narcissistic – they’re actually looking for lucidity and clarity. I really prize this very simple quotation by Ondaatje.
Directed By Alumnus Brad Leitch, ‘Reserve 107’ Explores Indigenous-Settler Reconciliation
Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) will host the Manitoba premiere of the new documentary short Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies during its first Face2Face community discussion event of the 2016-17 school year.
The documentary explores Indigenous rights and title to the land in the small town of Laird, SK, where an old injustice is providing new opportunities for dialogue, friendship, and a fierce determination to right the wrongs of the past.
The public is invited to watch the 32-minute documentary on Friday, September 23 at 7:30 PM. The screening takes place in Marpeck Commons (2299 Grant Ave.). A Q and A with Brad Leitch, director of the film and a CMU alumnus, will precede the screening, and a panel discussion featuring people from the film will follow. Admission is free, and everyone is welcome to attend.
“We are excited to screen Reserve 107 and host a discussion about the important themes of Indigenous rights, claims to land, and reconciliation that it explores,” says David Balzer, Assistant Professor of Communications and Media at CMU, who will moderate the discussion.
In Laird, Mennonites and Lutherans discovered that the land they live on is in fact the former reserve of the Young Chippewayan First Nation.
In 2006, Mennonites, Lutherans, and the Young Chippewayan First Nation gathered on the sacred hill of Stoney Knoll/Opwashemoe Chakatinaw. With goodwill and shared goals, they signed a memorandum of understanding, committing themselves to finding justice for the Young Chippewayan First Nation.
“Our film picks up the story a decade later to see what’s happened and how the communities are doing,” Leitch says. “I’m very interested in seeing what peacebuilding looks like in a practical sense, and film is a great tool for showing that.”
The discussion following the film will feature a handful of people who appear in the documentary, including Barb and Wilmer Froese, who run a family farm in Laird; Ray Funk of Prince Albert, SK, who is a board member with Mennonite Central Committee Saskatchewan, which helped fund the film; and Chief George Kingfisher, hereditary chief of the Young Chippewayan First Nation.
The audience will be invited to participate in the conversation.
Balzer notes that in each year of its existence, CMU’s Face2Face discussion series has included an event relating to Indigenous-settler issues in an effort to promote reconciliation and being good neighbours.
“Reserve 107 picks up on an element of the story that our discussion events at CMU haven’t addressed before,” Balzer says. “The people participating in the panel are on the ground level of what is happening in Laird, so it will give people who come to the event an intimate look at how people negotiate treaty relationships in their lives.”
A scene from the film Reserve 107 shows Chief George Kingfisher and Ray Funk discuss themes of Indigenous rights, claims to land, and reconciliation.
Described in reviews as “beautifully photographed,” “wonderfully accessible,” and “a valuable resource,” Reserve 107 was an official selection at this year’s DOXA Documentary Film Festival in Vancouver, BC, as well as the Speechless Film Festival in Mankato, MN, where it was given an award of merit. To watch a trailer and learn more about the film, visit reserve107thefilm.com.
Started in 2013, Face2Face is a series of conversations organized by CMU, designed to engage the community on a wide variety of current events and issues at the intersection of faith and life.
“Journey to Renewed Covenants” is the first of four Face2Face events CMU will host during the 2016-17 school year. For details, visit cmu.ca/face2face.
About CMU
A Christian university in the Anabaptist tradition, CMU’s Shaftesbury campus offers undergraduate degrees in arts, business, humanities, music, sciences, and social sciences, as well as graduate degrees in theology, ministry, peacebuilding and collaborative development, and an MBA. CMU has over 800 full-time equivalent students, including those enrolled in degree programs at the Shaftesbury and Menno Simons College campuses and in its Outtatown certificate program.
For additional information, please contact:
Kevin Kilbrei, Director of Communications & Marketing
kkilbrei@cmu.ca; 204.487.3300 Ext. 621
Canadian Mennonite University
500 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, MB R3P 2N2
Preliminary fall enrolment at Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) shows stability of student registrations across all programs, with an overall Full Time Equivalent (FTE) of 829.
Fall registrations at the university’s Shaftesbury campus have increased over last year by 2%, with 630 students and a FTE of 601. Marginal growth reflects an increase in international student enrolment.
Registrations at CMU’s downtown site, Menno Simons College, also are stable with a FTE of 268.
About CMU
A Christian university in the Anabaptist tradition, CMU’s Shaftesbury campus offers undergraduate degrees in arts, business, humanities, music, sciences, and social sciences, as well as graduate degrees in theology, ministry, peacebuilding and collaborative development, and an MBA. CMU has over 800 full-time equivalent students, including those enrolled in degree programs at the Shaftesbury and Menno Simons College campuses and in its Outtatown certificate program.
For additional information, please contact:
Kevin Kilbrei, Director of Communications & Marketing
kkilbrei@cmu.ca; 204.487.3300 Ext. 621
Canadian Mennonite University
500 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, MB R3P 2N2
Brad Leitch (nee Langendoen, CMU ’13) is an award-winning filmmaker and peacebuilder who approaches difficult topics with empathy, compassion, deep listening, and boundless energy. He is the executive producer and founder of Rebel Sky Media, a film and video production company in Winnipeg, MB. His directorial work has explored topics of peace and justice in Canada, Iraqi-Kurdistan, Israel, Palestine, and the United Kingdom. His work is currently featured in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, and in a permanent exhibit at the Pier 21 Museum of Immigration in Halifax, NS. Leitch and his wife, Adrienne, attend Hope Mennonite Church.
Celebrated at the end of each September, Fall Festival features opportunities for students, alumni, friends, donors, and community members to connect, learn, play, and celebrate the CMU community.
