News Briefs for February 1, 2019
News reports from Southern Adventist University, Malawi, Andrews University, Washington Adventist University and Silver Spring, Maryland:
Southern Adventist University student Caleb Sutherland, a junior business management major who has served as an EMT, has invented a patent to completely stabilize patients with pneumothorax and tension-pneumothorax (a punctured lung). He has started a company for his lung isolation tube (LIT) earning him a finalist spot for Chattanooga Technology Council’s annual Early Innovator Award.
Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) announced results of a project in Malawi aimed at providing daily school lunches for children at risk of going hungry. The goal was to feed 7,750 children but with donor support, 7,984 hungry children were fed, helping to keep children in school. ADRA made the announcement on January 24 which is International Education Day.
On the 25th of January, Andrews University announced a Challenge of the Day via its Facebook account. The challenge, crafted by its Wellness department, was “No coffee or tea” and it was labeled “Fluid Friday.” A number of the comments on the post were confessions of failure to rise to the challenge. “Failed that one a few hours ago! ????,” said David Efren Ortiz Saenz. He later clarified that he had failed because of a dark roast, no cream that he vowed was delicious.
From Bethany Sheridan, the Adventist Today Campus Representative at Washington Adventist University:
This year on January 27, 2019 – myself and a few other students attended the Women’s Legislative Briefing. The Women’s Legislative Briefing (WLB) is the premier and longest-standing women’s legislative event in the state of Maryland. It is coordinated by the Montgomery County Commission for Women and brings together advocates, policy makers, and emerging leaders to empower, engage, and mobilize Marylanders around issues affecting women and girls throughout the state. Here, issues that concern the rights and safety of women were discussed. Nine different initiatives were addressed in the afternoon seminars, where senators, speakers, CEO’s, Program Directors, and others explained the bills working to be passed. They also opened the floor for anyone to ask questions. Some of these issues included health care, economic justice, human trafficking, safety in work environments, sexual assault and domestic violence, and issues affecting younger generations – like bullying, mental health, and body image.
The amount of information to soak up exceeded the capacity of my brain. However, I felt like the door to bigger opportunities was left open and I was welcomed in without second thought. This event was just the beginning! The social work students will be lobbying on the hill a few months from now.
As an individual that has grown up in the Adventist church and still professes to Adventist, the feeling of community is important to me. Have I always felt a healthy community surrounded me? No, not always. But the idea and desire for one remains in us all. This is why social justice does more than just divide, it does unite, regardless of what a lot of people may say. So apart from being an Adventist, I am a student who believes in advocacy. In Proverbs 31:8 it says speak up for the voiceless, for those who are vulnerable. As someone who has watched people go unheard, issues go undiscussed, and churches remove themselves from the problems in the real world, I commit to being a voice. A voice for people, not because they are a specific religion, or a specific race, or ethnic group, or gender, or political party, but because they are a part of humanity in every definition. This is a concept I wish all would consider and come to accept. The keynote speaker of the event, Monica Ramirez, said something that has stayed with me – “When we lead with love, we can make change. If we pour love over our work, the passion will stay aflame.”
According to the Washington Business Journal, Adventist HealthCare’s 180-bed Silver Spring, Maryland hospital will open August 25. The 472,000-square-foot project is costing $404 million and will largely replace Washington Adventist Hospital in Takoma Park, where it will run a 24/7 urgent care center and maintain some physician offices.
