We are excited to announce our fall Lecture Series. With the success of our spring “Leading through the Valley” Lenten Lecture Series, we are excited to carry the momentum into the fall. Our fall topic will be “big why.” There are some big questions facing our community and world. We’ll host local community leaders who will help us think deeply about topics that affect our personal lives and Manhattan community.

Nate McClendon is a local author, musician and Teaching Artist In Residence at Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art at Kansas State University. McClendon’s new book takes an innovative look at the process of grief pulling from personal experience after the death of his daughter.

Scott Voos, Executive Director, and Stephanie Grynkiewicz, Outreach & Jail Coordinator, at “Be Able” in downtown Manhattan. Be Able exists to engage with those in adversity by creating connections, cultivating skills, and opening doors of opportunity. When we see community members struggling, we might find ourselves thinking “why don’t they just get a job?!” Voos and Grynkiewicz will help us unpack the complexities of poverty and unemployment.

Rev. Melanie Nord is our Spiritual Life Leader. After serving as a pastor for 11 years, Nord decided to leave the local church. Her family, friends and neighbors decidedly turned away from organized religion causing her to ponder the decline in organized religion. Her small business the “Slow Spirit Sanctuary” caters to the unchurched.

With the increase of geriatric needs with the “Baby Boomer” generation, some worry the decline in nursing will not match the need. Will there be an employment crisis within the geriatric healthcare community? Our Meadowlark staff panel will examine this question with us. Director of Nursing Jen Schoenhofer, Assistant Director of Nursing Kashaya Zukowske, and Community Healthcare Recruiter Jericho Taylor will discuss their work and commitment to keeping Meadowlark Hills safe and staffed.

   ~ Oct. 29 - Nate McClendon – Why is Grief so Complicated?

   ~ Nov. 5 - Scott Voos and Stephanie Grynkiewicz – Why Can’t People Just Get a Job?

   ~ Nov. 12 - Rev. Melanie Nord – Why Aren’t People Going to Church?

   ~ Nov. 19 - Healthcare Panel: Jennifer Schoenhofer, Kashaya Zukowske, Jericho Taylor – Why Aren’t More People Joining into Geriatric Nursing?