You know that feeling you get when some sudden and weighty news surprises you? For just a split second, everything stops. When you remember how to breathe, you concentrate on that activity—in and out—as the weight of the matter seeps coldly into your chest.

This is something of how I felt on Wednesday after learning of Bill Vande Kopple’s death. While I never had BVK as a professor, I still fell under the glow of his warmth, humor, and powerful care for students. Our interaction continued after graduation, mostly thanks to social media, and I felt the taut line of Calvin English care and investment keeping me connected even years and miles from graduation.

In the hours following the announcement of Bill’s passing, my Facebook news feed filled with memories and images of a good man, a fine professor, and a dedicated mentor. As I read this outpouring of grief-tinged gratitude, I remembered why I was drawn into the English department in the first place.

See, I didn’t begin my Calvin career as an English major. I began as a pre-law sociology major, then tried on several other disciplines before graduating with an English major and writing minor. As I reflected on this journey as part of my senior seminar class, I went back to an interaction I had the evening of a Calvin Writers Read in the Bunker Center—the second one I’d attended. I was a freshly minted English major, and as I helped Elizabeth Vander Lei unload snacks from her van, I had to laugh as I told her that Writers Read, honestly, was one of the reasons I’d chosen the major. “No, it makes sense,” she told me. “You saw a community, and you wanted more of it.”

And she was right. Something about the Calvin English community drew me in. The subject matter was appealing in its own right—words and stories are my lifeblood—but something about studying words at Calvin was special. The camaraderie and community among faculty, staff, and students in the department was tangible. I was taught, but I was also nurtured.

From the New England Saints interim to classes filled with bright and engaged colleagues, to events like the Festival of Faith and Writing, I found not just a spark, but a bright fire of connection. I sensed life in the English department, and I was drawn to it.

That community was part of the reason I was (am) excited to be a part of this blogging project. While I am currently connected to several wonderful and life-giving communities, Calvin English will always hold a special plot of real estate in my heart. I joyed to read the names of my fellow bloggers, a number of whom have joined me in class discussions or critiqued my prose or poetry or traveled long miles with me on a coach bus. There are less familiar names, too, which remind me that the community of Calvin writers is a growing and evolving one.

And as a community grows and evolves, it also loses members. The Calvin English community suffered a blow this week. In a statement, Elizabeth Vander Lei noted, “Losing Bill leaves us all feeling more than a little lost. While we do not grieve as those without hope, we do struggle to imagine the department—the world—without Bill a part of it.”

There is nothing easy or happy about this news. It is hard and it is sad news for anyone whose life was touched by Bill Vande Kopple. In the midst of a time of grief, though, I am comforted and inspired by the community of care that spans boundaries of time and space.

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Note: for those of you still in the Grand Rapids area, visitation for Bill will be held at Zaagman Memorial Chapel from 2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. on Sunday, and the funeral will be held at Alger Park Christian Reformed Church at 1 p.m. on Monday.

Alissa Anderson

Alissa Goudswaard Anderson (’10) lives with her husband Josh in New York City, where she is earning her Master of Divinity at General Theological Seminary. Alissa enjoys private kitchen dance parties, big Midwestern thunderstorms, and perusing other peoples’ bookshelves. For more, find her online at www.episcotheque.wordpress.com or tweet her @episcotheque.