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During April, several PUC students and staff joined in a two-week effort to clean and repair the dilapidated homes of elderly and disabled citizens living in nearby Calistoga. Teaming with Rebuilding Calistoga, a volunteer organization under the sponsorship of Calistoga Affordable Housing, Inc., they contributed to the restoration of nearly 50 residences, half of which were mobile homes. PUC chaplain Roy Ice helped get the college involved and contributed his own efforts to the rebuilding project. “I think that it’s important to show that PUC is a resource to our community, and not the other way around,” Ice says. The project was conceived by Larry Kromann, a retired school principal and PUC church member, who wanted to find a way to help the elderly. He gathered the help and support of community members for the home repair project, and received the sponsorship of Home Depot, which donated a $5,000 gift card and promised to send out 30 of its employees. A ceremony was held on April 25 to recognize everybody who volunteered. Calistoga mayor Jack Gingles publicly recognized PUC’s contribution and expressed his gratitude towards the college’s involvement. “I want you to take a message back to PUC and your...

The evening of Sunday, April 25, brought hundreds of students (and other members of the campus and local community) to the outdoor area at the center of the Pacific Union College campus for the grand REVO PUC 2010 event. Following the tradition of the past two REVO PUC events, there was a rummage sale, silent auction, information booths, food sales, concerts, and a fashion show exhibiting innovative student designs. The outdoor stage at the main REVO event hosted three bands: a student band called G.S.S.M., a student-and-alum band called The West Atlantic, and a new Los Angeles band on tour in Northern California, She Screams Remedy. For the fashion show, six student designers were each allotted $50 to spend at thrift stores and five models. Each designer chose a theme, models, and music and coordinated meetings and rehearsals. Two faculty members and REVO founder Nina Brav served as judges. In addition to the fun and entertainment that drew people to REVO events, student leaders felt that there was a deeper sense of the project's value. "Students are willing to turn out in droves because they understand the point of it all," says Tyler Cantrell, who recently finished his PUC classes...

This year, Pacific Union College celebrated Earth Day with a fair, a clean-up project, and a special speaker. L. Hunter Lovins, a globally recognized leader and consultant in sustainable practices, arrived with her signature cowboy hat to speak to members of the campus and community during the morning's all-school colloquy and a special evening lecture on “Sustainability in Napa County." At the colloquy program, before Lovins spoke, environmental studies majors Dustin Baumbach and Molly Reeves shared about their internships, one working at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito and one at the Safari West wild animal preserve. Lovins then began her address by introducing the argument for why life as we know it cannot sustain itself; but rather than citing just environmental "drivers of change" and "intolerable signs," she addressed the spectrum from nature to economics to social equity. Then, rather than asking individuals to reduce their carbon footprint or some such practice, she suggested that if we are to meet the challenges and goals of the future and adapt to sustain the planet, we must do so on an entirely new paradigm. This includes "world best practices" for addressing human needs, smart development that is truly sustainable, redesigning education....

This year's Student Week of Prayer brought eight current Pacific Union College students to the platform to share with their fellow students about becoming active Christians. Morning and evening programs (and a change of class schedules) brought the campus together for messages on this year's Student Association theme, "From the Ground Up," emphasizing community, acceptance, and personal ministry. One "active" element of the programs was a daily challenge, such as "Tell someone how you appreciate them for something." Laura Dominguez, the first speaker, started by reading a quote: "The human soul spends his or her life searching for that one thing that will bring fullness, meaning, and happiness to their life." With help from other students, she acted out a dialogue in which her heart was missing something and people came along with suggestions of how to fill it. Education didn't seem to work. Money didn't fit. Music didn't cover it. Fun and parties weren't quite right. Romance wasn't enough. But when a friend came to tell her about "the Alpha and the Omega," about "something much much better that will give you a love way purer than others," about "Jesus Christ," the fit was perfect. "The greatest struggle for...

The new exhibit at the Rasmussen Art Gallery celebrates the many various talents of some of Pacific Union College’s creative student minds. April 15 was the opening and awards presentation for the annual Student Art Exhibition in the gallery. Around 80 visitors, including students, faculty, and community members, came to cheer the student artists on. The show was open to all PUC students of any major, and many students had responded to the call for entries, resulting in 165 exhibited works. Student artwork was judged under the categories Drawing, Opaque Media Painting, Watercolor, Graphic Design, Printmaking, Mixed Media, Stained Glass, Sculpture, and Ceramics. Visitors viewed the show while enjoying refreshments, including fresh fruit and Sparkling Martinelli’s, all the while talking with the students who had come to view their own success. Various prizes were awarded for the different categories—$25 for first place, $20 for second, and $15 for third. There was also a $50 grand prize awarded for the emphasized environmental theme of PUC's Green Week. The show will remain up in the gallery through May 4. Regular gallery hours are Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 1-5 pm. Admission is free and open to the public....