Welcome to the world, Hogan Francis Lambert! He was born to parents Daette and Mark Lambert (2011) on March 12 at 10:46am, weighing 8 lbs 10 oz. All are doing extremely well, and dad reports he has managed to catch up on sleep (for now!). Additional congratulations to Mark who has been admitted to the PhD program in Theology at the Divinity School as a Disciples House Scholar beginning this fall.

Sympathy to Ana Gobledale (1975) and Thandiwe Gobledale (2009) on the death of Ana's father and Thandiwe's grandfather, Alfred S. Dale Jr., on March 3 in Bellingham, Washington. He was 87. Al Dale served as a United Methodist minister in Illinois, California, and Washington state, as well as a missionary to Poland and Fiji. He was also provost of Central YMCA Community College in Chicago, a chaplain, and a US Army paratrooper. He was active in many community and social justice groups in Bellingham.

Liv Gibbons (2008) is now serving Northwest United Protestant Church in Richland, Washington. April 6 was her first Sunday. She is pictured here with Isla and her parents. Spouse Elijah Buck is wrapping up his job in Lexington, KY; Liv formerly served as Minister in Residence at Central Christian Church in Lexington. Congratulations to Liv and to the good folks in Richland.

The National Benevolent Association (NBA) of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) called Bonnie Osei-Frimpong (2005) as the Project Coordinator for its new XPLOR program ministry in February. NBA XPLOR is a church-wide initiative grounded in a congregationally hosted residency program designed for young adult Disciples (ages 21–30) looking to explore lives of care and service.

University Christian Church, near the University of Maryland, has become the first Disciples congregation to become a Bridge of Hope congregation. Bridge of Hope is a 25-year-old ministry with the goal of "Ending Homelessness, One Family at at Time." Marshall Dunn (1960; trustee) will be the coordinator for the program, working with a social worker and others from the congregation and under the leadership of Senior Minister Nathan Hill. Bridge of Hope congregations commit themselves to providing ongoing support and friendship to a single homeless mother and her children for as much as a year or even more, helping her achieve independence. The congregation recruits and trains up to 12 mentors whose primary role is to be genuine friends to the mom and her kids, phoning, organizing outings, and building trust.

Vy Nguyen (2004) has been honored as the recipient of this year's Martin Luther King Jr Award given by the Christian Church in Northern California and Nevada. The award "recognizes the great achievements for justice that have been contributed by Disciples in the region." Vy is the Associate Field Director for Church World Service in California. Previous recipients include the late Robert Lemon (1944), Esther and Carl Robinson (1944), and JoAnne Kagiwada (Trustee).

Lena Noelle Staton arrived in Albany, Oregon, just in time for Christmas on December 15 at 4:09 pm. She was 6 lbs, 7 oz. and 19 inches long. Parents are Matt and Sara Staton (2003); big brother is Evan.

We are saddened by the death of alumnus Woody Wasson (1940), on December 10, 2013, in Nashville. He was 97. Read the In memoriam.

In mid-December, Beau Underwood (2006) was promoted to Senior Director of Advocacy and Communications at Sojourners in Washington DC. He now oversees the organization's communications strategy and media efforts in addition to directing its government relations and issue advocacy efforts. He helps to create and implement the organization’s issue campaigns, manages online advocacy, and builds relationships with key partners and constituencies.

Congratulations to Cynthia Lindner (1978; Trustee), Director of Ministry Studies at the Divinity School: the Lilly Endowment, Inc., has approved a $475K grant for a five year project (2013-2018) that she designed and will direct at the Divinity School. "The Chicago Commons Project," will bring early career pastoral leaders to Chicago to inquire together about leadership through intensive cohort engagement with civic leaders and the arts.