At the end of April 2009, Don Browning (1956; trustee) received very good news in his treatment for cancer of the duodenum. After undergoing surgery for the cancer last June, doctors found signs that the cancer had metastasized in his liver. They've now pronounced his liver "all clear"---a recuperation that defies the odds. He'll continue with milder chemotherapy to address remaining traces. He's feeling well, if a little weary of having constraints on his schedule.

Bethany Lowery, Michael Swartzentruber, Michael LeChevalier, and Benedict Varnum (current scholars and residents) were members of the planning team for the fifth annual Divinity School Ministry Conference, held May 1-2, 2009. The theme was "From the Ends of the Earth: Christianity in the 21st Century." Alumni Ryan Gilbert (2005) and Vy Nguyen (2004) returned for the event.

Pamela James Jones (former resident) has been appointed to the religion faculty at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, effective July 1, 2009. She is now finishing her dissertation in the History of Christianity.

House Scholar Joseph Blosser has been named Visiting Assistant Professor of Religion at DePaul University in Chicago for the 2009-10 academic year. He has been teaching as an adjunct at DePaul while writing his dissertation on Ernst Troeltsch and Adam Smith.

House Scholar Tish Duncan has received a PEO Scholar Award to support work on her dissertation during 2009-2010. Her dissertation will explore the single surviving instance of an early Christian “romance novel” and how it opens an alternative view of early Jewish-Christian relations in the Mediterranean world.

Lynchburg College has announced that Stephanie McLemore (1992) will become its new Chaplain and Director of Church Relations, effective July 1, 2009. She has served as the Associate Regional Minister of the Christian Church in Virginia for the past seven years.

David Vargas (1971; trustee) has published a new edition of a 1988 book by his father, Reverend Joanuin Vargas, titled Los Discipulos de Cristo en Puerto Rico: albores, crecimiento y madurez de un peregrinar de fe, constancia y esperanza 1899-1987. The book traces the journey of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Puerto Rico. It now includes additional photos, an appendix, introductory pieces, and a study by Carmelo Alvarez Santos. 

Kris Culp (1982) concluded three years of service as chair of the board of DisciplesWorld, Inc., on March 27. April Lewton (2004) continues as secretary of the corporation. Katherine Kinnamon (1977) has been elected to the DisciplesWorld, Inc., board beginning January 1, 2010.

Russell Fuller (1948) had surgery to remove his gall bladder in mid-March. He is now home after a twelve day hospital stay and is recovering slowly but steadily.

"Dancing backwards in high heels: Reflections on being a woman in ministry," by Amy Lignitz Harken (2000) was published in the winter 2009 inaugural issue of Just Women, a quarterly magazine developed by the International Disciples Women's Ministries. Also in the magazine: an exchange of letters between Cynthia McCrae and granddaughter Kiah McCrae Shepley. Kiah's grandfather and Cynthia's spouse is Ian McCrae (1947).