Congratulations to House Scholar Kristel Clayville, who received the Louisville Institute's Dissertation Fellowship. The fellowship supports the final year of dissertation writing.

Daisy Machado (1989) was selected as one of the 2012 recipients of the El Diario/La Prensa Mujeres Destacadas Award, which honors successful and influential Latinas in the New York City area. Previous honorees have included journalist Soledad O'Brien, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Congresswoman Nydia M. Velazquez. Daisy Machado is the dean of academic affairs and professor of church history at Union Theological Seminary.

Former Resident Madison McClendon and Current House Scholar Andrew Packman were co-chairs of the Eighth Annual Student-Run Ministry Conference, held April 13, 2012, at the Divinity School. Entitled On the Edge of Glory: Making Disciples in a "Secular" Age, the conference featured sociologist Mark Chaves; Liz Myer Boulton (1989) was the conference preacher and Clark Gilpin (1970; trustee) was the respondent. House Scholars McKinna Daugherty, Katherine Raley, and Alexis Vaughan, and Current Resident Katherine Ray were members of the planning committee.

Congratulations to House Scholar Andrew Packman, who has been admitted to the PhD program in Theology at the Divinity School. He is currently completing the MDiv degree and will be ordained into the Christian ministry in August at his home congregation, First Christian Church, Centralia, Illinois.

F. McDonald (Don) Ervin, a longtime member of University Church and longtime friend of the Disciples Divinity House, died on April 3, 2012, in hospice care in Indianapolis. He was surrounded by family, prayer, and songs at the time of his death. His son, Bruce Ervin, wrote, "We are so very grateful for Dad's patient, gentle, loving ways; for his passion for justice; his insistence that Christian faith be about the practical work of caring for the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the blind and the poor; his commitment to affordable housing and credit unions on the Southside of Chicago; his generosity, and the sweet compassion of his face." Don and his late wife Jean Ervin regularly attended Monday Night dinners; when they were present, we felt that the saints of the church were with us. A celebration of his life was held Saturday, May 12, at 1:00 pm at University Church, Chicago. Don and Jean Ervin are survived by three children, Bruce, Rosemary, and Tom, and their families. More here.

Congratulations to Allie and Joe Blosser (2005) on the birth of Seth Blosser on March 6, 2012. Seth weighed 5 lbs. 6 oz. and was 19 inches long. At almost 3 months, Seth weighs nearly 14 lbs.

House Scholar McKinna Daugherty performed Beethoven's Missa Solemnis at Symphony Center with the Chicago Chorale on March 5. Led by Artistic Director Bruce Tammen, the Chicago Chorale is a sixty-voice ensemble that "continues the tradition of great amateur choral institutions." www.chicagochorale.org. McKinna has been singing with the Chorale for nearly two years.

Congratulations to Stephanie McLemore (1992) and big sister Sophia on the birth of Ellery Jean McLemore on March 1, 2012. She weighed 7 lbs, 10 oz., and was 21 inches long.

Ray Greenfield (2000) died April 1, 2012, at his home in Lewistown, Illinois. He was 57. Our sympathies are with his wife Helen, his three children, Michael, Meagan, and Allison, and four grandchildren. Ray was the pastor of the Illinois Street Christian Church in Lewistown and the Ipava Christian Church. He was a chaplain at Graham Hospital in Canton and the former pastor of First Christian Church in Rushville. He was born January 27, 1955, at Norfolk, Virginia. He first married Susan Ozier. In 1995, he was remarried to Helen Ronat in Jacksonville, Illinois. He pursued his college education as a second career student, earning his bachelor's degree in social work from MacMurray College in Jacksonville in 2000. He entered the Divinity School as a Disciples House Scholar in 2000 and commuted every week from Jacksonville. When he graduated in 2003, he considered the M.Div. degree to be half Helen's and made sure that she also had a graduation cap. He was ordained at Central Christian Church, Jacksonville. Funeral services will be 10:00 am Thursday, April 5, at the Illinois Street Christian Church in Lewistown. Burial will be in Jacksonville, Illinois.

We are saddened by the death of Honorary Trustee for Life and former Board president, Jack V. Reeve (1942), on February 25, 2012, in Indianapolis. He was 93. He suffered a stroke and entered hospice care on February 13. He is a former regional minister of the Christian Church in Illinois and Wisconsin and also a former faculty member of Lexington Theological Seminary. We celebrate his long life, commitment to ministry and service, exemplary stewardship, love of music, love of family, and his stalwart friendship with the House. More here.