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After months of preparation and promotion, the Pacific Union College campus mall was alive and packed with people on the night of May 18 as the twilight hours welcomed the first REVO PUC. The event was the brainchild of graphic design major Rachel Thompson and inspired by a campus visit from activist David Batstone, encouraging awareness about human trafficking. The awareness of this cause encouraged Thompson to take it up as her own and encourage her peers to do the same. With hundreds of students in attendance, REVO (short for “revolution”) provided a variety of entertainment and features to draw attention to its cause. There was a spoken word poetry slam, a fashion show, several student organization booths and a concert by Hawaii-based indie band, Goodbye Elliott. Corn dogs and lemonade were on sale and the Amnesty International booth was right at home in the awareness-raising event. The marquee feature of the event was the student-run benefit sale. Hundreds of items that were donated by students, faculty and community members were resold and auctioned off. All proceeds went to a project of Batstone’s “Not For Sale” campaign, building a shelter and vocational center for trafficked and abused children in Lima,...

Before graduating from Pacific Union College in 2007 with a double major in photography and graphic design, Michael Murtaugh had a passion for service and a desire for mission work but no idea how those components would fit into his career path. While a student, Michael made a name for himself on campus as both a talented photographer and an active fighter for world issues with his involvement in Amnesty International. Although these were significant aspects of Murtaugh’s life, he didn’t know how they would carry over after he received his diploma. Then in June he made a connection with Maranatha and was asked to be a part of small media team stationed in India. “I had always dreamed of going outside the country when I graduated,” said Murtaugh. “I had originally thought of going to Latin America but when I found out about the job with Maranatha I knew it was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.” The opportunity proved to be worth waiting for as Michael’s duties took him from the congested streets of New Delhi to Mother Teresa’s home for the destitute and dying. Located in the town of Gurgaon, right outside of New Delhi, Michael was...

For the first time, Pacific Union College’s annual Spring Fest found a new home this year: the Napa County Fairgrounds in Calistoga. As a collaboration with the Napa Valley Cinco de Mayo festival, the May 4 event came as a result of careful planning on the part of student activities director Juliana Dalotto and the 14 clubs that took part in the festivities. Spring Fest has traditionally been held in the PUC gymnasium, but when the Cinco de Mayo festival was reported to be happening the same day, the organizers decided that this would be a great opportunity not only to give PUC some visibility within the Valley but also a great way to get connected with the local communities. Dalotto stated, “I always thought it would be wonderful if PUC could play a bigger role in the community at large. This was a perfect venue to set that precedent because the committee members were very supportive about helping PUC get involved and they helped me make it happen.” The day began with a Cinco de Mayo parade that ran down Calistoga’s main street. In the midst of the rancheros on horseback, the cultural dancers and the sounds of Latin...

On May 18, 2008, at 7 p.m., REVO PUC, a student-organized fundraiser for social justice, will be held on the Pacific Union College campus. It will feature a fashion show, a poetry slam, a flea market and a live concert. REVO (short for revolution) started in Hilo, Hawaii, in 2007 and has since become a chain of awareness-rasing events geared towards different causes of injustice around the globe. REVO PUC is directed towards increasing awareness and funds to stop human trafficking. Event organizer Rachael Thompson says that the inspiration for the event came to her after activist and entrepreneur David Batstone visited the campus and talked about the “Not for Sale” campaign to stop human trafficking. Thompson said, “Our hope for REVO, as it relates to the community, is that people will understand PUC to be a place where people are stirred to action in place of apathy. I've seen people's lives transformed as they learn about the truths of modern day slavery, and the idea that they can do something practical to abolish it.” The flea market will sell items collected from PUC faculty, students, and staff. Donors were asked to give careful consideration to their gifts. “[This is]...

At a May 5 meeting at the Angwin Fire Department, Napa County Sheriff deputy Jon Thompson awarded PUC student Scott Roberts and Angwin resident Mike Real with a Sheriff’s medallion in honor of emergency service they provided. Late on April 19, Roberts and Real, who had met just the day before, were headed back from Safeway when they saw an orange glow in the road near Beringer Vineyards. They were the first car to happen on a collision involving two patrol cars, one of which was burning. Roberts, a firefighter with the Angwin Fire Department and an EMT, had his EMT pack. Real, who had emergency training from the Navy, joined Roberts in doing an initial assessment of the situation and of injured Napa County Sheriff deputy Steve Paris. When ammunition rounds started going off from the burning patrol car, Roberts and Real moved Paris away from the car and continued medical attention. With a nurse who also stopped, and blankets from people at the nearby apartments, the two kept charge of the medical situation for around 20 minutes until emergency personnel showed up in force. As they talked with Paris to make sure he was conscious, he amazed them...